Colombian chef Roy Caceres is a veteran of Roman fine dining. His landmark, Michelin-starred restaurant, Metamorfosi, didn’t survive the pandemic, but his signature dishes have found a place at Orma (an anagram of Roma) just a few blocks southeast of the Galleria Borghese. Orma is home to a number of distinct concepts: The bistrot is a power-lunch spot set on a shaded terrace, the cocktail bar specializes in tropical fruit- and herb-forward drinks, and the restaurant offers tasting menus and a la carte dishes that blend Caceres’s Colombian heritage with Italian flavors and ingredients. Fans of the chef’s Uovo 65° Carbonara (a soft-cooked egg floating in Parmigiano-Reggiano foam, served with a side of puffed pasta and tender strips of guanciale) will find it in the bistrot, while the restaurant serves his renowned lacquered eel with pickled onions.

Gabriele Bonci’s landmark pizza al taglio (pizza by the slice) shop near the Vatican Museums has become a globally acclaimed landmark where cold-fermented, heirloom wheat-based dough is topped with exquisite produce from biodynamic farms and artisanal cured meats and cheeses. Most toppings change from day to day, or even hour to hour, but Pizzarium’s signatures (tomato-oregano and potato-mozzarella) are always available. There are only a few high-top tables outside and no seating, so don’t wear yourself out too much wandering the museums before stopping by.

In early 2022, acclaimed Sicilian chef Ciccio Sultano opened Giano in the W Hotel, where the warm spaces are replete with plush velvet couches and wood-clad walls. Lunch is geared towards elevated, earthy island classics like insalata finocchi e arancia, which features flavorful fennel and seasonal citrus, and pacchero fuori Norma, tubular house-extruded pasta heaped with fried eggplant, cherry tomatoes, and grated ricotta salata. Meanwhile, the dinner menu is a celebration of the Sicilian sea and mountains, with dishes like tagliolini with artichokes and sweet red shrimp from Mazara del Vallo, as well as suckling pig from the Nebrodi Mountains. Fulfilling its role as a hotel restaurant, Giano also serves breakfast and aperitivo daily, as well as a Sunday “Bella Brunch.”

Residents and visitors desperate for spice don’t have many options in Rome, where locals often lament that even black pepper is too piquant. It’s a small miracle, therefore, that Tianci Chongqing Farm Hot Pot has opened — and thrived — in the chile-averse Italian capital. A short walk from the Spanish Steps and Trevi Fountain, the restaurant treats diners to bubbling cauldrons of broth (served as garlic and chile-laden as you’d like) for cooking vegetables, seafood, noodles, meat, and offal.

A short walk from the Trevi Fountain, this friendly trattoria has been serving satisfying dishes from Emilia-Romagna, a region in northeastern Italy, since 1931; the current owners took the helm in 1967. The menu is rich in egg-based house-made pastas like tortelli di zucca (pumpkin pasta with butter and sage) and tagliatelle alla bolognese (long strands of fresh, egg-based pasta dressed with a rich meat sauce). Save room for meaty mains including bollito misto (assorted simmered meats) and fried liver. 

Chef Arcangelo Dandini, known for his formal ristorante L’Arcangelo in Prati, opened this casual street food-inspired spot on the ground floor of a Renaissance building in central Rome in order to bring his fried specialties and signature finger foods to the masses. The name is inspired by suppli, Roman rice balls, which are served in assorted flavors alongside other fried classics, including crocchette di patate (potato croquettes), polpette di alici (anchovy “meatballs”), and, the most decadent of all, crema fritta (pastry cream).

After Settimio al Pellegrino, a cult favorite featured on Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown, shuttered in 2022, Leonardo Vignoli and Maria Pia Cicconi (of Cesare al Casaletto fame) resurrected the restaurant. They’ve retained the institution’s signature tiled floors, midcentury furniture, and infamous doorbell required for customers to gain access. The trattoria near Campo dei Fiori serves a succinct menu, including minestra con broccoli e arzilla (romanesco and skate soup) and former chef-owner Teresa Zazza’s legendary pan-fried meatballs. The wine list is packed with affordable natural vino.

In the southwest corner of one of Rome’s most touristy squares, Forno Campo de’ Fiori bakes sweet and savory Roman specialties like jam tarts and flatbreads. Look for pizza alla pala (long slabs baked directly in a deep electric deck oven), which is sold in slices by weight; the unctuous toppings and crispy bases make a surprisingly balanced pair. The pizza con mortadella, perfectly salty slices of pizza bianca sandwiching thin slices of mortadella, is one of the best bites in town.

Fasika and Giovanni Ghirlanda run this historic Ethiopian and Eritrean restaurant just off the ancient Via Prenestina, not far from the Villa Gordiani public park. Deeply flavored simmered vegetables and legumes, along with perfectly seasoned chicken and beef stews, are served on house-made injera.

Founded in the Historic Center in 2004 by Rome’s premier baking family, Salumeria Roscioli does triple duty as a deli, wine bar, and restaurant. Though the menu is extensive, the real stars are the cheeses (burrata with semi-dried tomatoes is spectacular), cured meats (Culaccia and mortadella with Parmigiano-Reggiano are both stellar), and pasta classics (get the gricia, cacio e pepe, amatriciana, or carbonara). If you dine at lunch or on the early side at dinner, the bread basket will include warm bread from nearby Antico Forno Roscioli. The wine list is wide-ranging, and don’t miss the distilled spirits before closing out the meal. Be sure to book online well in advance and reserve a ground-floor, bar counter, or outdoor table so you don’t get stuck in the basement.

After more than a decade of selling Italian and French cheeses and wine at the edge of the historic Ghetto of Rome, Beppe e I Suoi Formaggi renovated and considerably downsized its space and menu. Now the single dining room is mostly occupied by an incredible array of cheeses made by, among others, owner Beppe Giovale. The menu is predictably dairy focused with cheese plates, as well as butter and ricotta, which are paired with salted anchovies and honey, respectively, alongside natural vino. The wine list features collaborations with wine makers like Sicily’s Nino Barraco.

For more than three centuries, Rome’s Jewish community was confined to a walled ghetto along the Tiber River. The squalid buildings are long gone, but a historic ghetto-era bakery survives on what has become the transformed neighborhood’s main thoroughfare. The pizza ebraica — an almond flour-based fruit cake studded with nuts, raisins, and candied fruits — is an easy specialty to eat on the go, but it’s worth seeking out a bench to get messy with a slice of the spectacular ricotta and sour-cherry tart. Also try the amaretti and biscotti made with heaps of cinnamon and a generous smattering of whole almonds.

Routinely named among the best places to drink in Europe, this long-established craft beer pub in Trastevere pours around a dozen draft beers from Italy, the U.S., Belgium, Germany, and the U.K., in addition to a small but well-curated assortment of bottles. The staff is passionate and knowledgeable, and can guide you to the right choice for your palate. It’s worth waiting for the few tables on the street outside, set up during the pandemic, which offer a front row seat to Trastevere’s lively nightlife. Ma Che Siete Venuti a Fà is open every day of the year — even on Christmas, Easter, Ferragosto, and New Year’s.

Be sure to secure an online reservation before ringing the bell at number 10 on Via del Moro in Trastevere. The cool, windowless inner sanctum only has a handful of tables lining two walls, and they fill up quickly with 90-minute reservation slots beginning at 6 p.m. The interior design evokes the Orient Express with wooden accents and overhead racks above the seating, and the bartenders’ wardrobe and glassware are a throwback to the last century too. The menu of bottled classic cocktails, Champagne, and non-alcoholic drinks provides an oasis of refinement in the heart of Rome’s rowdy nightlife district.

Latteria Trastevere is a wine bar and bistro in Rome’s nightlife epicenter focused on natural vino, cheeses, and cured meats culled from tiny, sought-after producers across Italy. There are some hot dishes too, and Sardinian owner Antonio Cossu brings in island specialties like sa fregola (pearl couscous) with crab and bottles from Barbagia, one of Sardinia’s most delicious wine regions. As a bonus, Latteria is open nearly every day of the year.

A short walk from the Colosseum, Tempio di Iside is an elegant fish restaurant known for its crudi (raw dishes) like fish carpaccio, sea urchin roe, langoustines, and oysters. The pasta with sweet red shrimp, cherry tomatoes, and fresh pecorino is excellent (and proof there are valid exceptions to the “no cheese with seafood” rule), as are the spaghetti with clams, whole roasted fish, and pasta with spiny lobster. Book ahead, especially to secure an outdoor table for dinner in the summer, and expect to pay a premium for access to some of the freshest fish around.

You probably don’t associate Rome with mezcal, but it would be a mistake to forgo Italy’s premier bar celebrating agave-based spirits of Mexico. The menu features cocktails made from tequila, mezcal, bacanora, and raicilla, made with more than 700 labels that can also be enjoyed on their own. Beyond agave, you’ll also find charanda (rum from Michoacan) and sotol, a distillate made from dasylirion plants in Chihuahua.

After a career working in Roman gourmet temples like Salumeria Roscioli, Pasquale Borriello struck out on his own in 2022. His small shop in Trastevere near the church of San Francesco a Ripa has a few high-top tables where you can sip natural wine or craft beer alongside Italy’s greatest cheeses. All the big names are on the menu — Parmigiano-Reggiano, gorgonzola, and mozzarella di bufala among them — but Borriello favors the smallest and most artisanal producers of these famous styles. There is also an impressive array of goat- and cow-milk blue cheeses from celebrated affineur Andrea Magi. In addition to formaggio, Forme sells cured meats, sandwiches, and pantry items like jars of obscure marinated vegetables.

Marco Radicioni trained with Rome’s gelato maestro Claudio Torcè, embracing his sensibility of all-natural flavors, meticulous sourcing, and restrained sweetness. Since launching his own gelateria, Radicioni has grown into a maestro in his own right, churning some of the most exquisite gelato in Italy. His newest location in Monteverde Vecchio serves more than just Otaleg’s rich and creamy gelato made from the world’s best pistachios and chocolates. There are specialty coffee and artisanal pastries too, which have transformed Otaleg into a point of reference for third-wave coffee drinkers. The location in Trastevere still serves only gelato and sorbet.

Casa Manfredi opened in 2015 on a shady stretch of Viale Aventino, a tree-lined residential avenue between Circo Massimo and Testaccio. Like many cafes in Rome, it offers coffee and pastries to customers standing at the counter and seated at some outside tables. But what sets it apart is its exceptional coffee program and the absolutely exquisite pastries made by Giorgia Proia, who laminates croissants (both sweet and savory) and fills maritozzi (Rome’s classic leavened breakfast brioche) with clouds of ethereal whipped cream. In the summer months, Casa Manfredi makes gelato; ask for a few scoops stuffed into a maritozzo for the ultimate warm weather treat.

Located in Testaccio, Rome’s undisputed offal capital, Piatto Romano focuses on classics like rigatoni con la pajata (pasta with milk-fed veal intestines cooked in tomato sauce) and fettuccine con le rigaglie di pollo (fettuccine with chicken innards). There are plenty of pescatarian options as well, like the outstanding cod baked with onions, pine nuts, apricots, and prunes, and pan-fried anchovies spiked with vinegar and chile pepper. To top it off, the vegetable dishes are incredible, especially the foraged greens salad with anchovy dressing and sumac, and the marinated, grilled squashes.

The Testaccio neighborhood market is the best place in central Rome to shop for seasonal produce, meat, fish, and baked goods all in one place. Get there in the morning to see it in full swing (it’s open Monday through Saturday until 2 p.m.). Visit Da Artenio (Box 90) for takeaway pizza slices and pizzette, little pizzas topped with tomato sauce, potatoes, or onions. Don’t miss the essential Mordi e Vai (Box 15), where the Esposito family prepares sandwiches filled with offal and meat based on generations-old recipes, including disappearing historic dishes like alesso di scottona (simmered brisket). Nearby Da Corrado (Box 18) sells natural wines, artisan cheeses, and a handful of hot dishes — including some of the best polpette (meatballs) in town — while Casa Manco (Box 22) serves naturally leavened pizza by the slice by weight.

On paper, Dogma’s house-milled flour, farm-to-table sensibility, and self-described ethical approach to sourcing could play like a trinity of cliches. But the work of young co-founders Alessandra Serramondi and Gabriele Di Lecce feels entirely earnest. After more than a decade in fine dining focusing on seafood, chef Di Lecce has crafted a style that balances attention to detail with accessibility. Dishes like skate-filled bottoni with cultured butter and oregano, or turbot with zucchini and foyot sauce pair brilliantly with minerality-driven white wines. The 40-euro five-course tasting menu is an absolute steal.

Pizza maestro Marco Quintili opened his second location in Rome in July 2020, where he marries thick-rimmed Neapolitan pies with Roman flavors. Classic Neapolitan starters like frittatine (pasta croquettes) are flavored with cacio e pepe or amatriciana sauce, while the carbonara pizza channels Rome’s most famous sauce as a topping. Quintili’s dough is ethereal, highly digestible, and the product of years of thoughtful trial and error. The hydration of the dough, temperature of the oven, and bake time are all perfectly calibrated to create a pizza that is stable, not soupy like so many Neapolitan pies.

Located a short distance from Stazione Trastevere, C’è Pasta… e Pasta (translation: “There’s pasta… and pasta”) serves delicious kosher meals to eat in or take away. Order at the counter and don’t miss Roman Jewish classics like carciofi alla giudia (fried artichokes), filetti di baccala (battered fried cod), aliciotti con l’indivia (layered anchovy and frisee casserole), and concia (fried and marinated zucchini). As the name promises, they also serve pasta dishes and sell fresh pasta to cook at home.

To get to Latta Fermenti e Miscele, descend the steep ramp from street level to the ground floor of a former industrial complex, which has been transformed to accommodate a number of bars and restaurants. This standout among the options offers friendly service and a bar program celebrating Italy’s bittersweet and botanical flavors in the form of cocktails, natural wines, and craft beer.

The spartan decor of Triticum, an artisanal bakery in Rome’s Marconi district, focuses visitors’ attention immediately on the counter, which displays a selection of savory and sweet baked goods. Options include thick and spongy tomato and olive focaccia, pizza alla pala (flatbread baked on the oven stone and sold by the slice), cinnamon rolls, and laminated pastries. Behind the counter, there’s a wall of sourdough breads that pair brilliantly with spreads from Marco Colzani and honey from Miele Thun, both of which are sold in the shop.

After nearly 30 years at the helm of Rome’s first Thai restaurant, Beijing-born chef Ge Jing Hua opened Sinosteria in 2020 to serve a blend of Chinese regional cuisines like Beijing-style tripe with chile oil and cilantro, and Shandong-inspired squid with peppers, ginger, and bamboo. There are also signature creations like basmati rice with coconut milk, shrimp, capers, and oregano from Pantelleria. The front of house is expertly managed by Ge’s gregarious sommelier son Jun, whose natural wine list and coffee menu are outstanding.