What to eat in Rome: 15 Best Roman Dishes

Rome is a historical city that both breathes and inspires. A visit to the Eternal City isn't complete unless you take in the local cuisine in addition to the monuments, temples, and churches. More than just a delicious experience, the city's cuisine teaches visitors about Roman history.

 

The proverb "Gioved gnocchi, Venerdi pesce, Sabato trippa" is a nice illustration (Thursday gnocchi, Friday fish, Saturday tripe). It was created during the rationing that followed World War II, a time when Italians had to get creative with their meals. Many cuisines that are delicious and well-known now all around the world have humble beginnings. The Romans place a high emphasis on their regional foods and ingredients, maybe as a means of maintaining their history and culture.

Choosing where to eat in Rome

To ensure that your dining experience gets as close as possible to authentic Roman food, we recommend avoiding restaurants near the city’s main tourist attractions, such as the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain, or Piazza Navona. It does not mean that you cannot find great restaurants in these areas, but the chances are that you will eat more standard flavors at tourist prices.

 

You may be certain that you will eat like a Roman if you include the Testaccio neighbourhood in your travel plans. This region gave rise to several of the most well-known delicacies in the city. Visit the Trastevere district as well, where you can discover numerous eateries serving up cuisine made according to old recipes and with real ingredients. Due to Trastevere's greater popularity among tourists, meals there are frequently a little more expensive but of excellent quality.

 

Eating like the Romans is another excellent advice. Breakfast is served from 6 to 9 a.m. You can then have an aperitif, a drink and some snacks, approximately 11:00. Between 12 and 14:00 for lunch, between 20:00 and 21:30 for dinner. Another aperitif is usually enjoyed at 18h00 in between the two meals.

Typical Rome Dishes

1. Pizza al taglio

Rome's national dish is a "different kind" of pizza that is rectangular in shape, served in bite-sized pieces (taglios), priced by weight, and consumed at the counter or while strolling along the street. Pizza al Taglio is a well-liked meal in Rome and is easily accessible throughout the city due to the wide range of flavours and reasonable pricing. The rectangular Pizza Bianca, likewise sold by the kilo and typically served with just salt and olive oil, is another culinary treasure of the Italian metropolis.

2. Trapizzino

A pizza in the shape of a sandwich or a sandwich that looks like a pizza? When in doubt, go for both, or rather the Trapizzino, a snack that is half tramezzino (sandwich in Italian), half pizza. The base is a pizza bianca that can be filled with various traditional preparations, such as pollo alla cacciatora (chicken), polpette al sugo (meatball), and tongue in salsa verde.

3. Carbonara

The sixth of April, commonly known as Carbonara Day, is dedicated to this incredibly popular Roman meal. On this day, chefs offer their masterpieces while experts argue over the origin of the meal (there is still no agreement on the matter). Spaghetti or rigatoni prepared with guanciale (pork cheek), pecorino cheese, egg yolk, and olive oil is the traditional dish.

4. Cacio e pepe

It appears to be a simple recipe given the few components (pecorino cheese, black pepper, and pasta), but it requires a lot of talent to make. Understanding the temperature at which the pasta is cooked, the appropriate amount of cheese, and freshly ground pepper to release the scents are all necessary to generate the dish's distinctive creaminess. Additionally, lengthy pasta, like spaghetti and tonnarelli, is advised for the best texture.

5. Pasta all’Amatriciana

One of Rome's most well-known dishes is pasta all'Amatriciana, which is cooked with bucatini pasta (which resembles a straw), guanciale (pork cheek), tomatoes, pecorino cheese, and fresh pepper. Experts claim that this meal is a descendant of the Pasta alla Gricia, which uses the same ingredients but excludes tomatoes.

6. Coda alla vaccinara

Pizza and pasta are only two examples of Italian cuisine. Coda alla Vaccinara, a stew made of oxtail stewed with vegetables and herbs, is another traditional Rome dish. The name of the dish is a reference to the tanneries in Regola, a suburb in Rome where the recipe originated.

7. Gnocchi alla Romana

It has a flavour that makes you think of Sunday family feasts. Semolina, milk, eggs, butter, and parmesan are the ingredients. Simple preparation is required. The milk must first be boiled before being combined with semolina. Create 4-cm-diameter discs from a thick, homogenous dough, arrange them on a baking pan with butter, and top with Parmesan cheese. After 15 minutes of baking, serve them while they're still warm.

8. Supplí

A fried risotto dumpling stuffed with tomato sauce, cheese, or meat is one of Rome's tastiest appetisers. The word "Suppl," which is French in origin, refers to the delightful and unexpected filling. This tasty treat is also known as Suppl al Telefono. The tantalising explanation is that the melted cheese stretches like a telephone wire when cut in half.

9. Filetti di baccalà fritti

Filetti di baccalà fritti are traditionally a dish associated with the Christmas season. But because it is so delicious, it is consumed all year long and is widely available in bars and eateries in Rome. The dough holds the key to this delicacy, which is formed from cod fillets. To improve the consistency and crispiness of the dough, some cooks add beer or yeast.

10. Trippa alla Romana

It is a dish that is popular for Saturday lunches at the trattorias of Trastevere and Testaccio and is typical of Roman cuisine. Because it wasn't a noble portion of the ox, only the poorest employees used to consume it. But over time, it overcame the widest range of palates, irrespective of social class. The tripe is cut and served with tomato sauce, pecorino cheese, and mint, as per the Roman recipe.

11. La Pajata

La Pajata is a classic Rome dish produced from the intestines of unweaned calves, that is, calves that have not yet grazed and have only been nourished on their mother's milk. It is similar to Coda alla Vaccinara and Trippa alla Romana. The chyme is preserved and used to prepare the dish while the intestines are cleaned and removed. This oddity lends the sauce, which is served with tomatoes and rigatoni, smoothness.

12. Carciofi

Roman cuisine makes extensive use of artichokes, or carciofi as they are known in Italian, particularly in the spring when they are harvested. The most well-liked recipes out of all those that might be made are Carciofi alla Giudia and Carciofi alla Romana. The artichoke is fried in the first, which is of Jewish provenance, and then cooked with olive oil and herbs in the second.

13. Abbacchio a Scottadito

a customary Easter entrée. They are grilled lamb ribs that are eaten with your hands while holding the bone. They are served still hot. But don't you run the risk of scorching your fingertips by eating this way? Absolutely! Thus the name "scottadito," which is Italian for "burned fingertips." Because they are so delectable, ribs typically only come with some vegetables and lemon as accompaniments.

14. Saltimbocca

These veal escalopes are a delectable and widely consumed dish in Rome. A slice of ham and a half a sage leaf are then placed on top of each piece of meat after it has been salt and pepper-seasoned. Although it is one of the emblems of Roman cuisine, some people think Brescia is where it first appeared.

15. Maritozzo com creme

What other dessert options are there in Rome besides tiramisu? We recommend a rich and calorie-dense Maritozzi. a delicious bread with whipped cream inside that has Roman imperial roots. It was initially sweetened with honey, then by candied fruit, and later with cream. Its name derives from a Victorian custom in which grooms gave their brides a confection "stuffed" with a gold ring or other precious stone on Valentine's Day.