Eating in Rome can be a unique experience or a catastrophe: how to get oriented among the multitude of messages that we read in the pages of guidebooks, newspapers, leaflets, brochures…?
Can you suggest a good restaurant?
This is the question, which is mostly asked by all those who visit the Eternal town. As a matter of fact eating in Rome can be a unique experience or a catastrophe: how to get oriented among the multitude of messages that we read in the pages of guidebooks, newspapers, leaflets, brochures…? And where does advertisment end and quality begin? How to avoid the sadly famous “tourist restaurants”? Names of restaurants and trattorias betray the attempt – and often it works – of giving illusions with their meanings more than satisfy our palate. Here it is “Vecchia Roma” (old Rome), “Cesaretto” (little Caesar), “Ponzio Pilato”, “Al Cardinale” (Cardinal’s), “Ar Cuppolone” (at the dome), “Er Gricio”, Er Cassamortaro, (the grave digger) “Li Sette Colli” (the Seven Hills), “I due ladroni” (the two thieves) “Nerone ar Colosseo” (nero at the Colosseum)… this is true at least for those restaurants which maintain a connection with the Roman traditional cusine, so called “Roman cusine”, where also names of receipts still recall a truculent, popular, colourful and irreverent flavour: “Rigatoni alla burina”, il “Cazzimperio2, “Pasta alla Puttanesca”, i “Cazzetti d’Angelo”…and you know, eating out in Rome is a very well known and common habit, a real “convivium” “banqueting”, moments of socialisation where not only food is important but also being together, laughing, listening, amplify the pleasure of food talking about food…
The culinary tradition of Rome has ancient origins and a mythical richeness and variety: from the banquets of Trimalcione in the Satyricon by Petronio Arbitro to the recipes of Apicio in “De re coquinaria”, passing through the Jewish community present in Rome before the birth of Jesus Christ or by the habits of the Italic people with their poor cuisine based on breeding, agriculture and fishing. Not to mention the Etruscans, the medieval refectories, new products coming from America, the baroque, the Pope, and other innovations introduced by various invasions … But what is today the “homemade” Roman cusine? Typical dishes often prepared with simple ingredients but with a strong taste, of popular origins: rigaglie, pajate, animelle,ventrame, abbacchi, trippe, coratelle, code vaccinare, pecorino, rigatoni, carbonare, carciofi alla giudìa, puntarelle, tonnarelli cacio e pepe…well “se magna alla grande!” There are also those restaurants that attempt a remake of traditional receipts of Ancient Rome with the consulence of experts, often archaeologists, with a scientific result: but we wonder whether it is really possible to reproduce some original recipes as the “garum”! Who writes has experienced a “Roman dinner” in a restaurant of “archaeological cuisine”…the most exciting thing is the explanation that goes with dishes served at table…unfortunately food tasted of artefact, as the ugly decorations on the walls of the same restaurant. Obviously in Rome there are all kind of restaurants, elegant, traditional, innovative and all nationalities are actually represented, French, Japanese, North-Corean, Tex-mex, Arab, Argentine, Brazilian, African, Russian…
Activitaly has selected for you the best restaurants, from the typical restaurant where you will taste original dishes of the Roman cusine in a friendly atmosphere to the new tendencies of oriental and international cusines or biological, brunch with real Italian flavours. In the Infocity section it is possible to search by zone, type of restaurant, price, food: you will get addresses of selected restaurants on the basis of quality and price and one short comment will help you in your choice.
