The world is changing and changing fast - so even here in Rome to find an old trattoria where one can relax and eat hearty meals in a warm and cosy atmosphere is becoming harder and harder. Anyway the old inn Ivo is doing its best to keep the old traditions going, so if you love true Roman dishes this is the place to be. Their menu includes pizza, but if I were you I would rather focus on such delicious dishes as aubergine balls, potato crocchette, cod fillets and fritto misto! The only drawback is that the place is so popular that sometimes you have to wait in line for a table!

Ivo
Via di San Francesco a Ripa, 158
Tel. 065817082
Closed on Tuesdays

Foto | Armando Rampas

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Cheap eats in Rome can be found, you’ve just got to know where to look. Rome nightlife is full of fantastic restaurants and bars if you’re furnished with a little local knowledge, and we’ve just discovered an all-you-can-eat beer bar right in the middle of the Trastevere district.

For a fixed price you can eat at the Trilussa birreria in via Benedetta - 15 euros will get you the non stop menu. Make sure you bring hungry friends because the first courses are fantastic and this is all about eating what’s in front of you. If you can’t manage, pass it to someone else in the group.

If you’re looking for something more traditionally Italian, other Rome restaurants have pizza with a set price and all the beer you want. In San Lorenzo you’ll find Mamarò where ten euros will get you all the pizza and beer you want, and the same goes for Giubileo in via Palermo, Monti area with pizza at ten euros and pasta at 15 euros.

Other options for eating lots and spending little in Rome are at Olio, sale e pepe in via D. Da Empoli 15, and Pizzamia in viale Tirreno 67. If you’re a bit out of town, at Castel di leva there’s Merlo parlante in via F.Cassitto 45 which also has fixed price dinner deals.

Photo | Sara Regimenti

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Not quite a culinary tour of Italy in a Porsche, the ‘Via dei sapori “in” Porsche’ at Udine is a chance to get close to some luxury cars and enjoy a hearty Italian meal from Friuli, too. On March 24th the Porsche centre in Udine is hosting some famous chefs from the Friuli Venezia Giulia region as part of the initiatives of the Via dei Sapori group.

The evening involves more than 45 chefs who will prepare dishes in front of the guests, to then indulge in some Italian food and wine matching with some of Friuli’s great wines. Restaurants featured come from all over Friuli, and will be celebrating the coming of spring. For more details, including the restaurants present, see the Via dei sapori in Porsche web page.

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We looked at the golden rules as to how to cook the perfect pasta, and today we examine what you’re not “supposed” to do with pasta. This is one for the purists, and although I’m one to experiment with pasta there’s a few things I just won’t do. Feel free to add your “pasta prohibitions” in the comments.

1. Never rinse pasta, cooked or raw. The whole point of leaving pasta starchy and salty is that it subsequently has flavour. If you rinse that all away, it becomes quite boring, not to mention cold.

2. Don’t undercook your pasta - there’s nothing worse than crunchy pasta that sticks to your teeth.

3. Following number two, never overcook your pasta or it becomes something more like what you’d serve to your nonna when she doesn’t have her dentures in. To get it right between two and three, some people follow the instructions on the packet to the letter and will time their pasta with a stop watch, others taste test around about when cooking time is up.

Continue reading: No chicken with pasta: what not to do with pasta

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As you may guess from Italy’s classic “Margherita” pizza with tomato, cheese and oregano (or basil), supreme and Hawaiian pizza varieties do not exist on native soil. Neither does cabanossi o pepperoni, and while Italians are getting more adventurous with their pizza, (try gorgonzola with pear, for example), there are a few traditional pizza toppings you should try when in Italy.

The margherita pizza may be boring, but it is one of the few I can actually finish when doing the Italian thing and ordering a pizza per person. The classic marinara is also on the slim side of pizza offerings, with tomato, mozzarella, garlic and sometimes a drizzling of olive oil. Pizza al prosciutto is ham pizza and you can choose either “prosciutto cotto” (leg ham), or “prosciutto crudo” which is parma ham. This can be quite salty, so you’ll want some water on the table.

Another very salty option, but one which you’ll find has only the most dedicated fans is pizza alla napoletana (or romana). This has the classic tomato and cheese base, but with anchovies. The closest you’ll get to a supreme is the “capricciosa” meaning “capricious” or undecided. Please note that this does NOT have peppers on the top, but you do get ham, mushrooms, and artichokes. The “quattro stagioni” or four seasons is the same sort of thing, but divided so that each quarter of your pizza houses one of the flavours.

Continue reading: Real Italian pizza toppings: it's a regional thing

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Checco dello Scapicollo is one of Rome‘s the most famous restaurants; managed by the Testa family, the restaurant is famed for its extraordinary Roman cuisine and in summer guests can relax and have dinner in the beautiful garden, thus nurturing the illusion of being in the country. Their exquisite menu includes, of course, international dishes, but if I were you, I would rather focus on dishes from traditional Roman cuisine. Every day the Testa family puts on a feast of delicious roast lamb chops, exquisite ham and, of course, the famous bucatini all’amatriciana which has come to epitomise the essence of the cuisine of Rome. The only thing I found a bit disappointing was the apple sorbet we had at end of our dinner, but on the whole it was a superb meal and considering the international fame the restaurant has gained over these last few years, we spend next to nothing.

Checco dello Scapicollo
Via dei Genieri, 11
00143 - Roma
Tel 06 5012 955
www.checcoscapicollo.it

Photo | Squisitalia.com

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No plans for Valentine’s Day? Well, if you are in Rome, you could spend a romantic day in Ostia, first walking by the sea and then, when night falls and the moon is up have dinner at Al pescatore, a lovely restaurant specialising in sea-food but offering a wide range of alternative dishes. With a breathtaking view over the sea, Al pescatore has (besides a romantic atmosphere which is the key ingredient for a successful night) a first rate menu which includes grilled fish and finger-licking pizza!

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To me the trattoria L’Antico Tevere has always been like a chameleon; whenever I walk through its door, the place seems to change its essence, taking me aback. Sometimes it looks elegant and sophisticated, other times has the feel of a true Roman trattoria. However last Saturday there the cook conjured up an amazing menu with exquisite seafood dishes (including a delicious fettuccine Mare e Monti with mussels and mushrooms) for just 40 euros per person. My memorable meal included grilled fish, canapés with fillet and pepper, surimi salad and gelato swimming in whiskey.! Simply heavenly! By the way, I recommend you to book a table in advance on the beautiful terrace which overlooks the Tiber river; the view will take your breath away

Ristorante L’Antico Tevere
Via Portuense, 45 - Roma
Tel 065816054

Photo | Flickr

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Not far from Venice, there’s a lovely town called Treviso famed for its fabulous wines and delicious dishes from the traditional Veneto cuisine; one of the best trattorias in town is the famous Toni del spin (the name in the local dialect means fish spine) where guests are treated to a feast of huge helpings of pigeon soup, artichoke zuppa and delicious gnocchetti made from potatoes and squash (and with a sprinkle of ricotta cheese on the top). This trattoria is also renowned for its polenta-based dishes, exquisite sopressata (pork meat salted and dried) and a divine dessert made from mascarpone which they usually serve with exquisite melt in your mouth biscuits!

Trattoria Toni del Spin
Via Inferiore, 7 – Treviso
Tel 0422543829
Closed on Sundays (and Mondays at lunchtime)
www.ristorantetonidelspin.com

Photo | Ristorantetonidelspin.com

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If you are in Rome and in the mood to have dinner at a restaurant specialised in Neapolitan cuisine, the trattoria della barchetta in via Giovanni Pierluigi da Plaestrina could be the place to be! Famed for its delicious appetizers, first courses ( I would highly recommend the calamarata) and cookies (made in a wide variety of styles and served at the end of the meal with exquisite custards and sweet sauces), the trattoria is considered one of the best Neapolitan retaurants and dining spots in Rome. By the way, if you are planning to go there over the weekend, remember to book a table in advance otherwise you might be turned away!

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