Da Felice a Testaccio (Rome, Italy)

When my Italian cooking teacher told me that Da Felice a Testaccio had the best food in Rome, I took his advice with a grain of salt but gave it a try.

I showed up at the restaurant on a Monday night without a reservation and was quickly turned down. My Italian isn't that good and because the place was very nice and full of Italians, I had to switch to English and start the "begging" process which I have became pretty good at, and 40 minutes later I was happily seated.

I don't have any regrets in walking on the empty streets of Testaccio for 40 minutes in a chilly night. After the food was served, I was in heaven.

Our server was kind, fun, and knowledgeable. He was fluent in English and could speak French, and probably Spanish as well, not to say Italian.

The restaurant had a very nice contemporary decor and plenty of brick walls. White tablecloths were mixed with modern looking light fixtures.

The food was fantastic! I loved every single thing I ate. We had a 2.5h dinner and it felt so right. No rush whatsoever. Slow food, great experience! That was the first time in my life I left a restaurant at midnight.

In Rome a restaurant can be easily critiqued by the quality of their cacio e pepe, a very simple dish (spaghetti, pecorino, and pepper). Theirs was exquisite! The beauty of roman cuisine is that they use (simple and what it used to be or still is) affordable ingredients to create fantastic dishes.

The ravioli with ricotta and spinach was excellent and so were the grilled veggies.

The desserts were to die for. I had a ricotta & pear- whipped ricotta with pear, and an almond and amaretto crust. Perfecto!

The tiramissu... Well, I had a short but intense relationship with mine. It was magical, just what I needed to sweeten my night and stop my tears. If you ever feel like crying, come to Rome. You will find a tiramissu to pick you up.

Please note that Da Felice a Testaccio was far away from the centro and therefore, we were the only tourists there tonight. Great food made for picky Roman eaters. This is the place to eat if you want to have a true Italian experience. Chef Andrea was right, this is so far the best food I ever had in Rome.

Roma, ti amo!