New Favorite Places to Eat in Rome - 2024
As much as I love developing recipes and cooking for the blog, I recognize that lots of readers — Rome-based expats and visitors alike — are always hungry for restaurant suggestions. After over a decade living in Rome, I have a list of tried-and-tested recommendations, an ever evolving document that is periodically updated as I eat my way through the capital. Sharing my new favorites seems especially fitting in light of the new year, too — make it your 2024 resolution to try them all?
So! Here’s a compilation of some of my newly discovered, instantly beloved places to eat in Rome. Note that the term “new" is used loosely here; some of these eateries opened just a few months ago, while others are simply new to me, a foodie who is a bit late to the party. Disclaimer: you’ll see lots of amatriciana in the below, because it’s what I usually find myself ordering over and over again — know that there are, of course, other things to order on all menus, ok?
Last reminder: please check the most recent closing/opening times before you visit any of these locales — the hours I provided are the most recent ones, according to Google, but I wouldn’t want to lead anyone astray should this info change.
LOVE
A typical breakfast in Italy consists of a coffee paired with the simple, crescent shaped pastry known as the cornetto. Every Italian coffee bar offers an array of cornetti in the morning, and common fixture that they are, they sometimes are perhaps taken for granted. Love changes all of that, specializing in this standby of a breakfast pastry and elevating it. Case in point: their Moon Love cornetto, filled with decadent coffee pastry cream and topped with a coffee crumble (see below). You’ll also find savory filled cornetti, cornetti filled with jam, or chocolate, and buttery French croissants, among many others. And wait, there’s lots more to choose from if the cornetto isn’t your thing! Try Love’s swirly veneziana (pictured below) decked out with lots of sunny yellow pastry cream, their flaky pain au chocolate, or their take on the cinnamon roll (a twisty, croissant-like cinnamon confection). For coffee buffs: Love also offers a variety of specialty coffees. Bonus: it is located a short walk from my apartment and is just in front of the majestic Mercato Trionfale, if you wanted to grab breakfast before shopping.
Address: Via Tunisi, 51, 00192 Roma RM
Hours: Open every day except for Tuesday, 7:30am-3:30pm.
Instagram: Click here.
TRE DE TUTTO
I’ve spent quite a bit of time in the Garbatella neighborhood these past few months (your doing, A.C!) and as you’ll see in this post, have discovered lots of new favorites there. First up: Tre de Tutto, a jack of-all-trades gem that is excellent at all times of the day. Hop over for breakfast for TdT’s oversized cinnamon pastries — fragrant, spiraled, sugar dusted confections — which pair perfectly with an equally superb cappuccino. At lunch, Tre de Tutto’s ever-changing menu offers anything from a seasonal soup to a variety of pastas to a meat or fish dish or two. Fun fact: their pumpkin gnocchi with gorgonzola and mushrooms had such an impact on my tastebuds that it inspired this post here. Looking for a place for aperitivo, aka Italy’s pre-dinner tradition of drinks + light food? Tre de Tutto has you covered once again, with a vast selection of cocktails (including a Hugo Spritz, not so easy to find here in Rome) and small plates like nachos and fried chicken with mayo, plus meat and cheese boards. Thanks to Laura for introducing this one to me!
Address: Via Giustino de Jacobis, 19, 00154 Roma RM
Hours: Open every day, 7am-1am.
Instagram: Click here.
PANTERA
From the great minds that gave you Trecca and Circoletto comes Pantera, a tiny, blink-and-you’ll-miss-pizzeria that serves spot-on pizza by the slice. Pantera is no frills: you’ll find classic toppings like margherita, mushroom, anchovy and zucchini flower, and potato (proof of deliciousness here). It’s one of those places that proves that sometimes less is (so much) more, and the consistent long lines of customers confirm this. Because in Italy we precede our pizza with a fried starter: pair your slices with an extra crisp, perfectly balanced suppli’, or a fried rice ball with tomato and lots of stringy, melty cheese. Bonus: Pantera is a convenient two metro stops from my work, making it a great lunch option when I can’t face the workplace cafeteria again. Note: there is no seating at Pantera, so take-away is best. Or, if the weather cooperates, take your pizza to one of the nearby benches in the square and enjoy there. Another note: Pantera is not clearly marked (it just says PIZZERIA on the storefront) so keep an eye out for it. It’s right by the Garbatella subway exit.
Address: Circonvallazione Ostiense, 153, 00154 Roma RM
Hours: Tuesday-Saturday from 12pm-3pm. Sunday from 6pm-10pm.
Instagram: Click here.
EL MAIZ
I’m ashamed to say that after years of living in the same neighborhood in Rome, I had no idea that El Maíz — a Venezuelan spot — was just a 15 minute walk from my apartment, not too far from the Vatican. Indeed, it took meeting a Venezuelan here in Rome to find out about it — better late than never, yes? At El Maíz I was introduced to Venezuelan classics like cachapas, or slightly sweet corn pancakes filled with a soft, fresh cheese called queso de mano (below); arepas, a stuffed cornmeal flatbread most famously served reina pepiada style, with a chicken, avocado, and mayo filling; tostones, or fried plantains topped with shredded beef (below); and for dessert, quesillo, a caramel-y flan (also below). Great food aside, the staff is also lovely — when my dining companion spilled tomato sauce on their (white) pants, one of the restaurant’s owners magically appeared with a Tide stain-stick. Just a heads up: seating at El Maíz is very limited, with only a few places to sit at the counters around the sides of the restaurant.
Address: Via Tolemaide, 16, 00191 Roma RM
Hours: Open Tuesday-Saturday, from 12pm-10pm.
Instagram: Click here.
SQUEEZY
A good hamburger is hard to come by in Rome. You’ll find lots of places that serve them, but often they’re just wrong, loaded with extra ingredients that don’t jive so well with a burger —for example, a burger with grilled eggplant, prosciutto, cicoria, and brie. While these fancy, italianized burgers are tasty enough, they miss the mark, not quite hitting the spot the way a classic American burger with lettuce, tomato, and ketchup would. Thank goodness then for Squeezy, a burger joint (again, in Garbatella) that gets it right. Squeezy offers smash-style burgers — thin patties, crisp on the outside and juicy on the inside! — made to perfection. Served with fries and a coke, one can very easily be convinced that they are dining stateside. My go to order is a double decker burger with bacon and cheese, but I also love their starters (chicken nuggets!) and pulled pork sandwich. Extra points for the variety of sauces (different ketchups, mayos, and BBQ sauce) that is presented alongside your burger on a nifty little skateboard tray.
Address: Piazza Marco da Tomba, 5, 00154 Roma RM
Hours: Tuesday-Sunday, noon to midnight.
Instagram: Click here.
TRATTORIA BIANCA
As you may have heard, my #1 favorite dish to eat — forever and ever — is amatriciana, one of Rome’s four famous pasta primi. I’ve made it my mission through the years to track down the very best renditions of this dish, one of which can be found at Osteria Fernanda in the Trastevere neighborhood — not so close to where I live. Conveniently for me, Osteria Fernanda’s amatriciana is now a mere few minutes from my apartment (destiny!) in the form of Trattoria Bianca. Opened in May 2023, Trattoria Bianca is the sister restaurant of Osteria Fernanda — same owner, same team, and the very same amatriciana. The tomato sauce is rich and intense, the guanciale is superbly crisp, and it’s made with my preferred shape: twisty, toothsome bucatini. For any non-amatriciana fanatics: you’ll find Roman classics on Bianca’s menu (carbonara, polpette di bollito) as well as more creative dishes (braised beef cheek with potato puree, and cod with lemon, cauliflower, and anchovies). As if this weren’t enough: Trattoria Bianca also excels beyond their main dishes. Their selection of green, veggie sides is impressive — six to choose from, from cicoria to broccoli rabe — as is their dessert, in particular their slow cooked (gelatin-free) panna cotta with salted caramel.
Address: Circonvallazione Trionfale, 94/96, 00195 Roma RM
Hours: Open every day except for Tuesday, 12pm-3:30pm and 7pm-11pm.
Instagram: Click here.
EPIRO
Epiro — located in the San Giovanni neighborhood — is my go-to ristorante when I’m in the mood for a meal that is a little more refined and elegant, or have a special occasion to celebrate. Its menu is on the smaller side, but packs a punch: you’ll find starters like roast calamaro with kale, chickpeas, and spiced yogurt, or a vegetable tempura fried to perfection (see below). For mains, you’ll find fancy creations like fettuccine with braised duck and mushrooms, roast cod with chestnuts and squid ink, and rib eye steak with artichoke and pumpkin cream. Not in the mood for something quite so elegant? Never fear! Epiro also offers low-key carbonara and amatriciana (I obviously have tried the latter) and an A+ mozzarella in carrozza, which can best be described as a deep fried grilled cheese. It’s not only Epiro’s food that excels — it’s also an enoteca that also boasts a wide selection of natural wines, if that’s your thing (the world of wine is all lost on me, to my dad’s great dismay).
Address: Piazza Epiro, 26, 00183 Roma RM
Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 6:30pm-11pm. Saturday 12:30pm-3pm and 6:30pm-11pm. Sunday 12:30pm-3pm.
Instagram: Click here.
TRATTORIA DA ZACCA AR 20
Saving the best for last! We all need a beloved, consistent, never-lets-you-down trattoria in our lives, and Zacca has become just that for me. Cozy and low-key, you’ll find classic Roman dishes come Dio comanda, or made to perfection. If you’re me, you’ll start with a cacio e pepe bomba — think fried pasta fritter, see below— and then move on to a dish of bucatini all’amatriciana (obviously) or rigatoni con sugo di coda, or pasta with a rich braised oxtail sauce. Having said this, Zacca’s secondi are also good enough to lead me astray off the typical pasta path — a rare feat for a self-declared pasta-fiend. Their polpette al sugo, or meatballs, rival those made by my Nonna, and their polpettone, or meatloaf with roast potatoes, is equally stellar. Whether I’m meeting a few friends for dinner during the week, organizing a lazy Sunday lunch with a big group, or simply feel like treating myself on a Tuesday night, Zacca has my back. Bonus: Zacca just happens to be located ridiculously close to my apartment, yay. Double bonus: the staff couldn’t be any lovelier.
Address: Via Domenico Millelire, 20, 00136 Roma RM
Hours: Open every day except for Wednesdays, from 12:30pm-3:30pm and 7:30pm-11pm.
Instagram: Click here.
