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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If you’ve been to Rome, you’ve probably toured the area of Garbatella without even knowing it. This area of Rome is home to the lovely basilica of St Paul’s outside the walls, or “San Paolo fuori le mura”. If you’ve never been, this is one Italian church you don’t want to miss for its stunning mosaics. There are many churches to visit in Rome, but if you’re prioritising this should sit somewhere high up the list.

The area of Garbatella has a mixed history, and no-one is really sure of the origin of the name. The most popular theory is that it was named after a woman, and a fountain in Piazza Ricoldo da Montecroce would seem to attest to this. The fountain has since been rebaptised “the fountain of lovers” and is topped by a statue of a woman.

The Garbatella district was originally a “garden city”, planned by the king in 1920 to house the workers that would be building the new city port. Much of the green space and small villas then gave way to fascist buildings and architecture. Using the old theatre cinemaTeatro Palladium as your landmark, you can almost lose yourself in this corner of Rome.

Continue reading: Exploring Rome's districts: Garbatella and St Paul's outside the walls

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If you’re planning to visit Rome, you may be interested to know that Frommers has produced a list of seven restaurants ranked to be the best in Rome. The first on their list is a trattoria called Al Moro in vicolo delle Bollette (phone number 06-6783495); the place looks a bit dowdy but its superb cuisine has, over the years, drawn many celebrities like legendary movie director Federico Fellini. The menu is absolutely first rate and includes such delicious dishes as lamb stewed with fresh tomatoes. On a secluded square in the famous Ghetto district you can have lunch or dinner at another famous trattoria or inn called Piperno (established in 1856) and where people can enjoy a deep-fried artichoke that the Romans call Alla Giudecca.

Continue reading: Tips for tourists: seven places to eat in Rome

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Restaurants in Rome are offering free pasta tastings on the streets to get prospective customers to eat in their particular establishment. We don’t know if this is an effective strategy or not (it wouldn’t be one for me) but if you find yourself with a pasta plate shoved at you, you know why.

The publicity stunt can be found in Piazza di Spagna, near the Spanish Steps, Piazza Navona and Piazza Venezia. Apparently Rome’s citizens are unhappy about the move, saying that it suggests tourists are there to be fleeced by those purporting to provide hospitality.

Photo | Flickr

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If you’re in the area of Monteverde in Rome, you could think about dropping in at I Laureati for a meal. We wouldn’t recommend a special trip for this restaurant in Rome, but for a decent spot in the area, you could do worse.

Not far from Villa Pamphili in Rome, the restaurant has a terrace for outdoor eating in summer and there is a lovely wood-fired pizza oven indoors. The pizza list is long and varied, and for a few different dishes try the mixed fried platter, potatoes, olives and mozzarella for starters.

With starters, pizza topped with speck, mushrooms, buffalo mozzarella and smoked provola, some water and a couple of large beers (Rome is hot in summer), you’ll spend about 25 euros a head. I Laureati restaurant is located on Via Luigi Zambarelli 35/37.

Photo | I Laureati

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Famous among wine lovers, the Enoteca Ferrara is also strongly recommended by wine professionals as a place for great wine tasting in Rome, while also being one of Rome’s restaurants worth visiting. The bar is located in the Trastevere district of Rome and has an excellent offering from both the cellar and the kitchen. It was voted best wine bar in Italy in 2003.

For starters, Enoteca Ferrara offers an aperitif in its lounge area. Available are dishes such as chicken liver pate with cherry tomatoes, bread cubes with mini meat balls, potato and octopus salad or seafood salad.

The rest of the bar is a series of different rooms that form part of a building that was built a couple of centuries ago. The tables are pleasingly spaced apart, with chic decorations that aren’t too exaggerated. The armchairs are comfortable and the staff afford exceptional service.

Continue reading: Restaurants in Rome: the Enoteca Ferrara in Trastevere

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The Trastevere district in Rome has a lot to offer, including some of Rome’s best restaurants and night life, and having a bite to eat at night can be essential in this area. The Pancotto pizzeria and restaurant is a good place to stop, with tables outside (on the footpath, it must be understood).

Pancotto is in Piazza Sonnino, and is a restaurant serving traditional dishes from Rome and Italy, with a mix of meat and fish. The menu includes dishes such as spaghetti with clams and artichoke, ricotta, polenta and stew and many others. The pizza is done in Roman style with a very thin crust and classic toppings.

If you’re in the know, you get complimentary bruschetta, and you could follow with an antipasto of mixed fried snacks or aubergine rolls. The pizza is tasty and slightly smaller which is good news for those not used to the Italian tradition of a pizza per head. For dessert, go for the fresh fruit of pineapple and strawberries with cream. Pancotto is in Viale Trastevere 8/14.

Photo | Flickr

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For a special dining experience in Rome, check out the new Otto e mezzo restaurant that has opened in Rome’s hip via Veneto area. The restaurant is two seconds on foot in via Boncompagni and is a restaurant with art decoration were you go as much for the Italian interior design as the food.

The food is good, and well accompanied by the choice of wine, and the place is decorated with art works that have a culinary theme. Hosting various exhibitions, the first to be featured in the Rome restaurant is “The taste of water”, which displays photographs by Italians Giuliana Lipparini, Monica di Brigida and Luca Baldasari.

The photos are aimed at telling the story of the sea, fundamental for human survival, but also an inspiration for art, culture and its subsequent expression. In this case, we see the sea expressed in a culinary setting. Otto e mezzo is open at lunch, and see its website for a look at the menu.

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For a quick, unpretentious meal in Rome, the 12 Apostoli restaurant is worth a stop for good food, without the frippery of fancy service.

The restaurant is located on one of the long and narrow squares in Rome, just minutes away from the famous Piazza Venezia (where you can find plenty of places to eat as well). It is situated in a historic building and is a large restaurant.

The menu is not particularly impressive at first, but the pasta is homemade, as are the desserts and while there’s nothing fancy, you’re guaranteed to get a good basic pasta dish where you know exactly what you’ve ordered.

Antipasti are available with salami, seafood and chicken salads, and mixed vegetable dishes with tomato and mozzarella. The first courses are mostly pasta dishes with choices such as amatriciana spaghetti or cream and mushroom tortellini. The portions certainly let you know you’re in Rome. Second courses are available, but as you’re likely to be full already, we suggest skipping to the desserts with a classic crema catalana, for example. The restaurant can be found at Piazza dei Santi Apostoli.

Photo | cartaperdue

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For a great restaurant in Rome with a good wine list, look to Giuda Ballerino! in Largo Appio Claudio, 344. The name of the restaurant is inspired by the classic exclamation from the comic book character Dylan Dog, and if your dinner companion can pay the bill, better still as the exclamation could take on additional meaning.

Leaving aside discussions of money, if you’re happy to spend a little extra, this restaurant is an osteria, wine bar, caffetteria and enoteca (or wine shop) all in one. Small but welcoming, the menu is tempting in its offering with prices appropriate for this style of restaurant.

One example of a dish is the lamb rack with caramellised endives and Tropea onions with blackberry sauce, washed down with a Montepulciano d’Abruzzo. The adventurous tastes and interesting wine list recommends this Rome restaurant.

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A cosy and unpretentious restaurant worth visiting in Rome, is “Vacanze Romane” in the Trastevere district. And if you’re on a romantic holiday in Rome, it’s the perfect start to an evening strolling the lovely streets of this area.

The interior ambience has an open, American style kitchen, divided into a vegetarian section and the rest with meat and fish dishes. There used to be a kind of organic cultural-restaurant here called Sai Baba and so some elements have been preserved.

Around the walls there are posters from the films of William Wyler, and the staff are friendly enough with the owner having that Roman home-style that you can find only in Trastevere.

For antipasti, you can try asparagus with truffle sauce and shaved parmesan cheese. Following that, the risotto “alla trevigiana” or chicory risotto, is very good, as is the mixed vegetable dish, or home-made pasta. Following that, a classic sliced beef or “tagliata” with balsamic vinegar can be shared among the group. The desserts offer classic tiramisù, or zabaglione with chocolate. Prices are normal. The restaurant is in Via Bargoni 10, in Trastevere, phone: 065898154, or email info@vacanzeromane.com

Photo | Flickr

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Food criticism is big business in Italy, what with Slow Food’s Gambero Rosso, competition for Michelin stars and the rest. Which is why it’s refreshing to see a figure like Fernanda D’Arienza in the industry.

Fernanda is a food critic by profession, but prefers to go against the tide of most food critics and their status seeking. The major difference is that she pursues her work incognito, booking tables under false names, paying the bill and asking no discounts. But if something does go astray in her experience in restaurants, she is one of the most battle-ready customers.

It’s the opposite of what many Italians would do, who are generally so ready to indulge in theatrics without the art of an elegant complaint, to get themselves a free meal or a discount. If you’re interested in seeing some of Fernanda’s critiques of restaurants in Italy, see the blog, La pecora nera (the Black Sheep).

Source | GlobalPost

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