Top budget food choices in Rome

Those of you who also follow me over Instagram (@travel_pb) have probably already seen a photo with this catchy slogan: Italy is Eataly. It is a slogan of an Italian gourmet food and wine marketplace chain Eataly.

I spotted one of their billboards while in Rome and found it really cute. I know nothing about the food chain and have never been inside one of their places, but their slogan addresses a very important part of Italian culture - food.

In my opinion Italy is as much about good food and wine, as it is about history and art. Combine it all together and you get a perfect mix and a strong tourist magnet. Every time I visit Italy I try to get a taste of every one of those things.

Rome was no different. Apart from good wine and excellent Roman artisan ice-cream I already wrote about, we also had to eat once in a while during our week-long trip. You are welcome to check out our Roman wine tasting experience as well as the tour of Frascati vineyards we really enjoyed.

I am glad to report we had no bad food experiences during our stay in the Eternal city whatsoever. The worst two things we got were an overpriced cup of mediocre coffee and a glass of undrinkable house-wine. That is it - everything else exceeded our expectations or was at least as good as we had expected. A much better outcome than were hoping for.
We were obviously not depending only on our luck and instincts - I also checked for some on-line recommendations. Smartphone support (with Tripadvisor app and web access) can also be a very welcome help in some situations.

We tried to eat as many local dishes as possible and stay on a budget while doing it. I was pretty sceptical about this before the trip but as I learned, it is actually quite possible to eat good food for a reasonable price in Rome.
However, a glass of good wine (by my not so low, European standards) was quite a bit more expensive than back home in Slovenia.

These are the places I can gladly recommend. Please keep in mind these are mostly budget options and the ambient might not always be the best, but it definitely is authentic. Above all, they serve delicious local food.

• Pastificio on Via della Croce 8 (located a couple hundred metres from Spanish steps) is actually an artisan pasta shop, offering pasta meals every day from 13:00 to 14:00 for 4 Euro. A glass of quite drinkable wine is included. Each day they have a tasting of two different pasta/sauce variations. They serve it until they run out - so make sure you are there on time. Food is served on plastic plates with disposable cutlery but it is delicious.
• La tavernetta 48 on Via degli Spagnoli 48 is actually a very good and moderately priced restaurant. It does however offer budget (usually typical local) two course fixed meals for 13 Euro every day at lunch time only.
• Formula 1 is a pizzeria located on Via degli equi 13. It may not look like much and it is also not set in one of the attractive parts of the city, but they serve good food at budget prices. You can get a tasty pizza for as low as 4 Euro. You should also try some of their many fried local specialities. Unlike most other pizza places they are also open during lunch time.
• Navona Notte on Via del Teatro Pace 44 (a short stroll from piazza Navona) is another moderately priced pizzeria with a wood-burning oven. You can expect to pay one or two Euro more compared to the one mentioned above but it is located in a very touristy area. In addition to a wide range of pizzas, here you can also choose among many other typical dishes.
• Checchino dal 1887 on Via di Monte Testaccio 30 is NOT a budget option, but if you decide to spend a bit more on a special occasion this is my recommendation. They are as authentic as they get and (supposedly) never disappoint. This is a true Roman institution and they serve all the typical local dishes like Caponata, Saltimbocca, Spaghetti alla Carbonara and many more. Since it is quite popular it is wise to make a reservation.

If you just came back from Rome and would like to relive some of those great tastes of Cuccina Romana, I have a treat for you. Here are two recipes by no other than Elio Mariani - the chef and co-owner of Checchino dal 1887 restaurant himself. Let him share his secrets while you watch him prepare Saltimbocca alla Romana and Spaghetti alla Carbonara - two typical Roman dishes. Bon Appétit!

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Best time for visiting Rome

As it is evident from my recent posts we have been on a week-long trip in Rome. Me and M. both wanted to visit The Eternal City since we drove past it some 10 years ago on our road trip to Sicily. This year we finally made it back to Lazio region in central Italy.

There were a couple of times when Rome popped up on our travel destinations shortlist before, but usually we dismissed it for one reason or another. I think everyone should take into consideration the following things before scheduling a trip to this great city:

• Ferragosto. When Italians go on their main summer vacation (roughly from mid-July to mid-August) it is quite a challenge to travel around Italy. If you choose any of the popular (usually seaside) destinations within or near Italy, in addition to all other tourists, you will also have to deal with a loud crowd of Italians.
  Since Rome is not a seaside destination you might have to face a different kind of challenge. Many places simply shut down and others often change their working hours.
• Reserve enough time to see the real Rome. Make sure you have enough time to REALLY see the city. Racing from one attraction to the other just to cross them from your list is not the way to do it. Take time to relax and try to take a look at the city from the local perspective.
• Plan your trip at least a few months in advance. Waiting for a great last minute deal will probably not end well. Flight tickets as well as accommodation costs all tend to go up as the date approaches. This might not be all that evident in low season, but in the most popular times of year it might prove to be essential.
• Do your research. Rome might be there for a long time and many things have stayed the same for hundreds of years. Nevertheless, some things are definitely worth looking into.
  For instance, if you are planning only a short stay in the city it would be a shame to spend half of your time standing at entrances of the most popular attractions. You should definitely book some tickets ahead of time over the internet.

In my opinion the best times for visiting Rome are in spring (late March through mid-May) and fall (September through early November). You should expect at least a few rainy days both in spring and autumn. Due to longer days I prefer spring.

This time I had enough time to do some research before the trip and I must say it was really worth it in the end. We just got so much out of it for less money and we also got to enjoy some things we would have never found out about by ourselves.

Usually it all begins with a search for a flight ticket but since I live in a neighbouring country (Slovenia), this time I also considered driving there myself and using a train. After some research, this time we chose to use the train - it proved to be the cheapest of the three options. I suggest you keep this often overlooked mean of transport in mind when planing your trip. In some parts of the World you can travel over large distances even faster using one of those super-fast trains, compared to air-planes (mostly due to airport security and regulations).

Also making a detour is very easy when using a train. Depending on which part of Italy you might be crossing, there are many great cities more than worth a detour. Turin, Milan, Florence and Venice are just some that well deserve the attention. You can easily find a high-class accommodation in Milan that will make you love the city even more.

Since we were passing through Florence on our way we were thinking about a short stop but decided against it after some consideration. We figured it might be wiser to spend all of our time in the Italian capital this time. We did not regret our decision.

We stayed in Rome for a week, taking it in from early mornings to late afternoons but still felt like there was so much of it left undiscovered. It might not happen soon but we would not mind returning one day and spending some more time in this lovely city.

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Wordless Wednesday: Pope Leo XIII Coat of Arms

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