Rome Restaurants

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ROME - OCTOBER 2006

Restaurants and the Albergo Abruzzi

Early morning view from Dom Paradox's room in the Albergo Abruzzi. The Pantheon was built around 27BC by Marcus Agrippa, who was the husband of Augustus' wanton daughter Julia. Agrippa predeceased Augustus and so never got to be emperor. The building there now - one of the oldest public buildings still in use in the world, is a complete rebuild done by the builder Emperor Hadrian in the early 120s. Hadrian swung the entrance round to face north, which makes it an interesting photographic challenge. The round roof of the Pantheon is made of (ancient Roman) concrete, and is 142' in diameter (around the same as the drum of the dome of Florence's Duomo), with a large hole in the middle to let in light (and rain - there are drains in the floor for this - the Romans thought of everything).

The Piazza Rotonda is probably the second most trodden tourist drag after Saint Peters, but is amazingly clean thanks to the efforts of the mostly young female street cleaners. There is a coffee roaster somewhere in the NE corner of the Piazza so the olfactory senses are well prepared for breakfast in the cafe opposite - which offers another experience of the old building and Romans going to work or taking their children to the school down the road.

Link to Hotel Abruzzi Home Page

For those interested in domestic detail, Dom P was camped in the rooms just over the flags on the lower right

Sunday lunch at Ristorante Piperno in a little almost piazza in the Ghetto - Monte De'Cenci, 9. Closed Sun PM and Mon. Tel 06 686 1113 - Always book.

The Jewish style flattened then deep fried artichokes (carciofi Judea) are obligatory, the house Frascati is unusually good, and the deep fried Bacalà in special batter is mouth watering.

Nearby, upstairs at Pz delle Cinque Scole, 30 is Sora Margherita - a different style of ghetto eating - unmarked door (except for orange fly screen), no booking, share tables etc - actually technically it's a club that you have to become a member of - Sora Margherita Associazione Culturale. Good food, good value and with luck good company at your closely shared table.

A bit further back up the street is another ghetto favourite - Al Pompiere (closed Sundays) at Via dei Calderari 38.

Over the Ponte Sisto in Trastevere, there is a relaxing garden restaurant at the house of the family of "La Fornarina" - the baker's daughter who was Raphael's mistress (right above - obviously - to be found in the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica di Palazzo Barberini if she has not been lent out to another exhibition).

The Roman Style Oxtail (below) was excellent as was the house red.

Via di Portia Settimiana, 8. Tel 0658 18284.

Down the hill a bit at Via Benedetta 10 (no photos) are the modern stylish garden restaurant (expensive) and its next door (cheaper) osteria - Checco er Cartiere. Excellent food and fashion in both.

Back across the river, Ristorante Pierluigi is far enough away from the Campo dei Fiori to avoid the worst of wandering tourists and is a buzzing Roman scene. Fun, energy, Pierluigi strutting his stuff, and pretty good food.

Piazza dé Ricci, 144 (on Via Monserrato). Closed Monday. Phone 06 68 61 302.

Around the Pantheon

Trattoria dal Cav. Gino - Vicolo Rosini, 4 (off the Piazza del Parlamento / Via di Campo Marzo). Cucina Casareccia (home cooking). Had a really good small trat feel about it but the Dom had no booking so could not get in - will definitely be on the list next time. Closed Sunday. Tel 06 687 3434.

Ristorante Settimo - Via delle Colonnelle, 14. Small restaurant with Roman Cucina and good service (we had an excellent mixed hors-d'oeuvre plate followed by calves brains). Closed Sunday and Monday. Tel 06 678 9651.

Maccheroni - Piazza delle Coppelle, 44. Always full, and has now spread down the street and into a labrynth of cellars and in the process has lost it - unless you like your secondo slapped on the table before your badly cooked spag vongole is half eaten. And why it is recommended on the slow food site is a complete mystery. If you do go, booking is essential to avoid the dungeons, but in our view it has become the most indifferent of the places on this list. Phone 06 6830 7895.

La Segrestia - Via del Seminario, 89. Great Roman food (and Pizzas) at a reasonable price - surprising for a place so close to the Pz Rotonda. We had Roman egg soup and Roman tripe .... the seafood platter (again surprisingly for its location) looked outstanding. Closed Wednesday. Tel 06 679 7581.

Il Buco - Via S Ignazio, 8. The Dom's place to start regenerating the best tastes of Tuscany, against the energetic background class noise from the Jesuit school hall opposite and the security of the Carabiniere command centre next door. Closed Monday. Tel 06 679 3298.

Ristorante San Eustachio, just opposite the church - Piazza dei Caprettari, 63. Excellent food in a spacious street enclosure. Closed Sunday. Tel 06 686 1616.

Around Santa Maria Maggiore (sort of)

La Forcetta d’Oro (near S Prassede), Via S Martino ai Monti, 40 (/Via Domenichino) - conveniently placed lunch location in a restaurant free area (unless you like Italian Chinese) with mainly local Italian clientelle.

Ristorante del Giglio, Via Torino 137 (near the Opera House). Tel 06 488 1606. We had a good meal here after the opera in the early 2000s.

Cantina Cantarini, Piazza Sallustio 12 (E of V Veneto) - we had an excellent dinner there but it was in 1999. Best to book - phone is in the DK guide.

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