5 Best Restaurants in Piazza di Spagna, Rome

In front of the American embassy and a favorite of the design trendoisie, Michelin-starred Moma attracts well-heeled businessmen at lunch but shifts to a more intimate affair for dinner. The kitchen turns out hits as it creates alta cucina (haute cuisine) made using Italian ingredients sourced from small producers. The menu changes seasonally but might include dishes like chamomile risotto with smoked eel, honey, and oregano or pumpkin cappelletti with amaretti, licorice, and provolone cheese. At lunch, the more casual bistro area has fresh pressed juices and made-to-order sandwiches.

For good food at reasonable prices around the Trevi Fountain, this Paris-inspired brasserie—open for lunch, dinner, and everything in between—is a great bet. Although it emphasizes seafood, the extensive menu has something for everyone, from salads to pasta and entrées. For lunch, the lobster roll is a fan favorite. The full bar has an impressive list of poured or mixed drinks.

With orario continuato, or nonstop operating hours (12:30 pm--10 pm), this sleek spot in the Hotel d'Inghilterra caters to jet-setters and hotel guests. There are a few international staples on the menu (a burger and Caesar salad), but for the most part the menu focuses on local dishes and ingredients. The tempting outdoor tables are close together, but perhaps you won't mind eavesdropping on your luxurious neighbor. In the evenings, Cafè Romano transforms into a swanky lounge bar with live piano music.

Crowning the Sofitel Rome Villa Borghese hotel, this chic restaurant serves fancy takes on Rome's cucina povera (peasant cooking) in a chic space with graphic punches of color. The terrace offers fantastic views that stretch from Villa Borghese to the dome of St. Peter's, but the interior dining room, with its floor-to-ceiling windows and terrazzo-inspired floors, is lovely, too.

This elegant little restaurant inside the Galleria Alberto Sordi is bringing top-notch Milanese cuisine to the capital. Though there's a section of the menu dedicated to Roman pastas, we recommend sticking to Milanese classics, like the mondeghili (Milanese meatballs), risotto alla milanese, and osso buco, which comes in a hefty pan served atop risotto.