Rome - February 2026

ZivBnd · February 22, 2026, 3:01pm

I arrived in Rome a few days ago and my first visit was to Caffe Fondi, over by Rome Termini. It is a family place run by the Grrand Daughter and Great Grandson of the original owners. Just a cappucino and an omelet and ham sandwich but very nice. The owner offered a spoonful of chocolate paste/Nutella looking stuff and I turned it down. I will remedy that mistake next time!!

My first luncha was at Hosteria Grappolo D’Oro, a Michelin Bib restaurant near Piazza della Cancelleria. I arrived 15 minutes after they opened because I heard they can have long lines. I was welcomed warmly and seated immediately at a nice’ish outdoor table. Waiter was outstanding, service was good but slow. I ordered the menu of the day, with a triple app of Panzanella, Popletta and Baccala mantecato. All were fairly good but very mild in flavor and texture. Truth be told, I did not really recognize these apps as being anything I have seen before. This app combo confused the heck out of me.

My Primo Piatto was Spaghetti Carbonara which was rich, delicious and slightly too al dente, a trait I am seeing a lot of in Rome, again. My spaghetti stuck horizontally out of the fork for 5 inches/12 centimeters before it bent down. Now THAT is al dente! LOL!

I wanted the Agnello/lamb but they were out, or it was not ready. So I ordered cod again with the Bacalla di Ricotta. It was rather good, much better than the app Baccala, if that was baccala at all.

After this lunch I walked up to Piazza Navona, which was lovely on this bright Spring day!

Listened to a gentleman play a instrument I had never noticed/seen before. Not sure what it is. Pleasant way to spend time.

When I got back to my hotel, I was told that I could not leave the hotel to the south or to the west in the morning because the Pope was going to be giving a Mass at the Basilica next door to my hotel. So I got up at 0700 and wandered North and then West around the barricades, police and soldiers. I ended up opposite a portico that allows cars access to an inner courtyard near the Basilica. I figured they would bring the Pope in that way so I stood as close to the portico as I could and still be outside the barricades.
The barricades were 250 meters north and south of me but somehow I just ended up inside them when they locked down the east entrance to the rail terminal. Then the police moved the barricades back behind me and a Carabinieri officer asked me what I was doing so I said I was hoping to see the Pope. He gave a Gallic shrug and his NCO’s left me in the area until the Pope caravan showed up when they allowed me and 30 other people in opposite the portico. The Pope’s driver took him straight into the portico and I figured that was that. But after he shook hands with a Cardinal (guy in red) the Pope walked out away from his security and priests, looked up, spotted us across the street and waved at us. It was kind of cool.

I was raised Catholic but got booted out of CCD for harshly criticizing the movie The Red Balloon. I blame Vatican II. It is kind of cool to have some sort of tie to Rome, even one so distant as being raised Catholic and the Vatican being here in Rome.

medgirl · February 22, 2026, 3:26pm

Looks like a santoor.

I think variants of this dulcimer type instrument exist across central Asia. I’ve only come across it in Indian classical music.

medgirl · February 22, 2026, 3:29pm

Is this lunch with an Italian accent ?

ZivBnd · February 22, 2026, 3:49pm

Exactamundo!
That extra “a” worked so well I am not going to edit it to what I intended to say.

ZivBnd · February 22, 2026, 3:51pm

It was a relatively “simple” instrument. I think it is relatively light, which is a good thing. He may have to trundle it into the square from hundreds of meters away.
But it has a sweet tone and he played it well.

linguafood · February 22, 2026, 5:36pm

Excited about your next travel chapter. You sure get around!

ZivBnd · February 22, 2026, 6:07pm

I am going to ground on the 5th of March! I miss home. I am going to visit the Spinnaker for a steak, then Field Heads coffee shop for a cortado, then my library for a hard cover book, then my grocery store for medjool dates and fresh produce, then some trails for walks, then Montana Coffee Traders for a scone, then Volunteer Park to watch the waves roll in…
Then to my house to watch the snow melt off the mountains over the weeks to come. And see how the deer and turkeys did over the winter. Maybe plant a few Douglas Fir trees.

ZivBnd · February 23, 2026, 5:53pm

But before I go home, I am going to eat a lot of good food and walk a good many miles. After I had my Papal audience, I went to a place that had been recommended to me by a friend, L’Antica Salumeria, right next to the Pantheon.

Great architecture AND a great deli! Great combo! I did not brave the lines to go inside the Pantheon this year, though I loved it last year. I just admired it from afar as I waited for the deli to start selling food. The thing with delis and cafes in Rome that I took a while to understand is that they open their doors an hour or so before they open. The staff cleans and locals come in to talk. But they are not open/open, it is just that they open the doors.
I finally got in and wanted to try a Pizza de Mortadella/Mortazza, which is a sandwich, not a pizza. I ordered it and stood around to wait for it to be prepared and saw this nut conglomeration that approximated a cake, so I bought it too. Pangiallo Romano is a winter cake with honey, orange zest, a whole bunch of nuts, some saffron (?) and it is a chewy deliciousity. Loved it! The Pizza de Mortadella is kind of like a sandwich made with pizza dough/bread, mortadella, what tastes like mozzarella cheese and a few little slices of tomato. Very good!

Then I walked along the Tiber River for an hour, beautiful!

When I got to Ponte (bridge) Garibaldi I took a left and got a capuccino at Gran Caffe Rione VIII. Good coffee and the waitress gave me a little slice of a frittata when I asked about it, very good!

I sat for a bit in Piazza Benedetto Cairoli, very quiet at first but when the sun came out so did the neighbors. Nice little park.

I walked down Via dei Giubbonari to Roscioli Salumeria but it was jamming, line out the door. Ninkat recommended it, so I will go back again and see if I can get a table. Arrostreet is known for their lamb on a stick, which is a word in Italian that is escaping me, but they were closed. Not sure why. La Piccola Cuccagna was open and I saw an open two top so I talked to the host and got seated immediately. I started with Polpetto, very finely minced beef (?) meatballs on a basil and ricotta (?) sauce. Loved this “simple” dish!

I am on a Carbonara binge, ordering it again, and again the al dente was a bit too al dente for my liking. I think I am the problem. But it was well prepared and very good otherwise.

Finished with a filet with fried onion, rather good if un-photogenic. I was so stuffed I had half of it to go, and it tasted even better after I had an Aperol Spritz outside my hotel…

The next day I walked Via dei Coronari, got a delicious hot spiced wine with cinnamon, coriander, honey, anise and a few spices that escaped me.

Listened to a cello player for a while.

Got roped in by the owner of Caciara e Spaccio Agricola, down the stairs to a bright and welcoming space where his stocky and quick on his feet waiter kept 9 tables happy with their food. I had the pasta carbonara, again, (cacio e pepe not available), Carciofa (sp?) something that i ordered on a whim (artichoke) and the Trippa a la Romana. The pasta was good but the tripe was outstanding. Rich and delicious in a nicely spiced (mild) red sauce. I went through a good sized basket of bread. The waiter in black saw me tucking in and grinned a bit. Nice time. Big fans of Frank Sinatra, which seemed odd but it seems to work for them.

I can’t not mention my Guinness stops at Scholars Lounge on Via dei Plebescito. Irish owner, bar tender as well, well pulled Guinness and decent wifi. Booked my sleeper train to Munich there.

I have to mention the coolest feral cat colony I have ever seen. Sacra di Largo Argentina is close to where Julius Caesar was stabbed to death, but the thing that gets all the attention now is that scores of cats have made a home of the ruins of the buildings that have been preserved in their ruined state. The history department feeds the cats, perhaps too well. And everyone is encouraged to NOT interact with the cats because they tend to get hit by vehicles if they come up to where people are. So they live in splendid isolation, fed morning, noon and night and receiving veterinarian care to prevent an overpopulation of amorous cats. I am exaggerating slightly about the frequency of feeding but not by much… Here is a panorama of the cat kingdom.

Here is Chonky.

And his more svelte partner in crime.

linguafood · February 23, 2026, 6:02pm

A good friend and former CH (invinotheresverde) was just there, and her daughter was adamant about visiting the cat sanctuary.

On my bucket list when I make it to Rome some day.

LulusMom1 · February 23, 2026, 6:31pm

Fabulous write-up and photos!

Zoeliculious · February 23, 2026, 6:56pm

Zoeliculious · February 23, 2026, 6:58pm

I noticed some Italian pasta packages have an al dente time suggestion and a traditional time suggestion. I’m wondering if some places would cook it a little longer, if you ask, so it doesn’t fight the teeth?

edit : you might offend them by asking, tread carefully. someone asked that question on Reddit and TripAdvisor, and one answer was “please kill the pasta, please” in Italian

lol

on this topic, from Reddit

I guess cooking your own pasta a bit longer is the way to solve the problem with al dente in Italy. But don’t tell anyone.

ZivBnd · February 23, 2026, 7:18pm

Asking for my pasta to be cooked longer is not something i am brave enough to try.
LOL!
I think the problem is me. I like it slightly chewy, but i think al dente here is a bit chewier than I am used to.
In my defense, my ex-GF is 1st generation Italian and her parents (Calabrian and Sardinian) cook their pasta less firm than what i am seeing this trip.
I am saving that article for future reference, despite the fact that i use a teaspoon of EVOO in most pots of pasta AND I break both spaghetti and rigatoni!!!

bcc · February 23, 2026, 7:30pm

Try the pasta at Cesare al Casaletto. I found it perfect.

Zoeliculious · February 23, 2026, 7:33pm

I think we like our pasta the same way.

linguafood · February 23, 2026, 7:39pm

Why the EVOO? It keeps the sauce from adhering to the pasta

SteveR · February 23, 2026, 7:50pm

We ate there several times when we stayed directly across the plaza at the Albergo del Senato. Our windows, on the 2nd floor, faced the plaza so we not only saw L’Antica Salumeria, but saw/heard the Pink Floyd tribute musicians that regularly played in the plaza. Great location, especially since our hotel had a roof deck with bar.

ZivBnd · February 23, 2026, 8:06pm

I never used a lot of it but the little i use seems to keep the pasta from clumping. I use EVOO on spaghetti and thin/small pasta but not on larger types.
My sauces tend to be thick so i never noticed any problems with sauce adhering to the pasta.
I did not even know using olive oil during pasta prep was frowned upon until a few years ago.

SteveR · February 23, 2026, 8:11pm

If you still have time/dinners by recommendation, I suggest getting to Testaccio & going to Perilli.https://www.perilliatestaccio.com/menu-cucina-romana. Not universally loved by my favorite ex-CH Rome residents other than Eliz. Minchilli but we’ve gone many times and the oxtail, pajata & tripe were all great. It’s been well over 7 years since we’ve been, but the website confirms they’re still going strong.

linguafood · February 23, 2026, 9:26pm

If you use enough water and a rolling boil, plus move your pasta around a bit while it cooks, it shouldn’t clump. No oil necessary.