The Favorites Guide

No cones, not close to anything, up on a hill on the other side of the river. Best gelato quality possible. Lots of very inventive flavors. You will love all of it. Even flavors that you would quickly write off as bad will amaze you.

Likely the best pistachio gelato in the world. The toasted hay is amazing. Also worth visiting because their cheeses and wines are exceptional.

Excellent quality, small waffle cones, chocolate shell, cheap. The flavors are more limited than these others it is tied with.

Outstanding quality and really cool flavors, but uncompromisingly rich. The Gorgonzola is a scoop of frozen Gorgonzola. The lavender and pear is more lavender than pear.

Very high quality, lots of very interesting flavors.

Classic. Great flavors. Very creamy. The cones are the best and it’s not as artisanal as the top five.

Possibly the best fruit flavors. Limited selection. Not every single flavor was a huge hit.

Cheap, close, high quality, small waffle cones. Looks like a Starbucks, and not a ton of flavor choices.

It’s high quality gelato, but not mind blowing.

Decent quality, but on the more expensive end and not as stand out as the others on this list. The Pine flavor is worth sampling but I wouldn’t recommend a whole scoop of it.

Closest sandwich shop to the apartment — Very cheap. Very good. The Norcino (€8) is spectacular, and the orange juice (€3.50) is the cheapest around. Also does lunch plates. Popular with locals.

“#16” porchetta, tonnato (tuna-mayonnaise sauce), sun dried tomato. Ask to add caramelized onion. Possibly the best porchetta sandwich in Rome. The #10 is also great.

The Numero #1 is my second favorite porchetta sandwich in town.

The Ambaradan tastes like a honey mustard snack wrap in the best way. The sandwiches are small but super cheap and top quality. Very close.

Triangular pizza pocket sandwiches. The closest one is right across from ponte sisto, but the one near the Vatican is attached to a great artisanal beer bar.

The gold standard of Amatriciana (€16). I don’t know how they get their guanciale to be so crispy and delicious. The other pastas on the menu are great, but stand out less (imho I like my puttanesca more than theirs), and the rest of the menu is very offal forward.

Outstanding, reasonably priced tasting menu featuring excellent food and wine from Lazio, and an extraordinary Amatriciana that claims the number two spot in Rome.

The only restaurant in Rome where I’ve felt judged for how poorly we were dressed, which is very fun. Their Amatriciana (€16) is just about as good as Armando’s, and the menu as a whole is more American-friendly. Excellent wines by the glass. Less than a block from the apartment.

Overall, a little more form than function. But the Amatriciana is only €20 and is excellent (so is the spigola and the pork pluma). There is a €75 per person minimum, so don’t go with the aim of just eating a bowl of pasta.

Also immediately next to the apartment. The owner is awesome. Not going to outclass Armando with the guanciale, but otherwise a terrific Amatriciana (€13). The menu is quite traditional, and not huge, but solid across the board. The Genovese meatball is stellar.

The amatriciana (€17) is very good, but candidly, a distant sixth. Still better than anything you’ll eat at Campo. I’m a big fan of their deli. And I remember really loving their raviolo and burro e alici (butter and anchovy) pasta years ago, but it’s become a pricey tourist trap.

My favorite wine bar. Even their cheapest wines are all excellent. The music is always good. Popular with locals. Not service oriented.

Fantastic wines and great cheeses and gelato made in house. The guy behind the bar, Gui, used to be the chef at Sorella in SF and is super cool.

Directly downstairs. Great wines. Knowledgeable docents who speak English.

Historic enoteca in Prati near Castel Sant'Angelo with one of the most extensive cellars in Europe. Huge selection by the glass and incredible bottles.

Priciest on the list, but well worth it. You will not have a glass of wine here that you don’t love.

Right next door to Enoteca Bortone and very similar.

Charming vintage vibe in Trastevere with great natural wines, tasty small plates, and a fun, relaxed crowd.

Interesting wines you won’t find elsewhere. Good music. In a tourist trap part of town and no a/c.

It’s okay. The music is a gimmick. They don’t have many exciting records and a lot of them are scratched.

Slower service than the others because it gets crowded, but the wines are good.

World class kebab. The medium is only €8.

Dim sum and great fried rice, right at Piazza Farnese.

Very good smash burgers and milk shakes.

Very decent modern Indian food with decent chaat options. It’s a far walk, but very reasonably priced and well worth it if you’re in the mood for Indian food.

If you’re craving a legit pulled pork sandwich, you will not be disappointed (€11). If you order one of their burgers (€11.50), you will be disappointed. As with most burger places in Italy, they use lean beef which makes for a tough, dry, flavorless burger. Very close to the apartment and stays open late.

Further than Nest, but very good. The Ja Mo (Chinese pancake stuffed with shredded pork) is €8.50. The fried rice and noodles are better at Nest.

The sister restaurant of Miami Joe (they share a kitchen). Really good American food with decent prices.

Best classic (thick style) burger in town, large artisan beer list (but light on sours). Excellent house-made potato chips. Skip the Pulled pork.

You can find Five Guys at major train stations across Europe, and the quality is comparable to the US.

Juices, smoothies, avocado toast, breakfast burritos, pulled pork.

Ital-Mex: high prices, small portions, high quality ingredients, cheese forward, the birria is beef.

Legit Japanese souffle pancakes. The closest one is not listed on Maps yet, but it’s in the former location of “It Bread & Salad” at Piazza di S. Claudio.

This is a ways out of town and the board game store next door has a very limited selection of games in English, so I don’t actually encourage you to head out this way, but if you’re craving really good peking duck, this place has it.

Asian/American/Italian fusion tapas. Decent cocktails, small portions.