Perhaps this is an unpopular opinion, but visiting Rome doesn’t guarantee you’ll eat well. Don’t get me wrong, you can have life-changing meals in the Eternal City, but you have to know where to go. Take it from me: I’ve been living here for five years, and visited often in the 10 years prior to that, writing about the city and its restaurant scene for Travel + Leisure, Afar and Food & Wine.
For the best restaurants and bars in , here are a handful of my picks, all ideal outdoor destinations to eat, drink and enjoy the Mediterranean climate as summer transitions to fall. iQuintili and 180 Grammi My favourite place for Neapolitan-style pizza is . The pizzaiolo, Marco Quintili, is from Caserta and it shows.
There are two locations, neither in the centre of Rome, which is a clue that this place is not pandering to tourists but catering to locals. The menu is extensive, the service is speedy, and the prices are very reasonable, unlike those at the more famous . Of the pizzerias making thin-crust Roman-style pizza, is my favourite.
The location in Trastevere is the most central, but I love to sit outside at the one in Parco Appio in the warmer months. They have classic flavour combinations, but I recommend their special pizzas, like the Parmigiana de Noantri, which is topped with tomato sauce, fried eggplant, stracciatella, semi-dry tomatoes, basil, parmigiano and charred eggplant skin. Da Enzo al 29, a family-run trattoria, doesn’t take reservations, but it’s worth th.