Monti

Cafes: On your street I like the cafe bohemienne, but our favorite sit down cafes are
analemma (via Leonina 77) and the bottega del cafe in piazza della madonna dei
monti - this piazza is really the heart of the 'hood, people congregate here and it’s
great for people watching. These cafes are also good in the late afternoon/evening
for aperitivo (i.e. happy hour: you pay for drinks and you get food from a free buffet…
usually very good deal). My favorite aperitivo in Monti though is at Fafiuche’ on via
madonna dei monti 28, a really cute wine bar.
Food: there’s lots of little takeaway pizza places for a quick bite in Monti, my favorite
is Antico Forno ai Serpenti on the corner of Via dei Serpenti and Via Pansiperna. For
sit down pizza there is Chicco di Grano on Via degli Zingari. On Via panisperna you
have La Carbonara, a traditional Roman trattoria famous for the eponymous
Carbonara dish. My favorite restaurant in the area is a very tasty, hip but cosy place
called Urbana 47 on via Urbana (which is also a very lovely street to explore). Just in
front you have the Fata Morgana, one of the most inventive and tasty gelatos
in Rome, try it even if the weather is cold. Other dessert places are Ciuri Ciuri,
sicilian pastry shop (try the cannoli) and the bottega del cioccolato (best chocolate
shop in Rome) both on via Leonina. There is also a place that does raw organic
chocolate, if you like that stuff, it’s called Grezzo on via Urbana. There’s lots of shops
and sites to explore that you can find walking through the streets of Monti. I do want
to recommend some very nice churches, the large basilica of santa maria maggiore
you may have already visited, but then there are some really nice medieval churches
in the area that are less popular with tourists, especially Santa Pudenziana, on via
Urbana and santi Cosma e Damiano, at the entrance of the forum, which was
recently beautifully restored. Also, see if you are interested in the current exhibition
at the scuderie del quirinal http://english.scuderiequirinale.it/Home.aspx

Center:
Cafes: Barnum on via del Pellegrino (also a very nice street to explore) is a good sit
down cafe. The Tazza D’Oro at the pantheon has excellent “standing” coffee and the
best coffee granita in the world. Worth trying. The Chiostro del Bramante has nice
exhibitions sometimes and a good cafe http://www.chiostrodelbramante.it/. For
gelatos my favorites in the area are Carapina on Via dei Chiavari, San Crispino at
the Pantheon, and the very classic Giolitti on via degli uffici del vicario. For a quick
take away pizza or pastry you must go to the Forno in Campo de’ Fiori (also nice
market in the piazza in the morning) and the forno Roscioli on Via dei Chiavari. For
drinks and aperitivo head to the beautiful Piazza di Pietra, I really like the Salotto 42
bar. Also Gusto in piazza augusto imperatore has good aperitivo and drinks.
Restaurants in the area are too many to count, beware of tourist traps: some of my
favorite places are Enoteca Corsi on via del Gesu (very nice for a simple lunch), Cul
de sac in piazza Pasquino (great wine choice and good food), Da Francesco in
Piazza del Fico (traditional Roman dishes and pizza). The sites in the area are some
of the most famous and classical in Rome, so you might have seen a lot on a
previous visit, but some places that are a little less famous include:
the roman houses under Palazzo Valentini (just off Piazza venezia), this is a lovely
museum with virtual reconstructions built after the remains of some
ancient Roman houses were discovered under this government
building http://www.palazzovalentini.it/domus-romane/index-en.html; the beautiful art
collection of the Galleria Doria Pamphili in piazza del collegio romano (second only
to the amazing collection of the Galleria Borghese, also a must if you haven’t seen
it); the amazing church of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva (the only Roman church with a
gothic interior), and of course just walking around and enjoying the Pantheon, Piazza
Navona and the other classical sights.

Ghetto
The old Jewish neighborhood, once a slum regularly flooded by the Tiber, has
become quite hip in the last years. The main drag is Via del Portico D’ottavia, which
ends with the eponymous Roman portico, and is filled with restaurants and cafes. If
you are there you must stop at a hole-in-the-wall pastry shop called Boccione at
portico d'ottavia n. 1 (there is no sign, but usually there is a line): try the pizza
ebraica (it is not a pizza but a sweet pastry) and the ricotta cake. For a restaurant I
like Nonna Betta, especially for the carciofo alla gouda (fried artichoke). The area
also has lots of hip galleries and shops, as well as the main synagogue and Jewish
museum. It’s also nice to cross the time here, talk a walk on the Isola Tiberina in the
middle of the river and then cross over for a stroll in Testaccio.

Trastevere:
This area is famous for its nightlife and many bars so it gets very crowded on
weekend nights. Best to visit on a week night or during the day. Piazza Santa Maria
in Trastevere is a good place to start. The church on the piazza is one of the oldest
in Rome and definitely worth a visit. Don’t sit at the cafes in the piazza, they are
touristy, head instead for the bar san callisto, in the nearby piazza san callisto for a
traditional roman cafe experience (also great chocolate ice cream). Try the amazing
Suppli (fried rice balls) on Via San Francesco a Ripa, or grab a bite of pizza at
Giselda next door. For a hip, crowded but good aperitivo try Freni e Frizioni, a bar
that opened in an ancient pharmacy on via del Politeama. For a
traditional Roman meal I recommend the VII Coorte on Piazza Sonnino, Checco er
Carettiere on via Benedetta, Roma Sparita in Piazza Santa Cecilia. For sit down
pizza go to Pizzeria Ai Marmi on Viale Trastevere, just off Piazza Sonnino. For
excellent gelato go for Fata Morgana in Piazza S. Cosimato, and Otaleg on Via di
San Cosimato.

Testaccio:
This neighborhood is a bit off the beaten track but I recommend it. it’s an old working
class neighborhood that has become quite trendy recently. Make sure you visit the
mercato testaccio on Via Galvani (nice gourmet stall among the traditional fruits and
vegetable stores) and absolutely stop at Volpetti, an amazing delicatessen (if you
ask they will vacuum pack your stuff for your trip back) on Via Marmorata. Nice
restaurants in the area are the Osteria degli Amici and Flavio al Velavevodetto on via
nicola zabaglia. The latter is built at the bottom of the monte dei cocci, which looks
like a hill that dominates the ‘hood, but actually if you look closely you can see (also
if you look through the back windows of the restaurant) that it’s an artificial mound
that was ancient Rome’s dump, and is built by layer upon layer of broken amphorae.
There’s also Da Felice a testaccio that makes a great cacio e pepe
(typical roman dish. You need to book.
The area also hosts an extension of the MACRO museum of contemporary art (the
main building is in the north of Rome) and you can check out if there is anything at
the MACRO testaccio that interests you http://www.museomacro.org/
It’s also really nice to walk up the aventine hill to the lovely churches as the top,
especially santa sabina, and the great view of Rome from the Giardino degli Aranci.

Celio:
I love this quiet hood on the south side of the colosseum (lived there for a couple of
years). For cafes I really like the cafe cafe (no affiliation to the Israeli chain) on via
dei santi quattro and the cafe propaganda on the via claudia. Next door there is the
taverna dei quaranta, which has good food. And the Antica Gelateria on Via
Celimontana is the best (but not the only) gelato in the area. In this area I also
recommend visiting the Basilica di San Clemente, which is a church with four layers
of built one on top of the other from the Roman to the modern period, and also the
beautiful medieval Basilica dei Santi quattro coronati. If the weather is nice, it’s also
nice to stroll in the villa celimontana or in the parco del colle oppio. Underneath this
park are the remains of Nero’s palace, the domus aurea. It’s currently under
restoration but sometimes they open it up for special visits, it is worth checking if
there is one when you are there. http://www.coopculture.it/events.cfm?id=268

Prati:
This residential neighborhood north of the Vatican has become more interesting with
new restaurants and bars opening there. The main attractions nearby are of course
the Vatican, the nearby Castel Sant’Angelo and it’s quite easy to cross the river to
enjoy the Villa Borghese park and the treasures of the Galleria Borghese. There are
a couple of great traditional delis in the area – mainly Castroni (two locations on via
Ottaviano and Via Cola di Rienzo) and La Tradizione on Via Cipro – excellent to
bring home all sorts of yummy cheeses and salamis. Near La Tradizione you find
Pizzarium – one of the most innovative pizza-by-the-slice places in Rome, run by
chef Gabriele Bonci, offering lots of different pizzas with creative toppings, and the
supplies (fried rice balls) are a must too. For sit-down pizza in this area I recommend
La Pratolina on Via degli Scipioni, they make a kind of square pizza with a very light
dough (booking recommended). For gelato go for the Gelateria dei Gracchi on Via
dei Gracchi and round the corner try the amazing patisseries of I Pupi di Zucchero or
the Gelateria Romana on Via Cola di Rienzo. Il Sorpasso on via Properzio is a nice
traditional Roman restaurant in the area. Climb to the Janiculum terrace south of the
Vatican for a magnificent view of Rome and the baroque church of San Pietro in
Montorio.