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"Best Restaurants in Rome"

Best Restaurant for People-Watching  Join the fashionable young actors, models, and artists from nearby Via Margutta who descend at night on Piazza del Popolo, which is said to be haunted by the ghost of Nero. The square still retains its fashion, whereas Via Veneto long ago faded with the memories of ( la dolce vita ). Young men with their silk shirts unbuttoned (the better to show off what they view as their Davidesque chests), alight from sports cars to go on the prowl. At Dal Bolognese (Piazza del Popolo 1-2; tel. 06/3611426), you can not only take in this fascinating scene but also enjoy fine Bolognese cuisine as delectable and enticing as the spectacle unfolding before you. Sometimes, however, the scene is so lively it's hard to concentrate on the food

Best Late-Night Pastry Shop  Right on Piazza del Popolo, where young men and women drive up in their Maseratis and Porsches, the Café Rosati (Piazza del Popolo 5A; tel. 06/3225859) gets active as the night wears on. Although you can order whisky, many come for the delectable Italian pastries. A sidewalk table makes an ideal spot to enjoy an ice-cream dish.

Best for Romance  If you're getting ready to propose, a great place to pop the question is Relais Le Jardin (in the Hotel Lord Byron, Via G. de Notaris 5; tel. 06/3613041), a stunner of a place that also just happens to serve the best Italian cuisine in town. The decor is as romantic as the atmosphere--all white lattice and bold Italian colors highlighted by masses of fresh flowers. The setting is in the Relais Châteaux-member hostelry the Lord Byron, an art deco villa set on a residential hilltop in Parioli, an area of embassies and exclusive town houses at the edge of the Villa Borghese.

Best Business Lunch  The location of George's (Via Marche 7; tel. 06/ 42084575) on Via Marche, right off Via Veneto, is most central (not far from the heartbeat Piazza Barberini), and the discreet staff and clubby atmosphere are just perfect for doing business--and for dining well. Here, one of the most professional and best-trained staffs in Rome will serve you in elegantly decorated dining rooms. If the weather is fair, you may want to request a table in the lovely garden. Making those deals go down even easier is one of Rome's finest wine cellars.

Best for a Celebration  Romans have been flocking to Checchino dal 1887 (Via di Monte Testaccio 30; tel. 06/5743816) since the early 19th century for fun and hearty food. With a bountiful array of wine and foodstuffs, every night seems like a party. The location is Monte Testaccio, which was once a pile of broken amphoras and terra-cotta roof tiles collected back in Nero's day. The tables are packed nightly, and the place is a local legend. You'll have fun while still enjoying some of the best cuisine in town.

Best Decor  By night chic Romans and savvy foreign visitors alike show up at El Toulà (The Hayloft)(Via della Lupa 29B; tel. 06/6873498), an elegant establishment set near the fabled Caffé Greco and some of the most fashionable boutiques in Rome. It's no bargain, but once you see the sumptuous setting and, more important, enjoy the cuisine, you'll think it's worth the price. Haute cuisine is served in a subdued, tasteful setting of antiques, paintings, ever-so-discreet lighting, and to-die-for flower arrangements.

Best View  The stars really do come out at night at Les Etoiles (The Stars) (in the Hotel Atlante Star, Via Vitelleschi 34; tel. 06/6893434), which has been called "the most beautiful rooftop in Italy." This restaurant is a virtual garden in the sky, with a 3600 view of Roman landmarks, including the floodlit dome of St. Peter's. Try for a table in summer, but even in winter the same incredible view can be seen through picture windows. Fortunately, the food--delicately prepared Mediterranean cuisine using the freshest of ingredients--is the best in the area around the Vatican.

Best Wine List  The food is only secondary at the Trimani Wine Bar (Via Cernaia 37B; tel. 06/4469630), but the wine list is fabulous, a deluxe tour through the vineyards of Italy. One of the best tasting centers in Rome for both French and Italian vintages, this elegant wine bar offers a dazzling array of wines at reasonable prices. The Trimani family has had a prestigious name in the wine business since 1821, and visitors to their wine bar will experience a palate-pleasing tour of the oenological bounty of their land--simply sit down at one of their tables and let the pouring begin.

Best Value  For less than $20 at the Ristorante del Pallaro (Largo del Pallaro 15; tel. 06/68801488) you'll be served one of the finest fixed-price menus in Rome, each dish lovingly prepared by the chef-owner, Paola Fazi, who urges her diners to Mangia! Mangia! The moment you're seated at the table the dishes start to arrive--first a selection of antipasto, then the homemade, succulent pastas of the day, which in turn are followed by such meat courses as tender roast veal. Everything's included--even a carafe of the house wine.

Best for Kids  After their tour of the Vatican or St. Peter's, many savvy Roman families head for the Ristorante Il Matriciano (Via dei Gracchi 55; tel. 06/3212327), a long-established and widely respected family dining room. It's not fancy, but the price is right, and in summer you can opt for a sidewalk table. Let your kids feast on good, reasonably priced, homemade fare that includes such crowd pleasers as ricotta-stuffed ravioli. At the next table you're likely to see some priests from the Vatican dining. It's a safe, wholesome environment, and the food really is tasty.

Best Continental Cuisine  The city's finest restaurant is now La Terrazza (in the Hotel Eden, Via Ludovisi 49; tel. 06/478121), edging out a position long held by Sans Souci. In the restored Hotel Eden, former stomping ground of Hemingway, Ingrid Bergman, and Fellini, you can dine on continental cuisine that is both bold and innovative. The seasonal menu offers the most polished, sophisticated cuisine in Rome, as reflected by such dishes as a "symphony" of seafood or a warm salad of grilled vegetables.

Best Emilia Romagna Cuisine  The area around Bologna has long been celebrated for serving the finest cuisine in Italy, and the little trattoria Colline Emiliane (Via Avignonesi 22; tel. 06/4817538) does much to maintain that stellar reputation among Romans. The pastas here are among the best in Rome, especially the handmade tortellini alla panna (cream sauce) with truffles. You can order less expensive pastas as well, all of them good. Their prosciutto comes from a small town near Parma and is reputedly the best in the world.

Best Neapolitan Cuisine  It's so cornball "O Sole Mio" that you'll think you've been sent to a tourist trap. But the food that emerges from the Neapolitan kitchen at Scoglio di Frisio (Via Merulana 256; tel. 06/4872765) is the best of its kind in the city. You get not only the crunchy, oozy, and excellent Neapolitan pizzas here but also an array of foodstuff ranging from chicken cacciatore to veal scaloppine that's perfectly prepared. Near the Stazione Termini, the trattoria has been a longtime favorite of visitors to Rome in spite of its somewhat sleazy location

Best Roman Cuisine  The tempting selection of antipasto is enough of a treat to lure you to Al Ceppo (The Log) (Via Panama 2; tel. 06/8419696). Try such appetizers as stuffed yellow or red peppers or finely minced cold spinach blended with ricotta. Only 2 blocks from the Villa Borghese, this is a dining address jealously guarded by Romans, who often take their friends from out of town here. They feast on the succulent lamb chops--charcoal-grilled to perfection--or other grilled meats, such as quail, liver, and bacon. These Roman dishes and flavors have proven a powerful culinary allure over the years.

Best Tuscan Cuisine  For the most delicious and tenderest bistecca alla fiorentina (beefsteak Florentine style) in Rome, head for Girarrosto Toscano, off Via Veneto (Via Campania 29; tel. 06/4823835). The chefs grill the meats to perfection, using only virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper for seasoning. You get an array of other dishes as well, including one of the best selections of antipasto in town, everything from vine-ripened melon with prosciutto to a delectable Tuscan salami. Oysters and fresh fish from the Adriatic are also served.

Best Seafood  For not only the best but the most beautiful seafood restaurant in Rome, go to Alberto Ciarla (Piazza San Cosimato 40; tel. 06/5818668). This place was among the first to create new and innovative preparations of seafood, which Romans traditionally have either fried or put into soups. Overcooked seafood is definitely not on the agenda; some Romans even tried raw fish for the first time here. Although this restaurant doesn't enjoy the fame it did when it first opened, it's just as good as ever. Dishes are perfectly seasoned and designed to bring out the natural flavor of the sea.

Best Pizzeria  If you try a pie at Da Vittorio (Via di San Cosimato 14A; tel. 06/5800353), deep in the heart of Trastevere, you'll probably agree with Vittorio's claim that he makes the best pizzas in Rome. The pizza Vittorio--with fresh basil, fresh tomato, Parmesan, and mozzarella--is our favorite. This is a popular, fun place, with outdoor tables in fair weather. The youthful crowd of diners fairly bursts with exuberance (not to mention pizza).

Best Nuova Cucina  Near the Vittorio Emanuele monument, the well-decorated Agata e Romeo (Via Carlo Alberto 45; tel. 06/4466115) prepares one of Rome's most inventive new-style cuisines. If you'd like a sampling of the best selections of the day, you can order one of the fixed-price menus, available with or without wine. The menu reflects the agrarian bounty of Italy, with ample culinary rewards for meat eaters, fish fanciers, and vegetarians.

Best Newcomer  Although it's been around since 1997, more and more discerning Roman diners are discovering Myosotis (Vicolo della Vaccarella 3-5; tel. 06/6865554), midway between the Piazza Navona and the Pantheon. The chefs here prepare one of the city's finest contemporary cuisines along with time-tested favorites from grandma's cupboard. Everything is based on market-fresh ingredients interpreted in a creative and inventive style.

Best in the Jewish Ghetto  For centuries, Romans have flocked to the Jewish Ghetto to sample at least one dish--the Jerusalem artichoke. No one prepares them better than Piperno (Via Monte de'Cenci 9; tel. 06/68806629), which serves savory (though nonkosher) Roman food. Of course, you can order more than these deep-fried artichokes here. A full array of delights includes everything from stuffed squash blossoms to succulent pastas.

Best Wild Game  The best selection of unusual meat specialties in Rome is served at Da Mario (Via della Vite 55-56; tel. 06/6783818), although you can order other excellently prepared dishes as well if your dining partner isn't game. You could begin with pappardelle, which comes with a game sauce known as caccia, or the roast quail with polenta (the best this side of Lombardy in Milan). Wild game dishes are served in autumn; unusual, delectable offerings from both field and stream are always available.

Best Cafe for People-Watching  In the 1950s during the heyday of la dolce vita, Caffè de Paris (Via Vittorio Veneto 90; tel. 06/4885284) was a gathering place for the bella gente (beautiful people) of that, many of whom hid behind night-owl sunglasses. The sunglasses are still around, although the big names like Fellini have long gone. However, this remains the best cafe in Rome if you'd like to see a passing parade from the mainstream of world tourism. Opt for a sidewalk table to fully check out this see-and-be-seen scene--all fashions, all persuasions, and all types stroll by, inspecting you as you inspect them.

Best for a Cappuccino with a View  Surely the most desirable cafe in Rome is Di Rienzo (Piazza della Rotonda 8-9; tel. 06/6869097), but only because of its location. It stands directly on Piazza della Rotonda fronting the Pantheon, one of the greatest of all monuments to come down from ancient Rome. On a summer night there's no better place to be than "the living room" of Rome (as the square before you has been dubbed) as you sit and slowly sip your cappuccino.

Best Desserts  It's a bit of an exaggeration to say that people fly to Rome just to sample the dessert specialty--a tartufo--at Tre Scalini (Piazza Navona 28; tel. 06/6879148), but that would be reason enough to buy an airplane ticket. The dessert is fabled, consisting of a grated bitter chocolate-covered chocolate ice-cream ball swathed in whipped cream. It's named for its resemblance to the knobby truffle. There are other desserts as well, and on almost any night you'll find cone seekers (those not dining upstairs) often 3 feet deep at the ice-cream counter outside. If you can take your mind off the tartufo, you'll have a ringside seat at Rome's most beautiful square, Piazza Navona, facing Bernini's Fontana dei Fiumi.

Best for Lingering over a 4-Hour Lunch  On the historic Appian Way, only a short walk from the catacombs of St. Sebastian, the family-run Hostaria l'Archeologia (Via Appia Antica 139; tel. 06/7880494), which looks like an 18th-century village tavern, is a place for lingering. If the day is sunny, you can sit late into the afternoon enjoying the wines of Lazio after a robust and satisfying Roman-style meal. Opt for the garden out back and find a table shaded from the sun by the spreading wisteria--and you may end up lingering until the waiters start closing down the joint. The wines emerge from a cellar that used to be a Roman tomb. You never know what might happen after a long meal here; we once took travel guru and founder of this travel series, Arthur Frommer, here for lunch, and before it was over he'd proposed that we write a guide to Italy.

Best Tavola Calda  One of the best tavola caldas (hot tables) in Rome is Cottini (Via Merulana 286-287; tel. 06/4740768), convenient for those staying in hotels around the Stazione Termini. The food is artfully displayed, and the selection is bountiful--not only freshly made salads but also hot pastas and just-prepared main courses. Portions are very generous, and you can fill up fast on the cornucopia of agrarian Latium's bounty. Tempting desserts such as a melt-in-your-mouth chocolate cake are prepared by the in-house bakery.

Best Open-Air Food Market  Between Corso Vittorio Emanuele II and the Tiber, is Campo de' Fiori, seemingly everybody's favorite market in Rome--and that's been true for centuries. The luscious produce of Lazio is on display here right in the heart of the old city. In spite of its name, which means "field of flowers," this is not a flower market. The name is derived from Flora, lover of Pompey, the great Roman general. If you wish, you can purchase vegetables already chopped and ready to be dropped into the minestrone pot. Romans are particular about their food--you'll see some people inspecting cherries or other items one by one by one.

Best Picnic Fare  When the weather is cool and the day is sunny, the countryside of Lazio beckons. It's time for an alfresco meal, and there's no better place to purchase the makings of a picnic than the Campo de' Fiori open-air market, where stall after stall sells everything from open baskets of fresh broccoli to legumes. There are also several excellent delicatessen shops on the square. Visit one of the shops selling freshly baked Roman bread, pick up a bottle of wine and a companion--and the day is yours.

Best Ristorante  With one dining room decorated in the style of an 18th-century tavern and another occupying Pompey's ancient theater, the Ristorante da Pancrazio (Piazza del Biscione 92; tel. 06/6861246) is not only architecturally amusing but also serves good Roman food. It's a national monument, in fact. Here you sample one of the widest selections of Roman dishes, including the kitchen's fabled mixed fish fry. There's also a savory risotto made with a medley of fruits of the sea.

Best Trattoria  In the heart of the old Jewish Ghetto, a short walk from Michelangelo's Campodoglio, is Vecchia Roma (Via della Tribuna di Campitelli 18; tel. 06/6864604), a landmark trattoria that's been feeding savvy Roman foodies for years. Even movie stars have been slipped this address as a place where they can enjoy good food and the "paparazzi will never find you." The antipasto selection is prepared fresh daily and is one of the finest in the area. The pasta and risotto dishes are succulent, and the meats--especially the lamb roasted in Roman ovens to crispy perfection--are from excellent cuts.

Best Osteria  Near Campo de' Fiori, the Hostaria Grappolo d'Oro (Piazza della Cancelleria 80-81; tel. 06/6864118) was put on the tourist map by a New Yorker article that praised its cuisine. Although the article drew the international world to this previously unheralded spot, the owner admits to never having read it. One reviewer wrote that this neighborhood place, often frequented by Romans who live nearby, is pure "gastronomic ecstasy." We wouldn't go that far, but it's certainly good, everything washed down with the house white wine.

Best Restaurant for Celebrity-Spotting  Although Elizabeth Taylor is long gone and no one talks about "Hollywood on the Tiber" anymore, glitz and glamour--whatever's left of it--still reign at Sans Souci (Via Sicilia 20; tel. 06/4821814), Rome's most fashionable and flashiest dining room. You'll rarely find a Roman here, but those on the hipster international circuit show up. If you had to invite Madonna to dinner during a visit to Rome, this is where you'd take 

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