To Discover Real Roman Food, Head to the Neighborhoods
I love Rome as much as the next Bernini-besotted visitor. But to find the platonic ideal of pasta Amatriciana or trippa alla Romana, I had to leave behind the Centro Storico's cobblestoned piazzas, where faux-Felliniesque tourist mills dish out reheated carbonara to throngs. Instead, my partner and I spent our two weeks in Rome taking the metro and buses to neighborhoods where affordable rents allow creative young chefs to nurture their talents — and their customers' appetites — and where a convivial spirit still thrives.
The vibes often recalled Brooklyn or Berlin. But the cooking was rooted in the Roman vernacular, with its guanciale-powered pastas, seasonal vegetables and quinto quarto (a.k.a. offal). 'Young local chefs haven't abandoned Roman tradition,' said Marco Bolasco, author of an indispensable new restaurant guide, 'Roma Food Tour.' 'But they're reinterpreting the city's cuisine with incredible ingredients from the surrounding countryside.' And because of the cost factor, he added, the action was all happening away from the city center.
The six places below serve up the delicious proof — but make sure to book in advance.
Centocelle
I'm still daydreaming about the ravioli at Menabò Vino e Cucina, silky pouches filled with coratella (lamb innards) topped with a green shock of favas, peas and asparagus and pushed into the stratosphere by a haunting sauce of 'smoked milk.' That pasta alone was worth a 40-minute metro trek east of the city center to the formerly working class neighborhood of Centocelle.
The Camponeschi brothers (Paolo cooks; Daniele is the wine curator and front of the house) opened Menabò seven years ago — attracted, Daniele explains, by Centocelle's multicultural vibe and community spirit. At their next-gen neighborhood trattoria, bright blue walls and shelves of wine bottles set the scene for Paolo's big brawny flavors with interesting twists.
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