Eating Italy Food Tours, (Rome, Italy)

This time around I had a few extra days to spend in Rome and therefore I felt compelled to do a Food Tour in the city. I have to be honest that Eating Italy Food Tours was not my first option but it was the only one that had availability and it was not conflicting with my commitments in the city.

I opted for the Testaccio tour. Testaccio is a traditional working class neighbourhood of Rome whose recent process of gentrification has changed its reputation from poor to hipster (think of Corktown if you live in Toronto). The difference is that instead of booze, you could find the main slaughterhouse of the city and plenty of butchers. It was not my first time in the area and for someone like me who despises dislikes anything that is touristy it is a nice place where you don't have to bump into tourists at every minute.

The folks organizing the tour were very friendly and accommodating. The tour is held in English (of course). I cannot think of a respectable Italian that would join that tour, but one of the organizers was raised in Rome, so I was quite happy to hear from time to time some real Italian while his was interacting with the customers and staff from the stores and restaurants that we visited.

We tried pizza al taglio, supli, tiramissu, charcuterie, cornetto, pasta, fresh canollo, and mozzarella di buffala. We also visited the testaccio market, the old slaughterhouse, and even a cemetery. The last stop was for a brief class of how to distinguish fake and real gelatto (we also sampled it).

My companion loved the tour and I am sure that most of the people also had a great time. I enjoyed the experience and it was a great opportunity to learn about the history of Testaccio and Rome but I would never recommend this tour to any serious foodie. The only place that wowed me was Volpetti, a deli where you can find fantastic cheeses and cold cuts. I managed to get a beautiful piece of parmigiano reggiano - Thank you God we are allowed to bring cheese to Canada!

Café Propaganda (Rome, Italy)

The restaurant was opened approximately six months ago and they are already in the Michelin guide, so I had to check it out.

I have to confess that I love the Parisian style decoration. White subway tiles, crystal chandeliers, wooden tables and fresh tulips.

The service was friendly but somewhat without personality, I even felt I was in Paris (oops, sorry dear Parisian friends, you guys rock, I think you can relate to what I am trying to convey in here). They dressed casually, which is something that somehow I appreciate. I always felt a bit uncomfortable when going to restaurants where the staff has an uniform on. Too posh for me I guess.

The menu was located in two places, the main menu on a newspaper like format and a daily menu on the blackboard.

I knew exactly what I wanted to get as I browsed their online menu and I was happy with what I had.

My wine (La Randa) was fruity and delicious, I loved it!

I had a shrimp, artichoke, green apple, and crispy lettuce salad. The salad was very tasty and the shrimp fresh.

For dessert, I had a pistachio crème brûlée and it was soo good! It reminded me of the one from Marben in Toronto.

All said, the food was very good but I was not trilled. Quite honestly, I don't know how they ended up in the Michelin guide.

Would I return there? Why not? But I have plenty if places to visit in Rome before returning to Cafe Propaganda.

I wanted to note here that most of the clientele was Italian even though two of the tables were taken by tourists. This was quite shocking to me taken that they are located near the coliseum and I was having lunch after 2PM... I guess they work for the Italian government.

Ciao!

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!

San Marco (Rome, Italy)

After walking around Rome for hours, we were hungry and motivated to go to L'arcangelo, an Italian restaurant that I had lined up for this trip. When we finally arrived at the location we were shocked to see that the restaurant was closed for Sunday dinner. We were about to give up in finding a restaurant when we found San Marco, a nicely decorated restaurant that happened to be opened for business. It is needless to say that there were only tourists in the restaurant and the food and service was mediocre. The only good dish I had was the freshly made gnocchi with mushroom. It was heavenly good!

The suffi and the mushroom, egg, and grana salad were very average.
BTW, the house wine was extremely affordable for 7£ per 1/2 liter.

Would I ever come back there? No way, but I'm thankful that they were opened and I was able to eat before going to bed after a long day. Jet leg? Oh, yeah, it is kicking in.

La Fiorentina (Rome, Italy)

I was strolling around Rome when I stumbled upon this pastry shop. La Fiorentina was packed with Italians on Sunday afternoon so I decided to enter and see what they had. I found a large selection of sweets and canapés. I grabbed a tiny square of mousse al limone. It was very good! I am so used to spot artificial flavors in pastries in North America that I felt in heaven to taste the real deal.

Pizzarium (Rome, Italy)

Today is Sunday, but for most of us in North America that does not change anything in our lives. The issue is that I'm in Rome and Domenica (Sunday in Italian), translates into a gazzilion things including finding a Restaurant opened during dinner time. Sounds weird to you? Well, It did it to me but I guess it is related to the slow movement. I have to admit that Italians are a pretty good at it.

That's the drilled down for my no so successful culinary experience for today. To start, we headed for late lunch at Pizzarium, a well known Roman pizza place that sell pizza by the weight. I actually did good by asking for a small slice of my favorite pizza in the world (potato pizza) :) if pizza was not a crime by itself, right?

The pizza was very good and juicy! I enjoyed every bite. It was not the best pizza ever but pretty solid. I still don't know why it was listed in the Rome's layover but, very good.

They offer 1 glass of wine for £1.5. Not bad eh!!