Travel

Centro Storico Restaurants

Establishment neighborhood
Retrobottega
Via della Stelletta, 4, Centro Storico
This cool, experimental little restaurant is casual from head to toe—you'll serve your own wine and even set your own place, with utensils and napkins from drawers on the underside of the bar—which is actually a big part of the appeal in a city where meals are usually a big to-do. The menu changes daily, serving Italian dishes with modern twists to foodies and Rome's younger set. There's a big table in the back where you can make a reservation and share a family-style meal, but if you're with a small party, it's first-come, first-serve. Sit at the bar, where you can look in on the big open kitchen.
Ginger Sapori e Salute
St. Eustachio Square, 54-55, Centro Storico
With several skylights, white walls and chairs accented with touches of rich wood, plus lots of additional lighting and greenery, Ginger is a bright and modern all-day restaurant in Roma Centro. It’s the kind of place where you can order both an acai bowl or a stack of organic pancakes for breakfast—there’s really something for everyone on their expansive, skewed-healthy menus. It’s a nice change of pace from pizza and pasta, if you’re looking for a break—although they have plenty of that here, too, plus a full wine menu. There’s another outpost in Campo Marzio.
Emma Pizzeria
Via del Monte della Farina, 28, Centro Storico
Opened just a few years ago by a young couple and members of Roscioli family, this restaurant serves incredible thin-crust pizza; toppings are sourced from Salumeria Roscioli, the area’s best deli counter, and the crust is from fourth-generation baker Pierluigi Roscioli. The light-filled space—owed, in part, to a great skylight—is wonderfully bright, modern, and air conditioned (there’s outdoor seating if you prefer, too). Bonus: it’s open for lunch and dinner seven days a week.
Roscioli La Salumeria
Via dei Giubbonari, 21/22, Centro Storico
The restaurant piece of this chic, brother-operated gourmet grocery/wine bar/restaurant has become one the most difficult tables to come by. The menu is short compared to its traditional trattoria counterparts but the plates of fresh burrata, salumi, and house-made pastas are truly exceptional. The best part is that you can take home a scaled-down version of your meal thanks to a well-stocked market—the jars of cacio e pepe sauce and jugs of olive oil make for great (admittedly, difficult to pack) souvenirs. Note that the wine list and cocktail offering are some of the best in the city, so definitely come for aperitivo if you can’t get in for dinner or lunch.
Pierluigi
Piazza de' Ricci, 144, Centro Storico
The specialty at this close to a century-old restaurant is fish, more specifically, super fresh oysters, and seafood-themed pastas. The kitchen takes great care to source almost exclusively from local fishermen, which explains why the menu is so heavily influenced by what’s in season and changes often. While so many local restaurants are on the casual side, this one, with its expansive wine and cocktail list and elegant outdoor seating area right on the Piazza Ricci, should be saved for a special occasion.