Rome’s Best Restaurants
Taverna Trilussa
High-end, rustic taverna decorated with legs of prosciutto, famed for pasta served in steel pans. Known by the locals for being by far the best restaurant in the Trastevere neighborhood.
Crash Wine & Vibes
Cool bar and jazz club with a great kitchen. They do private tasting menu experiences in their lounge upstairs. It’s a great place to go and do a tapas style wine pairing in a cozy upstairs lounge and then head to the bar below to enjoy some cocktails and live music.
La Prosciutteria Trevi
A hip prosciutteria and wine bar in the district of the Trevi Fountain. Get platters of cold cuts and cheeses, porchetta, carpaccio of Chianina and Angus, gourmet sandwiches and also a menu for vegetarians. Pair it all with a rich selection of white and red wines to accompany your tasting.
Roscioli
A household name, eating at the deli-restaurant Roscioli is an absolute must while in town. This culinary haven lies just steps from Campo de’ Fiori and serves Roman classics alongside a mouthwatering array of fresh cheeses, cold cuts and pickled products straight from the deli counter. It’s a classic haunt beloved by food critics and travellers alike, so make sure to book a table in advance.
Felice e Testaccio
Testaccio is widely considered to be the best neighbourhood for Roman cuisine and this eatery is its unrivaled star. With retro checkered floors, white tablecloths and a tantalizing array of traditional dishes, the old-school restaurant makes for a perfect leisurely weekend lunch with family or a romantic choice for a gourmet dinner. Cacio e pepe is Da Felice’s signature dish: this tangle of noodles, melted cheese and black pepper comes freshly tossed at the table for you.
Seu Pizza Illuminati
This is everyone’s new favourite pizzeria, so be sure to book ahead for a taste of Pier Daniele Seu’s decadent Neapolitan pies. Young pizzaiolo Pier Daniele Seu has been the talk of the town since he first inaugurated a pizzeria in Termini’s Mercato Centrale back in 2017. Last year, he opened Seu Pizza Illuminati and the contemporary pizzeria has been widely recognized as the best in the city. With neon lights and modern décor, Seu serves up gourmet Neapolitan pizzas that are baked to perfection and mouthwateringly light. Be sure to save room for the sweet dessert pizza with strawberry coulis, whipped ricotta, candied almonds and fresh mint.
Osteria Fernanda
Modern restaurant that makes craft dishes based on contemporary and whimsical reinterpretations of classic dishes. An inventive menu that changes regularly will excite you with something completely new every time you go. The cuisine here is contemporary Italian that’s artful and interesting. The best option for first timers is a tasting menu (choose from four to 10 dish options) or an efficient business lunch, which gives you a quick survey of the kitchen’s vast talents.
Ristorante Moma
A unique restaurant with two different options for dining. There is the bistro side – modern and dynamic, offering a wide variety of simple easy-to-eat yet delicious food, and then there is the gourmet side – classy, elegant and experimental. Each side has its own chef and own menu and its own separate kitchens. You won’t be disappointed by this Michelin starred restaurant.
Bonci
Quality, high-end pizza restaurant that utilizes only the freshest, natural ingredients available. This is not a place to get a slice of pepperoni. They make a variety of one of a kind pizzas designed to excite the senses made with all locally sourced ingredients. They also make a variety of suppli, a roman-inspired rice and pasta balls stuffed with cheeses and meats. Wash it all down with all natural teas, sodas, juices, craft beers and wines.
Da Cesare al Casaletto
Traditional Roman fare in an authentic and genuine Roman trattoria. Some of the best traditional Roman cuisine anywhere in Italy.
Enotecca La Torre
High-end, coursed out tasting menu featuring refined and elegant dishes. They feature lively and creative dishes with a mediterranean inspiration.
Trapizzino
Romes most beloved street food, the trapizzino is the iconic Italian pizza pocket that you can eat on the move. A triangular pizza pita pocket filled with classic toppings. It’s pizza you can eat without breaking your stride.
Coromandel
“With its whimsical interior and thoughtful design touches, Coromandel is one of the loveliest restaurants to cozy up in on rainy days and chilly nights. It has an Alice in Wonderland feel to it and serves the city’s best brunch, with a tantalizing array of pancakes, eggs, cakes and coffee treats. It’s also a great choice for lunch and dinner: sample creative dishes like roast suckling pig with bok choy and a sweet-sour onions sauce, or scallop tartare with passion fruit and bacon. You can’t miss the exceptional soufflè with vanilla and Armagnac cream.”
– Condé Nast Traveler
Barred
“With its hipster aesthetic, alternative playlist and notable selection of orange wines, Barred brings a dose of Pigneto to Re di Roma. Owned and operated by Tiziano and Mirko Pacucci, two young Roman brothers with a passion for food and drinks, Barred offers a small but tightly-curated selection of creative, comfort dishes in which seasonal ingredients are featured. You’ll find entrées like sautéed spinach with black garlic and mushroom ragù and pappardelle with artichokes and licorice. Enjoy tapas at the bar or opt for a seat at one of the few tables in this cozy spot.”
– Condé Nast Traveler
Bistrot64
“Hailed as the most affordable Michelin-starred restaurant in Italy, Bistrot64 is not only worth a visit for its excellent value but for its scintillating flavor combinations that fuse Italian cuisine with Japanese aromas. Chef Kotaro Noda’s dishes are masterpieces, with color playing an important role throughout the meal from the amuse-bouche to the desserts, named for their bright hues. Look out for dishes like blue risotto served with lemon and thyme, and purple potatoes served with blackberries and mascarpone.”
– Condé Nast Traveler
Osteria Fratelli Mori
“Osteria Fratelli Mori is named for Alessandro and Francesco Mori, two brothers with a love for cooking, who serve honest, Roman fare in a relaxed environment. The menu isn’t exactly surprising but everything is executed to perfection, from the fritti to the desserts. You’ll find Roman classics like meatballs and a Gricia with artichokes, plus woodfire pizzas that are a cross between Roman and Neapolitan style. Ingredients are sourced from the nearby Testaccio Market and local suppliers and the wine list is primarily focused on the Lazio region.”
– Condé Nast Traveler
Giulia
“With large windows that look out into one of the most elegant streets in the capital, Giulia’s enviable location is just the first of many reasons to dine at this excellent restaurant. With chef Pierluigi Gallo at the helm, the menu offers an exciting array of creative comfort food that are at once rustic yet refined. Order the tasting menu to enjoy all the fabulous flavors in dishes such as risotto with mandarin and burnt onion and a carrot fritter with a homemade ketchup. The décor is lovely as well, with vintage furniture adding a pop to the industrial setting.”
– Condé Nast Traveler
Mercerie
Serving up high-end street food in the heart of Rome, Mercerie was one of the most innovative eateries to open in the capital last year. A culinary project created by Michelin-starred chef Igles Corelli, it sees Italian classics reinterpreted and transformed into bite-sized lasagnas, stuffed cannoli, savory pralines and chocolate buttons. Each treat feels like a gourmet jewel and is almost too pretty too eat. Mercerie also doubles as a cocktail bar and makes for a stylish aperitivo or tasting dinner with a group of friends.
Pianostrada and Pianoalto
Two equally great sister restaurants. Both informal, yet refined and elegant, their outdoor patio dining provides an excellent, enchanted garden atmosphere for a meal you can eat both at the counter or at the table. Rich, yet fresh and light, elegantly plated dishes in the same restaurant where you can peruse an excellent focaccia menu and dine on some of Romes best cheeseburgers and street food.
Zia
The young staff, brimming with enthusiasm, passion and determination, make the difference at Zia, a little gem in the heart of Trastevere that serves whimsical dishes in an intimate setting. The cuisine here is sophisticated but unpretentious, and chef Antonio Ziantoni’s creativity shines through in dishes such as ravioli stuffed with blue cheese served in an onion and clove broth, or cabbage stewed in milk and chocolate. The whole dining experience is aesthetic and the desserts are true works of art. Order La Mela (The Apple) or La Nocciola (The Hazelnut) for innovative recreations of these ingredients.
Osteria Cacio e Pepe
You can’t come here without trying the namesake: an exceptionally creamy cacio e pepe, made with the perfect quantities of pecorino cheese and pepper. The carbonara’s very good too, with slivers of guanciale and just the right amount of pecorino. For mains, get the slow-cooked beef meatballs, with sides of sautéed chicory and crisp oven-roasted potatoes. And save room for the sweets—the gloriously rich sachertorte should hit the spot.
Menabó Vino e Cucina
An unassuming trattoria far from the beaten path, Menabò is a local trattoria that aims to impress with its cooking, not its design. The atmosphere has no frills and a bit of a retro vibe. Like tiny masterpieces on the plate, the dishes themselves are often delicate revisitations of local favorites or entirely inventive works of art.
Marigold
The restaurant and bakery has an ultra-Scandinavian sensibility with simple tables, beautiful homemade pottery, and wildflower arrangements. Owners Sofie Wochner and Domenico Cortese are adherents to local, sustainable food, and whether you’re here for brunch, dinner, or a simple breakfast pastry, the food is mind-blowing in its depth despite its seeming simplicity. Like the design, the menu is minimalist—just few ultra-seasonal dishes—so don’t overthink it. Just point at the menu blindly and be pleasantly surprised.
Trattoria Da Danilo
“Trattoria Da Danilo is like a postcard—exactly what you envision a typical Roman trattoria would look like. The charming room is crowded with wooden tables covered with checkered tablecloths; the walls are decorated with vintage photos. Serious food-lovers flock from all around Rome—and the world—for the legendary carbonara here, which, like the cacio e pepe and amatriciana, is the dish’s purest expression. After one meal, you’ll be forever ruined on all future versions.”
– Condé Nast Traveler
Armando al Pantheon
Simple, classic Roman favorites for the serious foodie crowd. Kick things off with a bruschetta topped with tomato and milky burrata cheese, then move on to a plate of fettuccine pasta with porcini mushrooms, or stick to the old Roman favorite, cacio e pepe (a creamy sauce made from pecorino and pepper). Come time for the main course, the chargrilled lamb chops, if they have them, are bite-sized pieces of perfection.
180g Pizzeria Romana
A bit outside the city center but well worth the trip for dedicated pizza enthusiasts. These pies, which are legendary around Rome, are a must for any true pizza aficionado. This simple, unassuming joint specializes in pizza Romana, thin-crust personal pizzas that embody everything to love about Roman pizza. If it’s your first time consider splitting a classic style pizza and one of their insanely creative pies.
Retrobottega
Reserve your table well in advance. The dishes here push the boundaries of creativity in dining and you’ll need to order the tasting menu to experience the entire culinary trip. Ingredients are season and traditional, but the dishes are anything but. Chefs Giuseppe Lo Iudice and Alessandro Miocchi are so dedicated to locally sourced ingredients that they often spend their mornings foraging for goodies in the forests and fields just outside the city.
Mercato Centrale Roma
Mercato Centrale is a foodies dream. 18 artisanal food stands surround this grand hall built inside an old train depot. The choices are endless and you will have serious problems deciding where to start. But, regardless of what you choose you’ll be sure to leave happy.
Nonna Betta
Eat Fried Artichokes cooked by a real grandma in the Jewish Ghetto. Nonna Betta’s recipes are all kosher in nature and delicious in their home cooked style.
Testaccio Market (Mercato di Testaccio)
One of Romes premiere open air markets for everything from home cooked food stands to artisan clothing and gift shops.