WHAT TO DO IN ROME

I’m well aware of how annoying I sound because I go on about Italy a lot. I’m like the person who went travelling for a month in 2008 and still says things like… “when I was living in Australia..” Blah, Blah, Blah.

I’m SO sorry but I can’t help it. I love the place and Rome is no exception! It’s just the perfect spot for a city break. There wasn’t a complex carbohydrate safe when I landed, washed down with an Aperol every. single. time. Bliss.

Anyway, I did 4 nights earlier this month without the three cling-ons and I was so excited because it was the first time I was there without that extreme heat in peak summer sunshine. It was similar temperature to here but the days were bright & sunny and when you found a little sun trap it was just positively glorious. It was nice to not be sweating but I’d say it’s even better in April when it’s even just a bit warmer.

SO!! People always ask me is Italy not extortionate, to be honest it can be… but if you do it right, it can be way cheaper than here (which isn’t hard, wha?). You have to be smart. I’m not a cheapskate by any stretch and I do love a bit of glamour here and there but honestly if you are sitting at bar beside a load of tourists at The Trevi Fountain and paying more than €10 for an Aperol then I’m afraid you are not experiencing the real Italy. The best places always look a bit ropey, down an alley and there will be nobody trying to drag you in. We all like a pretty view though and a perfect people watching seat, so one of the days we had a cocktail in Piazza Navona. It was €12 for the Aperol (so basically still cheaper than Dublin and that was the most we paid for a drink when we were there). The restaurants in Navona in the afternoon are PERFECT in the Winter sun because it becomes a great little sun trap! It was really touristy but we did enjoy our hour there after walking what seemed 100 miles.

Piazza Navona

WHERE TO STAY?

My favourite place in Rome is Trastevere, with its crumbling architecture and bohemian vibe this is THE place for bars and restaurants at night and a people watching coffee in the morning. It’s also cheaper than eating beside the main sights. Saying that, we always stay around Campo Di Fiori because it’s kind of bang middle in between the sights and Trastevere. I won’t actually recommend our Airbnb this time because I didn’t like it and I think there are way better options to go for! You can great deals on hotels and Airbnb - we just booked ours really last minute and there weren’t many options left.

I will say that we stayed in “Mamas Home Hotel” in Campo Di Fiori another time for a couple of nights and it was fab. Prices for there have increased a lot since then, we got a bargain at the time.

If I went back again I would probably base myself in Trastevere as we’ve seen all the sights countless times now and I think it’s nice to be staying close to where you spend the most time in the evening.

WHERE TO EAT… .

Before I give you the list of places that we liked, I just wanted to chat about Roman food. In Italy, the food really changes from region to region. This is something I didn’t really realise until this visit. So Rome is really noted for thin and crispy pizza. The kind of doughy, wood fired varieties are more synonymous with Naples (but I do have a recommendation for a Neapolitan style pizzeria in Rome). Also street food or eating on the go is a really big thing here, and more often than not it’s the tastiest of food. Carbonara and Amatriciana are the most popular pasta dishes and Porchetta is everywhere, I can’t even write Porchetta anymore without my mouth watering after having the actual best sandwich I’ve ever had in my life. I’ll get to that.

So in the mornings we’d walk into the Campo De’Fiori market square grab some pastries and this Mortadella sandwich, I can’t describe the bread, it’s like super thin Foccacia, sliced in half and filled with Mortadella ham. We’d eat the sandwich as we walked to Trastevere for our coffee.. Sounds mad having a sandwich when you wake, but when in Rome…

FORNO, CAMPO DE’FIORI

I’d been following these lads on Instagram for a few years after staying right beside it the last time we were there. This is the place with the Mortadella sambos and it’s a really busy spot. All Italian customers, good sign! Delish!! €6 for the sandwich, a suppli (deep fried rice ball filled with cheese or ragu and a bottle of water!

BAR SAN CALISTO, TRASTEVERE

Words escape me when I try to explain this place. We found it by accident and went back everyday. It’s rough and ready, curt staff, well worn plastic chairs, wheelie bins out front BUT you have to believe me… it is kind of magical. There were a group of elderly locals playing cards there every morning, banging on the table, hilarious hand gestures and playing their own music, the place was absolutely full of locals, some looked well to do, others lets just say “eccentric”, there were bohemian artist types, a few girls there one morning were like something straight out of a magazine, the coolest style and these 60’s fringes - I couldn’t take my eyes off them. One woman came in every morning, with a long cigarette singing some Italian song and proceeded to go around to loads of tables kissing all the people she knew. I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT. Coffees were €1, Aperols €3.( I KNOW!!!!) We spent a good while there one day we got 5 americanos, 1 aperol and Shane got 2 Fernet’s (an Italian short) all for 13 euro!!! Mad. The sun hit the seats at about 11.30am (February) and went from freezing to feeling like 25 degrees instantly. I googled it when I came home and apparently it’s iconic. Delighted we stumbled across it.

MARRIUCCIA, CAMPO DE’FIORI

I love Neapolitan pizza, I follow this restaurant on Instagram too and I just KNEW I’d love these pizza’s. I got the nduja one and it was simply divine. The restaurant itself is a bit modern, touristy and hispster’y which I’d usually avoid but it was gorgeous and I have to say the staff were really lovely. My pizza was €15, Shane’s was €10 and the Aperols were €7.

CANTINA DEI PAPI, TRASTEVERE

I have a feeling this is a chain of restaurants but I don’t care! It was absolutely delicious! We went after having a good few drinks and a late lunch so we weren’t absolutely starving, they had INCREDIBLE looking charcuterie boards but we weren’t hungry enough. So we ordered the caprese salad, bruschetta, bread basket and the Porchetta with sundried tomatoes to share. Every single bite was delicious. A massive porchetta was in full view and sliced accordingly. It was delicious and so reasonable. Our whole meal including a bottle of wine and tip was €50. Really recommend. There were two on the same street in Trastevere and we went to the one pictured below.

DA BIAGIO WINE BAR, TRASTEVERE

Just a door or two up from Cantina Dei Papa sits this quaint wine bar. With just 4 little tables inside and an abrupt older gentleman (love it! I presume the owner) this place was like going back in time. Large selection of wines by the glass or bottle and it was cool watching locals come asking him for help to pick out a wine for dinner (It was a shop aswell) We got an organic red and white both €5 a glass.