A Selection of Roman Restaurants
Created | Updated Mar 17, 2008
In Rome, you may be looking for somewhere to eat and most of these places are moderate in price, the most expensive meals being at Asinocotto and Antico Arco (with the higher prices bringing a corresponding increase in quality of both food and service and/or a more extensive cellar).
The restaurants are:
Ristorante Asinocotto (Trastevere area)Antico Arco (Gianiculum Hill)
Il Matriciano (Prati / Vaticano area)
Ristorante Abruzzi (Corso area)
Taverna dei Mercanti (Trastevere area)
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Ristorante Asinocotto
http://www.giulianobrenna.com
Address:
Ristorante Asinocotto
Via dei Vascellari, 48
Roma
Italy
Telephone/Facsilime: (+39) 06 5898985
Up-and-coming young chef Giuliano Brenna has possibly Rome’s most talked-about restaurant on his hands this season. The Trastevere district, where Asinocotto is situated, is one of the best parts of town to spend an evening and the two rainbow flags1 outside make finding the restaurant a breeze.
Inside, the menu is a carefully executed blend of the traditional and the new wave. Fish dishes feature in all of the first three courses as do some exquisite vegetarian fare, but this is neither a fish nor a vegetarian restaurant. I started with courgette flowers stuffed with a delicate cheese sauce, followed this with ravioli stuffed with pheasant, chicken-livers and black truffle, and for my main course enjoyed an exquisite duck breast in a mandarin and green-tea sauce.
Somehow, my companion managed to order soup (or something soup-ish) for both first and second course. My only criticism of the restaurant would be that the table staff did not offer a little bit more guidance at this point, but I suppose that this could be argued either way.
Brenna is also an expert with deserts, something of a rarity in Rome. I had a deliriously light chocolate mousse, while my companion went into ecstasy over her semifreddo alla zabiaone. Gary, a gregarious American sitting at an adjacent table, was equally excited over his tortina al cioccolato.
Last but not least, the wine list is extensive, lands on your table with a reassuring thud, and makes no compromises in quality for the sake of quantity.
Asinocotto doesn’t operate a sittings system, so if you do manage to book a table (and you should book in advance) then it is yours for the evening. If you only have a chance to visit one restaurant in Rome, then this has to be the one.
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Antico Arco
Address:
Piazzale Aurelio, 7
Roma
Italy
Telephone: (+39) 06 06 5815274
Another restaurant best suited to a gastronomic treat, rather than an everyday feed, is Antico Arco. Situated on the Gianiculum Hill, its location offers fantastic views across Trastevere and the city beyond. Inside, the food is of an equally impressive standard.
One of the specialities of the house is their risotto al Castelmagno which is unbelivable cheesy, rich and unctuous. It is something that you have to taste to believe but you won't even have to rely upon snatching a mouthful from your companion's plate, if you opt for a different primi. Thankfully, those clever people at Antico Arco bring you a small tasting portion of whatever your companion is having, if you smile sweetly when you order.
Main courses vary according to the seasons and rely on the best fresh ingredients available, cooked with a distinctly Italian panache but often with a contemporary twist. Deserts are created in-house and you can expect something a little more interesting than everyday tiramisu and panna cotta! The wine list is extensive, with a heavy leaning towards some interesting Tuscan vintages.
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Il Matriciano
http://www.romatour.com/matriciano
Address:
Il Matriciano
Via dei Gracchi, 49-61
Roma
Italy
Telephone: (+39) 06 3213040
Facsimile: (+39) 06 3212327
This is the place to visit for classic Roman cuisine. It is slightly off the main tourist track and therefore primarily a haunt of Vatican types and men in suits that look like they might be politicians.
The mixed vegetable antipasti does not disappoint, and the prosciutto crudo (cured ham) is excellent, too. As a follow-up you may have never found the classic Roman dish bucatini alla matriciana (thick tubed pasta with a tomato, bacon and chilli sauce) made as well as here, even if you have eaten the dish hundreds of times before. Next, the osso buco (braised veal in white wine) is again 'delizioso', or 'squisito' as the Italians say. The house wine comes in jugs and there is nothing wrong with that. Service is friendly and unhurried, and the prices offer incredibly good value.
For classic Roman cuisine, untainted by tourist fare, then this has to be one of the best.
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Ristorante Abruzzi
Address:
Ristorante Abruzzi
Via del Vaccaro, 1
Roma
Italy
Telephone: (+39) 06 6793897
Again, the Roman mixed vegetable antipasti platter is irresistible: slices of frittata and bruscetta, a courgette slice topped with breadcrumbs and grilled, roasted onion, little croquette type things, stuffed mushrooms, pickled artichoke...
To follow on, the tonarelli (pasta which is thicker than spaghetti), served with peas, mushroom and tomato, is delicious.
The waiters are of the variety only normally found in Italy, of the older generation and having dedicated their careers to discretely guiding their patrons' choices while treading the careful line between friendliness and over-familiarity.
A wonderful touch at the end of the meal is that together with the bill arrives a couple of bottles of digestivi (amaro and sambuca) from which you are encouraged to help yourselves. Now that's true old-world hospitality!
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Taverna dei Mercanti
Address:
Piazza dei Mercanti, 3/A
Roma
Italy
Telephone: (+39) 06 5881693
Flaming torches mark the entrance to this popular taverna in trendy Trastevere. The interior comprises several rooms with upturned clinker-built boats and antique agricultural machinery adorning the roof space. The tables sport red and white tablecloths and the menus arrive rolled-up like a scroll (and double as a placemat).
The food is good and wholesome and completely devoid of pretension. Excellent pizzas are baked in a wood-fired oven and succulent cuts of meat and sausages are grilled in an open fireplace with a minimum of interference.
This place gets terribly busy, as it is popular with locals looking for a hearty feed, individual travellers and tour groups alike. At the busiest times, service can become a little slow, especially by non-Italian standards, so make regular eye-contact with your waiter. Phone ahead and book, especially at the weekends.
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1 A rainbow flag is a commonly used sign to denote that a pub or a restaurant is a gay pub/restaurant.
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© Chris Loake 2004
