ROME

[comedyzen]

Will be hitting Rome next week. I refuse to use Lonely Planet's and the likes as guides. Need insight on:

Pizza.
Coffee.
Going to hit the tourist stuff like the Sistine Chapel, Pantheon, and the Coliseum....but is there any must see galleries/spots that maybe only the locals know about?

Thanks

[mortalveneer]

Coffee: Sciascia

Restaurant: Settembrini

much more than this, but these two stood out enough for me to remember them offhand...

[Faust]

Pretty sure we already have a thread on Rome.

[interest1]

Where does one go to find good pizza & coffee in Italy?

Isn't that like asking where to go for curry in India?



Trust me, even the espresso at the airport there will be far superior to anything you'll get served here in the states.

@comedyzen – you really are a comedian, even when you're not on stage.

[comedyzen]

Thanks Mort, will def check them out.

The other thread had some good shopping spots, but food is it. Very interested in looking for a locally made weekender.

Madame Interest1, FALSE, I had crap sushi in Japan, crap baguette in Paris, and surprisingly, a lot of crap coffee in Italy. Me no jokey about food on or off stage : )

I had 3 cappuccinos where the base was made from some insta-Nescafe crap. I rather drink Starbucks.

[mortalveneer]

Yah if you're in touristy areas in Rome (at least around Prati and the Vatican), you can get served some garbage. It took me but once to learn that lesson, but it was a lesson to be learned.

Some amazing draft Italian microbrews are available at Beere e Mangiare (I was almost a fixture at that spot any night I didn't feel like wine).

avoid the house wine like the plague...good deals can be had, but house wine was consistently unpalatable as compared to bottles a step or two above that...

Also, Sorpasso has some delicious beverages and food options (a sealed mason jar cooked fish stood out from among the numerous delicacies there)...

[fncyths]

Reviving this thread. Will be in Rome for a few weeks in April for work. If you have any noteworthy eateries or shopping jaunts please share. Feel free to PM too!

cheers

[Faust]

No good shopping in Rome - enjoy the food, if you can find good food. Funnily enough, in my experience food in Rome is nothing special. I much prefer Tuscan fare.

The one fantastic dinner I've head was at Pastificio, but it's a bit out of the way behind the Tiburtina station.

Better yet, just enjoy Rome. I am totally in love. I can just walk for hours and hourse there and breathe in its history - it's one big outdoor museum. I also recommend getting a book about Rome and reading it on a plane. It makes the experience so much more enriching.

The one I read was Rome, by Robert Hughes. There are probably better ones, but I liked the idea of an art critic writing about history.

[unwashed]

Only place I could think of for shopping is Degli Effetti ,both men and womens stores have some nice items and maybe motel salieri? When I was there is was closed, so really the only shop I visited was Degli Effetti.

But what Faust said, just enjoy the outdoor museum. Every corner has something worth seeing! Too much to see :)

For food, I just went to more local Italian small restaurants, nothing fancy.

[fncyths]

thanks for the tips! I'll be antiquing and hitting up the flea markets for sure.

found this article by vassili di napoli while digging around online. thought i'd share it for future reference:

URBAN PERSPECTIVE : ROME BY VASSILI DI NAPOLI!

[hurricane08]

The whole historical centre is a living museum and one of the best cities in the world for my tastes. Some decent places to eat, :

Maccheroni near Pantheon
PizzaRe near Popolo
Luzzi near piazza Cavour i think. For the original funny and loud Italians :)

Gelateria del Teatro via coronari
Della Palma gellato near Pantheon

I will edit this post with a few more tomorrow, i can't recall right now. .