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In Rome, the Eternal(ly culinarily conservative) City, simple yet traditional cuisine reigns supreme. Most chefs prefer to follow the mantra of freshness over fuss, and simplicity of flavor and preparation over complex cooking techniques.
Rome has been known since antiquity for its grand feasts and banquets, and dining out has alway been a favorite Roman pastime. Until recently, the city's buongustaii (gourmands) would have been the first to tell you that Rome is distinguished more by its enthusiasm for eating out than for a multitude of world-class restaurants—but this is changing. There is an ever-growing promotion of slow-food practices, a focus on sustainably and locally sourced produce. The economic crisis has forced the food industry in Rome to adopt innovative ways to maintain a clientele who are increasingly looking to dine out but want to spend less. The result has been the rise of "street food" restaurants, selling everything from inexpensive and novel takes on the classic supplì (Roman fried-rice balls) to sandwich shops that use a variety of organic ingredients.
Generally speaking, Romans like Roman food, and that’s what you’ll find in many of the city’s trattorias and wine bars. For the most part, today’s chefs cling to the traditional and excel at what has taken hundreds, sometimes thousands, of years to perfect. This is why the basic trattoria menu is more or less the same wherever you go. And it's why even the top Roman chefs feature their versions of simple trattoria classics like carbonara, and why those who attempt to offer it in a "deconstructed" or slightly varied way will often come under criticism. To a great extent, Rome is still a town where the Italian equivalent of "What are you in the mood for?" still gets the answer, "Pizza or pasta."
Nevertheless, Rome is the capital of Italy, and because people move here from every corner of the Italian peninsula, there are more variations on the Italian theme in Rome than you'd find elsewhere in Italy: Sicilian, Tuscan, Pugliese, Bolognese, Marchegiano, Sardinian, and northern Italian regional cuisines are all represented. And reflecting the increasingly cosmopolitan nature of the city, you'll find a growing number of good-quality international foods here as well—particularly Japanese, Indian, and Ethiopian.
Oddly enough, though, for a nation that prides itself on la bella figura ("looking good"), most Romans don't fuss about music, personal space, lighting, or decor. After all, who needs flashy interior design when so much of Roman life takes place outdoors, when dining alfresco in Rome can take place in the middle of a glorious ancient site or a centuries-old piazza?
This chic seafood restaurant is a fun spot on balmy summer evenings, where elegant diners sip crisp white wine at tables out on the pretty Piazza de' Ricci. The carpaccio selection is exquisite, but there is also a large selection of pastas extravagantly topped with white truffles. As at most Italian restaurants, fresh fish is sold per hectogram (100 grams, or about 3.5 ounces), so you may want to double-check the cost after it's been weighed.
Roman Chef Davide Pulejo cut his teeth at Noma in Copenhagen as well as Michelin-starred restaurants in the Eternal City and Milan before opening his namesake restaurant, which quickly earned accolades and a Michelin star of its own. The five- and seven-course tasting menus are flavorful, sensory journeys perfectly paired with wines from small producers. His greatest hits include roasted red peppers in the guise of beef tartare, Milanese-style saffron risotto with Roman-style oxtail, and celeriac tarte tatin.
At this sleek Michelin-starred restaurant inside the Hall Tailor Suite hotel, chef/owner Riccardo Di Giacinto and his wife, Ramona, make fine dining a fun and entertaining experience. Di Giacinto worked with Ferran Adrià in Spain and uses some of his techniques without veering too far into the territory of molecular gastronomy. Instead, he playfully transforms Roman classics, keeping the flavors but changing the forms. For example, his All'Origine tasting menu features a pasta-less carbonara reduction served in an eggshell and coda alla vaccinara (oxtail stew) presented as an oversize Ferrero Rocher. The service is professional but friendly. Each meal starts and ends with an array of amuse-bouches and petit fours creatively served on vessels that might include a ceramic banana or a toy carousel.
The shop in front of this beloved restaurant will beckon you in with top-quality comestibles like hand-sliced cured ham from Italy and Spain, more than 300 cheeses, and a dizzying array of wines—but venture farther inside to try an extensive selection of unusual dishes and interesting takes on the classics. There are tables in the cozy wine cellar downstairs, but try to bag a table at the back on the ground floor (reserve well ahead; Roscioli is very popular). The family also runs a coffee bar (Roscioli Caffè), bakery (Forno Roscioli), and a restaurant/wine bar/tasting room (Rimessa Roscioli).
This sleek wine bar and restaurant is just a short walk from the Spanish Steps, and its modern design looks the part among the fashion-forward streets. However, its unique focus is that its owners collaborate with the Regione Lazio (the state within which Rome sits) to showcase Lazio's regional products—from the cheeses to the wines to the olive oil and even bottled water—on its menu. Come for a glass of excellent Lazio wine and share a dish, if you don't want a full meal.
Translating to "Aunt Rosetta," the name of this tiny sandwich shop is a play on words, since rosetta is not just a female name but also a type of roll commonly found in Rome. Here the rolls are used to make gourmet sandwiches with delicious combinations of meat, cheeses, veggies, or fish, such as the "Peggy Rockefeller" with prosciutto, crunchy parmigiano reggiano, and eggplant or the "Elisabetta" with Roman-style stewed cod, raisins, pine nuts, and chicory. There are even sweet fillings like nutella or ricotta and cherries, and they all come in classic or mini versions.
