A Foodie’s Guide to Rome Restaurants and Bars, Rome, Italy

I once wrote down a quote (I can’t remember who it was by) that went something along the lines of: “Sex is like Shakespeare: even when it’s bad, it’s still a damn sight better than the alternative.” The same is probably true of food in Rome: even if you’re in an over-priced pizza joint that’s equidistant from the Vatican, Colosseum and Spanish Steps, it’s still not going to be that bad. And yet, like everything, there are degrees: there are thinner, crispier pizzas and fatter, flabbier pizzas; there is better value for money and worse; and not all carbonaras are created equal.

And while it may be easy to sort the guanciale from the bog-standard bacon outside the tourist centre (the Romans will undoubtedly see to that), in the tourist traps it’s not so simple… Hence why I devised my guide to where to eat near Rome’s top tourist attractions. As always, thanks to Maria from HeartRome for all her wonderful tips and insights into being a foodie in the Eternal City!

Possibly my favourite find in the Colosseum area was Divin Ostilia: a tiny wine bar that sells all sorts of Italian wines by the glass (including an excellent Amarone della Valpolicella) and even more by the bottle. In fact, you can even buy them to take home with you. The food is simple but tasty: between us, we tried the Melanzane di Parmigiana, spaghetti all’Amatriciana, Caprese salad, tuna tartare and friarelli. All were good, but the wines were even better. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).