Where to eat in Rome
This Rome information blog is written for the guests of the Bed and Breakfast Chaplin Hostel Rome
In a tourist capital like Rome there is of course an extensive choice of restaurants, pizzerias and other eateries and for a traveler making a short city trip to the Eternal City where to eat can be a difficult choice to make.
Best restaurant areas in Rome
Prices differ from quarter to quarter, though it is obvious that in the center of Rome you pay more than in areas that are slightly off the beaten track. The most popular areas, for Romans and tourists alike, are Trastevere and the area around Campo de’ Fiori, the Pantheon and Piazza Navona. Naturally these areas are also the more expensive ones. The Testaccio (take metro line B to the Piramide stop) and San Lorenzo (a short walking distance from both the B&B Chaplin Rome and Bed and Breakfast Little Italy) are also very popular, so much so that in San Lorenzo on Friday and Saturday nights traffic is not allowed into the area anymore.
Rome Restaurants recommended by guidebooks
As a tourist in Rome you can of course blindly follow the recommendations listed in your Lonely Planet or Rick Steves’ Rome travel guides, but doing that you will be more than likely to end up in a restaurant where everybody else is American, English or Australian too. Moreover, the people who write these guide books are not likely to have spent more than a couple of weeks in Rome (whatever they claim on the cover) and their restaurant experience will therefore have to be limited to a restricted number of eateries.
Look At Price Lists
Always study the price list before entering a restaurant. Some restaurants have started putting touts outside their doors. These are obviously best to be avoided, since they are likely to be tourist traps.
Eat where Romans eat
A good way to judge whether or not a restaurant is likely to be worth a visit is to try and see whether or not there are many Italians inside. Of course these might also be tourists, especially when you are in the center of Rome, but this still could be a good indication of the quality of the restaurant.
Eat in side streets
Avoid the main streets and squares if you want to save money. Eating on Piazza Navona itself is very romantic, but you are likely to eat a better meal at a cheaper price in a trattoria just off the square itself.
Get good advice
Ask the staff at the hotel or bed and breakfast in Rome you are staying at: At the Hostel Chaplin Bed and Breakfast Rome and at the Little Italy B&B Rome we have some excellent recommendations for you.