Buongiorno from Roma!
The first 24 hours + finding authentic restaurants in the historical center
After a smooth and uneventful transatlantic flight, we arrived at Fiumicino International Airport yesterday morning. The sun was shining, the temperature was a lovely 63° Fahrenheit / 17° Celcius, and we were happy to be in Rome.
Sleepy as we were, after checking in to our Airbnb on Via Laurina, we resisted the urge to nap and instead reached out to our son Luca, who doesn’t have class on Fridays, to grab lunch.
Lunch at Dar Bottarolo
We met Luca at a little eatery just north of Piazza Navona called Dar Bottarolo, a small chain of restaurants known for its Roman cuisine and affordable prices. The pastas offered were Rome’s four classics: the carbonara, amatriciana, gricia, and cacio e pepe. Stefano ordered a carbonara, Luca and I each had a gricia, and we ordered a bottle of Roma DOC Poggio le Volpi, a simple and drinkable wine made from local grapes. For our second course, we shared a trippa (tripe) with a basket of pane di Genzano, the earthy brown bread made in Genzano, in the hills outside of Rome. Not bad for our first meal in the Eternal city.
View and download our recipes for Carbonara and Cacio e Pepe on the Due Spaghetti website.
A stroll around town
Fortified from our lunch, we took a walk to orient ourselves to the neighborhood and take in the sunshine. We strolled the narrow streets of the Campo Marzio neighborhood near Piazza di Spagna, filled with bars, restaurants, and luxury shops. Back in the 1990s, Stefano worked in this neighborhood with his father and uncle, renovating high-end stores such as Versace and Loro Piana, as well as a few amazing residential apartments. The area is full of memories - the coffee bar where they would grab their morning espresso, the alimentari where they would buy sandwiches for lunch, and even the store where Stefano used to buy his Doc Martins - remarkably still there thirty years later!
We made our way to Piazza del Popolo, the large and elegant square with an obelisk and the Fountain of the Lions in the middle, the fountains of Neptune and the Goddess of Rome on either side, and home to the twin churches Santa Maria in Montesanto, also known as the Church of the Artists, and Santa Maria dei Miracoli, featured the movie Angels and Demons.
Before heading back to our apartment, we stopped at a supermarket to pick up some basic supplies, found the local fruit and vegetable market, and made a mental note of the pizzerias, coffee bars, and gelaterias nearby.
Dinner at Otello alla Concordia
In a city as large as Rome, it can be hard to weed through the tourist traps and find authentic restaurants, especially in the historical center. We went two for two yesterday, with lunch at Dar Bottarolo and then dinner at Otello alla Concordia.
Tucked away on a little street off Via della Croce, Otello alla Concordia is a neighborhood trattoria with a menu full of classic Roman specialties and a nice wine list.
As a starter, we ordered carciofi alla giudia, deep-fried artichokes, a Roman specialty. followed by abbacchio con le patate al forno, lamb chops with oven-roasted potatoes, for Stefano, and abbacchio con la cicoria, lamb chops with sauteed chicory greens, for Cara. No to dessert, but yes to an Amaro to top off our first day in Rome.
The Montalcino House
Stay tuned for next week’s newsletter and an update on planning for renovations to our Montalcino house!