-
Da Ricci
In a tranquil, cobbled cul de sac a step away from smoggy Via Nazionale, Rome's oldest pizzeria started life as an enoteca in 1905. The sign says Est! Est!! Est!!! - Da Ricci's other name - after the white wine from the north of Lazio. Pizzas are thick-based Neapolitan (though you can get thin-based if you're a Roman aficionado).
-
Da Tonino
You'll be hard-pressed to find a cheaper place for a sit-down meal in central Rome. Unsigned Tonino's is a wonderfully low-key place with yellowing pictures hanging on white walls, and is always packed. There's no menu - the waiter will reel off the choices. You can't really go wrong - everything's pretty good - but if you want a recommendation, go for the pasta alla gricia (pasta with pecorino , black pepper and pancetta).
-
Dagnino
Sweet tooths cram this chintzy pasticceria (pastry shop) for sublime Sicilian treats, from moreish ricotta-filled cannoli (pastries) and ice-cream brioche to velvety marzipan fruits. While the savoury offerings are hit and miss, the arancini (rice balls) would make Palermo proud.
-
Dal Bolognese
See and be seen and mingle with the beautiful at this chic restaurant. Dine inside surrounded by wood panelling and exotic flowers, or outside watching people saunter across the piazza. As the name suggests, Emilia-Romagna dishes are what you get. Everything is good, but try the tagliatelle with truffles, tuna tartare or the damn fine fillet steak.
-
Dar Poeta
A breezy, cheery pizzeria hidden away in an atmospheric side street, Dar Poeta is a contender for Rome's best pizza. The base is somewhere between wafer-thin Roman and Neapolitan comfort food, and the slow-risen dough apparently makes it easier to digest. There are also great bruschettas and salads, and it's famous for its unique ricotta and Nutella calzone. It's great for kids: they can run up and down the alley when they get bored.
-
Del Frate
A hit with vino-versed locals, slick and spick Del Frate mix cellar classics with fabulous seasonal nosh. The crudo (raw) dishes are especially good (opt for the tuna tartare), while the wicked hot-chocolate pie will leave you craving confession.
-
Difronte a
Difronte a is colourful, funky and fun. A bright jumble of bare brick, yellow-and-red walls, wrought iron and protruding lights, it's good-looking and surprisingly good value. It caters to most tastes: there's bruschetta, pasta (including a lip-smacking orecchiette with prawns, pesto and cream), grilled meat, pizza and salad. An excellent option for a light lunch or a lively night out.
-
Dino & Tony
A rarity in the Vatican area, Dino & Tony's is a genuine little trattoria with great food and gruff Roman service. Famous for its amatriciana (some say it's the best in Rome), it also has fabulous antipasti and a beautiful granita di caffè served in a glass and topped with at least an inch of whipped cream.
-
Ditirambo
Ditirambo is a recommended, convivial, new-wave trattoria. The interior looks like a regular, if upmarket, neighbourhood place, but the innovative cooking takes risks (mainly hits, with the occasional miss). Ingredients are organic and seasonal and there are an unusual number of vegetarian options. Try the delicate antipasti, such as ricotta with marinated artichokes. Be sure to book.
-
Dolce Maniera
Down some stairs, this cake-filled corner is crammed full of every possible type of cornetto (croissant). It supplies most of the cafés in the area with their fresh colazione staples. You can also buy big slabs of pizza rosso and other savouries - at any time of day or night!
-
Advertisement
-
Donati
Termini district is full of second-rate tourist traps, but this is a straightforward traditional restaurant serving up competent takes on dishes such as fried seafood or spaghetti with mussels and clams. You can eat inside, in the high-ceilinged hasn't-changed-for-years interior, or outside on the cobbled street.
-
Doozo
Catering to Rome's fashion for multipurpose venues, Doozo (meaning 'welcome' in Japanese) is also a bookshop and a gallery. It offers tofu, sushi, soba (buckwheat noodle) soup and other Japanese delicacies, plus beer and green tea. On the street parallel to noisy Via Nazionale, it's a little oasis, particularly the small garden.
-
Doppiozeroo
Sleek urbane interiors and long opening hours keep trendy Romans flocking here in droves, whether it's for morning coffee and pastries, lunchtime prosecco (sparkling wine) and pizza (sweet tooths shouldn't miss the Nutella pizza bianca ), afternoon tea or preclubbing flirtation at the happening aperitivo (happy hour). It closes for one week in August.
-
Enoteca Carso
Locals love this unassuming place with streetside seating. It has a great range of fresh wines on tap or from the bottle, and can't-go-wrong tasty dishes of the day such as mozzarella-and-tomato salad or pasta with basil and tomato - point and choose from the glass cabinet. The waiter with the headband will see you right for wine.
-
Enoteca Corsi
Merrily worse for wear, family-run Corsi is a genuine old-style Roman eatery. The look is rustic - bare wooden tables, paper tablecloths, lined with wine bottles - and the atmosphere one of controlled mayhem. The menu, chalked up on a blackboard, contains homely dishes using good, fresh ingredients, such as cacio e pepe (pasta with pecorino and ground black pepper) or pasta e ceci (pasta with chickpeas).
-
Estrobar
Designer denizens head to this slinky restaurant/bar/gallery to deconstruct the likes of Claudio di Carlo over a bottle of Brut or a cocktail benessere (fruit- or veggie-based cocktail). Fuelling the cultured conversations are chef Francesco Bonanni's Italo-fusion flavours - from sake and soy beef carpaccio (raw beef) to a spicy chocolate tart - and a wine list spanning 200 Italian drops.
-
Ferrara
In whitewashed, elegant cellars that offset a glamorous crowd, this restaurant/ enoteca /cellar/shop is a temple to wine, and even well-informed amateurs might need the waiters' friendly help navigating the two-volume (one for red, one for white) 1000-label wine list. The food is modern and on the whole manages to keep up. Try orecchiette with courgette and ginger-scented prawns, or taglioni with white truffles.
-
Fiaschetteria Beltramme
With a tiny dark interior and high ceilings, Fiaschetteria (meaning 'wine-sellers') is a discreet, intimate, stuck-in-time place with a short menu and no telephone. Expect traditional Roman dishes ( pasta e ceci and so on) and fashionistas.
-
Filetti di Baccalà
On a pretty, scooter-strewn piazza, this tiny old institution serves classic cod and chips, without the chips (the name means 'fillet of cod'). You can have the crispy battered veggies instead.
-
Formula Uno
As far removed from a relaxed eating experience as most visitors would want to handle, this historic San Lorenzo pizzeria, with wooden tables, whirring fans and whizzing waiters, is always packed with local students and slumming uptowners. Consequently, you'll need to join the waiting throng and learn the underhand art of Roman queuing for cheap-as-chips thin-crust pizzas.
-
Advertisement
-
Forno di Campo de' Fiori
A brilliant pit stop when there's too much to see to stop for a meal, the Forno is most renowned for its thin, crispy, direct-from-the-oven pizza. Aficionados swear by the pizza bianca although the pizza rossa (with tomato) is just as good. You can snack by Palazzo Farnese in the square next door.
-
Forno la Renella
The wood-fired ovens at this historic Trastevere bakery have been firing for decades, producing a delicious daily batch of pizza, bread and biscuits. The bread's made first but when the embers die down the white-tops turn their hands to pizza. Toppings (and fillings) vary seasonally. Popular with everyone from skinheads with big dogs to elderly ladies with little dogs.
-
Franchi
Franchi is a fine-food landmark. Assistants in white jackets work with a dexterity that only comes with years of practice, slicing hams, cutting cheese, weighing olives and preparing panini . There's also wine, vegetables conserved in oil and truffles. You can buy ready-made dishes, such as poached salmon, baked aubergine parmigiana or zucchini a la Barese (Bari-style courgette), to take away or eat at stand-up tables. Its fried dishes are renowned.
-
Gelateria della Palma
A warning to parents: don't take kids in here unless you want to spend a lot. Like an ice-cream version of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, this brightly-coloured gelateria believes in customer choice, offering up to 100 different flavours. The specialities are creamy mousse gelati and the meringata varieties with bits of meringue.
-
Gelateria Giolitti
For some time now this overpriced and overrated gelateria has been trading on its past rather than its gelato. In its heyday it regularly delivered tubs of Pope John Paul II's favourite flavour, marrons glacé (candied chestnut), to his summer residence. Nowadays it's not what it was, but it's still not bad. With 70-odd flavours on offer you should be able to find something to suit your palate.
