-
Bevitoria Navona
No wine bar on Piazza Navona is ever going to be cheap and off the beaten track, but this is one of the better places. Drink at the bar (around €4 for a glass of Frascati Superiore) or sit outside and pay for waiter service. If you get the chance check out the remains of Domitian's stadium in the cellar.
-
Big Mama
To wallow in the Eternal City blues, there's only one place to go - this cramped Trastevere basement. It's also good for jazz, funk, soul and R & B. There are weekly residencies from well-known Italian musicians and songwriters and frequent concerts by international artists. You can reserve a table via phone or online.
-
Bloom
In a converted 14th-century chapel, Bloom is closely related in style to nearby club La Maison, hosting a younger-but-just-as-gorgeous crowd. The steel bar, 21st-century Art Deco, Philippe Starck lighting and a menu of Italian-Asian fusion food all add to the ambience of city-centre swank. It turns into a disco at weekends. Dress the part unless you want to stick out like a bad haircut.
-
Bohemien
This elegant little bar feels like something you might stumble on in left-bank Paris: small, with mismatched chairs and tables and an eclectic, fittingly boho crowd drinking wine by the glass or cups of tea. It's gay but attracts all types.
-
Brancaleone Off
This centro sociale (social centre) is one of the hottest underground clubs in Rome, pulling in a young, alternative crowd and electronica meisters such as Stockholm's Tomas Andersson, Berlin's Paul Kalkbrenner and Detroit's Jeff Mills.
-
Caffè Capitolino
This amazing terrace overlooking the domes of Rome is a well-kept secret, hidden away behind the museum, and accessible from the piazza (via a separate entrance behind Palazzo dei Conservatori) even if you haven't done the cultural bit.
-
Caffè Farnese
We're with Goethe, who thought Piazza Farnese one of the world's most beautiful squares. Judge for yourself from the vantage of this unassuming café. On a street between Campo de' Fiori and Piazza Farnese, it's ideally placed for whiling away the early afternoon hours. Try the caffè alla casa (house coffee) - made to a secret recipe, it resonates with lemon and other delicious flavours.
-
Caffè Letterario
Cars make way for culture at this former garage basement, now a cavernous concoction of designer bar, bookshop, art gallery, performance space and nooks with cosy lounges. Grab a beer, eye-up the art and schmooze with the local culture crew. Credit cards not accepted.
-
Caffè Sant'Eustachio
A small stand-up place with some of Rome's best coffee, this is always three deep at the bar. The coffee is created through a special process - note how the barristi turn away to complete the secret recipe. Served sugared with a layer of froth, it's superbly smooth and guaranteed to put some zing into your sightseeing. Specify if you want it amaro (bitter) or poco zucchero (with a little sugar). It's been serving its caffeinated delights since 1938, and the décor hasn't changed much since then.
-
Casa del Cinema
Opened in October 2004, the Casa del Cinema comprises an exhibition space, two projection halls, a DVD room, a cafe and a bookshop. It regularly screens films in their original language and has 24 computers on which you can watch DVDs from the 150-disk catalogue.
-
Advertisement
-
Casa Dell'architettura
As Rome gets its cultural groove back, a new league of themed cultural case (houses) is keeping culture-vultures busy. One of the lesser-known gems is Esquiline's Casa dell'Architettura. Set in a beautifully restored fin de siècle aquarium designed by Ettore Bernich, its flouncy, glass-domed hall regularly hosts architecture-themed exhibitions. It has a slick design-themed bookshop for coffee-table cred, and a raffish little garden for the concrete-jungle fatigued.
-
Casina Valadier
While this chichi restaurant - housed in a beautifully restored neoclassical lodge with a sterling panorama of northern Rome - is perfect for a romantic rendezvous, we think its lush, citrus-sprinkled garden is perfect for lazy, sun-soaked sipping. So slip on those shades and toast to the view with a flute of pink prosecco .
-
Cavour 313
This is one of Rome's oldest wine bars. Sink into its publike cosiness and choose from a list of about 1200 labels, including Italian wines and notable Californian and Australian vintages. There's also a food menu featuring a superb cheeseboard.
-
Chiostro Del Bramante Caffè
A well-kept secret: you can have a drink or creamy cappuccino, and snack (or brunch on weekends between and ) on salads and so on (around €8 to around €12 ) in the Renaissance splendour of Bramante's cloister, which often hosts dramatically contemporary art installations. There's also wi-fi access.
-
Ciampini 2
Hidden away a short distance from the top of the Spanish Steps, this graceful café has a garden-party vibe: it's the green wooden latticework surrounding the outside tables that does it. There are lovely views over the back streets behind Spagna, and the ice cream is renowned (particularly the truffle).
-
Cinema Azzurro Scipioni
Italian film-maker Silvano Agosti opened his little two-screen affair after dreaming that Charlie Chaplin told him to do so. Think that's quirky? Did we mention the airline seats? The 'in-flight' entertainment spans foreign and local art house to immortal Hollywood classics.
-
Circolo degli Artisti
This laid-back club in Rome's eastern suburbs has established itself as one of the city's hottest. If you fancy a blast from the past, the Saturday 'Screamadelica' night dishes up classic 1980s pop, while Wednesday is for hip-hop and electronic music and Friday is gay night. There are also regular live concerts, modern art exhibitions and film projections.
-
Clandestina
Opposite one of Rome's historic centri sociali, the intimidatingly muralled No 32, this is a chic little, spartan yet stylish wine bar where San Lorenzo hipsters come to while away the night until it's club o'clock.
-
Classico Village
Well worth a look is this eclectic converted factory with a bar, restaurant and live-music venue, hosting music of all genres, and centred on a lovely courtyard.
-
Coming Out
Crowds of young men spill out of this vivacious gay bar onto the narrow street outside. In the shadow of the Colosseum, Coming Out is an easy-going place that's as good for a late night beer as it is for a dawn pick-me-up. The service is cordial, there's pop on the stereo, and on Thursday nights it has live music.
-
Advertisement
-
Crudo
Crudo is an easy-going yet uberchic bar and restaurant. It's a great place for a designer drink, whether it's a mojito or a vegetable shake. The interior is arty and contemporary, with streaky walls and flickering projections, and it's almost too cool for school. That goes for the easy-on-the-eye patrons and the food because everything served here is raw, from sushi to sashimi to salami.
-
Da Vezio
You might find conversation falters as you enter this flag-festooned, tiny coffee bar, but it's worth a look out of curiosity. Vezio Bagazzini has turned it into a crammed-full shrine to Communism - inside all things red line the walls and ceiling. Don't wear your Forza Italia T-shirt.
-
Del Frate
Locals love this attractive, upmarket wine bar, and it's a great escape from the Vatican. The tall yet small brick-arched rooms have wooden tables and large barrels, while bottles of wine line the walls. Interesting cuisine includes some delicious crudo (raw) dishes, such as beef tartare, as well as great primi . Aperitivo is available from every evening.
-
Di Marzio
For ringside seats on Trastevere's most entertaining piazza, take a table at this otherwise unexceptional cafe. At the prices they charge, you probably won't want to stay here all night, but for a late-night liqueur or an after-dinner coffee it's an enjoyable spot.
-
Distillerie Clandestine
One of Rome's umbrella venues, this funky place hauls in the hipsters. Apart from a bass-thumping club, there's a swing room: an American bar with what look like light sabres suspended above the bar. Then there's the dark, neon-lit R & B room with a house and dance soundtrack, and - gasp - a smoking room.
