Our first day in Roma we visited Vatican City. There was one stop on my foodie mind that we had to make and it was to this glorious place...
Pizzarium by Gabriele Bonci!
I am a huge fan of Anthony Bourdain and watching his Layover show about Rome we picked up a few places to visit. One of which being this place.
We had water with gas (sparkling water)
And we started with four different kinds of pizza. Proscuitto, Greens, Chevre, and Porchetta. We picked each type by just picking what looked good. It was so hard because there was a lot to choose from and they were all so different it was hard to choose four without going overboard.
Here is the Porchetta pizza...Almost like a calzone but with their own roasted pork layered in between their amazing crust!
This slice was recommended to us by a guy who came because of watching the Anthony Bourdain layover show...It had chunks of goat cheese, rocket greens, onions....Simply amazing!
This slice had proscuitto, tomatoes, greens, and buffalo mozzarella. It was one of my favorites!
Wela was still hungry so he chose this other slice with greens and tomato sauce.
Gabriele Bonci makes pizza that is inventive, fresh, and made with seasonal ingredients. Everything they have is made carefully and one of the best parts for me was the crust. I'm a big crust fan it was perfect. We bought some for take-away to enjoy later because we were so soaked we didn't know if we'd make it out of the apartment again after we got dried off.
I chose this slice thinking it was chicken but it was surprisingly fish. It was really tasty but since I was still under the weather I had a few bites and gave the rest to Wela.
We also got this slice covered in ham and rosemary. Under the ham was a thick layer of fresh cooked spinach and cheese.
Pizzarium was exactly how I pictured it. Just enough room for you to order pizza and stand up eating next to a complete stranger where your bond are these magical slices. Sadly, we didn't get to meet Bonci, which was probably a good thing since I would have been too shy. The pizza is amazing and we still think about it from time to time.
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After our very wet day out in Rome, we went back to our place to get dried off and rest a bit before realizing that I Porchettoni is only open for dinner from 7-2am erasing our idea of going for lunch the next day. So we braved the weather and made the 20 min. walk there hoping it was going to be worth it.
When we finally arrived it was a small place stuffed with picnic tables with clear paths to the register and bathroom. From what we could see only locals dotted those tables and we immediately felt a little out of place. The person working knew English and tried to help us order what we wanted. In the flurry we ordered porchetta for take-away and an extra sandwich to share. We originally wanted to eat there but we were tired and passing the gelato place on the way wanted to make sure we stopped there before it closed.
We got Porchetta for two people and a porchetta sandwich for 7 euro. We were surprised at how inexpensive it was considering how delicious the pork tasted.
Top: Picture of the sandwich; Bottom: Close up of the Porchetta
We also stopped by a store on the way home to pick up one of these: Peroni Italian beer. On the layover Anthony Bourdain enjoys one of these with his Porchetta so I wanted to do the same.
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After walking to the Pigneto district for some I Porchettoni we stopped by this place for our first taste of Gelato...Giovanni Fassi: The oldest Italian Gelato factory
We had a Coppa Fassi: 3 flavors of Gelato with whipped cream and discs of waffle cone...We tried Nutella, Mango, and Stracciatella
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The next morning we went to a bakery called Regoli's near our apartment on Via della Statuto. They are known for Maritozzi
We tried Baba e rum: Sweet bread soaked (I mean SOAKED) in rum! It was too early for this indeed!
This beauty below is a Maritozzi: Fresh whipped cream in a sweet bun!
I was pretty excited!
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For lunch after being drenched in the cold, wet rain we stopped for lunch at Al Caminetto between the Trevi fountain and the Spanish steps.
It boasts food from a real Roman kitchen and it was warm and inviting so we gave it a shot.
We started with a Pizza margherita: tomato sauce and mozzarella. The crust was thin and charred with a lot of flavor and the topping was enough to make you want another slice.
Wela had the Risotto with prawns. I loved it but I think Wela thought it had a little too much wine.
I had Cacio e pepe, a traditional Roman pasta dish that consists of noodles , pepper, and pecorino romano. It was delicious and the noodles were cooked perfectly.
At the end of our meal to warm up before heading out again we each had an espresso, the typical after meal drink.
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Giolitti Gelateria!!! I found it by chance...I had read about it but didn't know exactly where it was and it was near the Pantheon walking towards the Trevi on a very small narrow street.
We shared a Medi (Medium cone) because it was still a bit chilly out but we didn't want to waste the chance of Gelato again!
We had nutella again (this was straight out of the bottle nutella...it seemed!), Canella, and Tiramisu.
The nutella was thick and delicious and I wish I had more right now, the Tiramisu was cinnamon-y and reminiscent of coffee soaked lady fingers, and the Canella (we didn't know what it was but picked it) was a delicious choice.
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We bought a cone of chestnuts roasting on an open fire from vendors located throughout the city.
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For lunch we found this small place packed with locals eating sandwiches. We stepped inside and it was two guys behind a small counter making light delicious looking paninos. This place was called La Sandwicheria and was on a side street close to the Spanish steps.
Wela had the San Silvestro: Cured pork loin they slice in front of you, fresh cheese (buffalo mozzarella), vegetable trio of marinated peppers and olives, and lettuce. The meat is a sure highlight but the bread is perfect.
I had the Frattina: Artichoke spread, Proscuitto (also sliced in front of you), Mozzarella, and tomato. It was amazing! The sandwich was thin but just enough to be satisfied and maybe wanting to try another sandwich.
All their drinks: water and beer can be bought from a vending machine inside the shop.
Here is a close up of the middle of Welas sandwich...a beauty!
La Sandwicheria was a happy happy find and we wish we could go back and try another. The sandwiches are put together perfectly and although it is close to a tourist attraction we were the only ones that wandered in and for 4 euro per sandwich it was a steal.
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Dinner for our last night was back at I Porchettoni in the Pigneto district. We couldn't shake the thought of more Porchetta (Poor-kett-ah) and we read that they also have pasta. When we got there it was bustling with locals and although we were intimidated the two workers (a young guy and an old guy) made us feel welcome.
We tried the house vino rossa 1/2 L...Our cheeks were Rossa by the end of the meal
We each had more Porchetta again....I'm salivating. They make their Porchetta by basically stuffing herbs and spices into a giant roast and cooking it. They slice it off for you and weight it and you get it with slices of bread. The flavors and tenderness of the Pork will forever be etched in my mind.
We also had two pasta dishes. They were amazing and hearty and worth walking the 20 min. into a shady neighborhood for if not only for the porchetta.
We tried the Gricia pasta: buccatoni (i think) sauteed in butter, pecorino, pepper, and pieces of lardo (thick cuts of fatty bacon)...It was so good beyond the greatness of this picture.
Our second pasta dish was a Pesto, Porchetta, and Gnocci pasta. It had a little heat added with red chili pepper flakes which was a plus for me since I like heat. The gnocci (tiny potato dumplings) was tender and matched perfectly with the homemade pesto and chunks for porchetta.
Our food expedition started slowly in Roma but once we got our bearings and rested up after our Paris trip we ended up hitting a lot of the places I wanted to go to...Highlights: I Porchettoni in the Pigneto district and the Gelato of course!
Our Rome food edition started off slow but Pizzarium and I Porchettoni were our definite stand outs. This trip was more about us enjoying everthing and relaxing than anything else. We had a great time getting to know our hosts, wandering around leisurely, and hitting up spots that were chosen by Anthony Bourdain and Katie Parla (Rome for Foodies app creator).
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