It’s been an awfully long time since I wrote a blog post on where to eat in my neighborhood of Monti, in Rome. It’s not as if I haven’t been writing about the subject, it’s just that I’ve been adding places in my my app, Eat Italy, rather than here on the blog.
Sorry!
As many of you know I live in Monti, which is the neighborhood that is tucked between the Roman Forum, Via Nazionale and Via Cavour. When I first moved here 25 years ago, it was a very sleepy neighborhood full of artisans and charm. While the charm is still going strong, many of the artisans have been priced out (as they have all over Rome) by rising rents and gentrification. Luckily – at least for now – the changes have generally been going in a good direction. While I miss the carpenters, shoe repairmen and seamstresses, they have been replaced mostly by small scale, younger generation of Romans trying to do new and creative things.
So without much ado, here are some of my favorite food-related spots in Monti. I’ve only included short descriptions. Where possible I’ve linked to my past blog posts (or friends blog posts). For the fuller story download my app.
I’ve decided to list places street by street , to make it easier to sort through them. I’ve also mapped them out, in google maps, which is linked below.
VIA MADONNA DEI MONTI
La Cassetta (Via della Madonna dei Monti 62) : A vine covered little building hosts a darling bar. Coffee, pastries and sandwiches.
Fafiuche (Via della Madonna dei Monti 28) Great wine bar as well as food. Also has tables outside.
Le Carette (Via della Madonna dei Monti 95) Our local pizzeria. Everyone’s local pizzeria.
Taverna dei Fori Imperiali (Via della Madonna dei Monti 9) Family run trattoria. VERY popular, so make sure you reserve ahead.
Hotel Forum, (Via Tor de’ Conti 25) Head up to the rooftop bar for cocktails with a view of the Forum. (but ignore the restaurant)
VIA BACCINA
Pasta Chef (Via Baccina 42) This tiny pasta take out place is currently listed as the number one restaurant in Rome on Tripadvisor. I’m not quite sure how that happened, since it’s not really a restaurant. But it is awfully good, with really great prices. A perfect stop for a quick bowl of excellently made pasta. Open lunch and dinner. Closed Sunday
VIA DEL BOSCHETTO
Er Baretto – Arte del Caffe – (Via del Boschetto 97) The prettiest cappuccini in the neighborhood.
La Piadineria – (Via del Boschetto 98, 06 4890 7923 ) Part of a small chain, but very good piadine, a type of flat bread panino.
L’Asino d’Oro – (Via del Boschetto 73, 06 4891 3832) Umbrian chef with really delicious creative menu.
Trattoria Valentino (Via del Boschetto 37, 06.488.0643)Â One of my favorite restaurants in the neighborhood. Very simple, straightforward, delicious food.
La Barrique (Via del Boschetto 41, 06.4782.5953) Formally more of a wine bar, now a full fledged restaurant with, obviously, a great wine list.
Green & Go (Via del Boschetto 20) New salad place where you can design your own salad. Sophie and I are addicted.
VIA LEONINA
Crepes Galettes (Via Leonina 21a) Yes, it’s French, but they do lovely crepes, both savory and sweet. Teeny tiny.
Pizzeria La Boccaccia (Via Leonina 73) Part of a small Roman chain, their pizza al taglio (take away) is actually very good. Get a slice and head to the piazza to eat it.
VIA URBANA
Urbana 47 (Via Urbana 47, 06.4788.4006) Locavore organic restaurant, open breakfast through dinner.
Zia Rosetta (Via Urbana 54) Fantastic panini.
Broccoletti (Via Urbana 104, 06.9027.1389) Cute and cozy trattoria with great food.
Pizza Trieste (Via Urbana 112) Outpost of a famous Abruzzese pizzeria. Small round pan pizza.
Aromaticus (Via Urbana 134, 96.488.1355) Light and airy bistrot, focussing on fresh herbs. Feels like a garden shop, because it is that too.
Grezzo, (Via Urbana 130) Raw, vegan, chocolate. I know it sounds odd, but it’s delicious. They also have smoothies and gelato.
Bar Monti (Via Urbana 93) Very cute little coffee bar, with Illy coffee. They have a lovely terrace.
VIA CAVOUR
Sitar (Via Cavour 256A, 06.8902.6710) For when you just can’t eat Italian food anymore, there is this fantastic Indian restaurant.
Cavour 313 (Via Cavour 313, 06.678.5496) One of first wine bars to open in Rome, it serves great food, in a cozy setting, with (obviously) great wine list.
VIA PANISPERNA
Monti Bio (Via Panisperna 225) This small organic store is also a great place to stop by for a simple lunch. They have grain salads, and other healthy items. Also great cheese and organic wine) Very simple, but very cute.
Ai Tre Scaline (Via Panisperna 251) Historic wine bar, great place for nibbles. And wine. If you can’t find a table, just hang out outside.
VIA DEI SERPENTI
Al Vino al Vino (Via dei Serpenti 19) Well stocked wine bar, where all the locals go.
La Licata, (Via dei Serpenti 165) This bar has recently been redone, so that it has lots of seating. In addition to coffee and cocktails, they have a really great tavola calda and do a full breakfast. It’s also great for take out if you feel like eating at home (mostly lunch time) with a great selection of vegetables, salads, pasta, etc.
Hasekura (Via dei Serpenti 27, 06.483648) One of the very first Japanese restaurants in Rome, and still one of the best.
Temakhino (via dei Serpenti 16, ) Brazilian sushi. Yes, it’s a thing. And it’s a good thing. You have to reserve online, and it’s hard to book a table. Easier for lunch.
PIAZZA MADONNA DEI MONTI
La Bottega del Caffe (Piazza della Madonna dei Monti 5) This is the bar to go to in the piazzetta, as locals call it. For everything from coffee (they do breakfast) to very strong cocktails. They also have food.
Civico 4 (via degli Zingari 4) Although, really, it’s in the piazza. It’s on the corner of Via Boschetto and the piazza and is a great place to stop all day long. They also carry desserts from Cristallo di Zucchero. You will probably see me having a Negroni with Gillian here.
SUPERMARKETS AND FOOD SHOPS
Conad (Via del Boschetto 52) Biggest commercial supermarket in Monti. Kind of crowded and icky, but you can find everything.
Elite (Via Cavour 232) The nicest supermarket in Monti. Actually, one of the nicest in Rome. GREAT cheese counter.
Podere Vecciano (Via dei Serpenti 33) They don’t have a lot, but what they have is great. Products from Tuscany including olive oil and wine.
Calabrian Store (Via della Madonna dei Monti 33) This small store specializes in Calabrian delicacies. Make sure you look in the refrigerated case for mozzarella and salami.
La Luna Nuova Erboristeria (Via dei Serpenti 146) The neighborhood health food store. Great for yogurt, tofu and grains and cereals of all sorts.
Bio Monti (Via Panisperna ) Small selection of organic produce and dry goods, as well as food to go.
Panificio Monti,( Via Urbana 22) The best bakery in the neighborhood.
Il Giardino del Te (Via del Boschetto 107) Amazing selection of teas in the tiny shop.
GELATO AND SWEETS
Fatamorgana (Piazza degli Zingari) Best gelato in the neighborhood.
Gelateria dell’Angeletto – Emporio dei Gracchi (Via dell’Angeletto 15) This gelateria gets there ice cream from the famous Gracchi in Prati.
Gelatone (Via dei Serpenti 130) Not artisinal like Angeletto or Fatamorgana, but pretty good. Also? Sometimes you just want Nutella gelato, right?
La Bottega del Cioccolato (Via Leonina, 82) Very old fashioned chocolate shop.
Grezzo, (Via Urbana 130) Raw, vegan, chocolate. I know it sounds odd, but it’s delicious. They also have smoothies and gelato.
For more information on dining in Rome and Italy download my app, EAT ITALY. EAT ITALY is a free app, and contains guides to Venice, Milan, Rome, Florence and Umbria (and an ever expanding list of regions and cities) available as in-app purchases for both iPhone and iPad
You might also be interested in my book, Eating Rome: Living the Good Life in the Eternal City.
Feel like joining me on a private food tour around Monti? Just email me.
And here are a couple of cute places to stay.
What a wonderful list! We’re staying at Hotel Artemide so it will be fun to walk around Monti and check out some of these places. Thank you for including a few supermarkets! One of my favorite things to do on vacation is wander through supermarkets/food stores to pick up things we can’t get in the US (like Pocket Coffee!)
It’s like you wrote this blog post just for me.
I pulled out the list of stops from the Monti Tour Mum and I took with you a few years ago in preparation for my trip. I can’t wait to try the new places out.
Yes, I did! I wrote it just for you!!
Loved reading your EATING ROME. So well written and interesting
Thank you!!
Thanks Elizabeth. I have followed your apps religiously on my visits to Rome, Florence and Venice and have had the most amazing meals / coffees / drinks in places I would never have found otherwise.
Loved reading this list and seeing Er Baretto which is where my love affair with your reviews and app began! Sitting outside the café on a sunny day in Rome sipping an exquisite cappuccino is now a tradition whenever I am in Rome. Can’t wait to get back to Italy!
Oh what a nice comment!!! So happy that you are discovering Italy through my apps!!
This gives me such a pang of longing to come back and stay in the Monti neighborhood. It was one of my favorite stays in Rome and you have reminded me of all the charm it has to offer. Once again, I find myself #Romesick.
Many are familiar (thanks to your Monti tour last year!) but many I’ve not tried….I think that means I need to book a flight to Roma….PRONTO! 😉
Yes, you do! Ari is coming next week, on her own. She’s staying at our place so is sure to visit many of these.
I so look forward to your posts……………. lovely beautiful Monti………………. I dont need to say what a lucky person you are to live in such a beautiful town. Keep it coming……. Love Love !!!!!!!!
Gorgeous manicure!
Thanks, Elizabeth. Added to my list for my next Roman visit.
I really thought I knew all of your blog posts, and just glanced at this one quickly. But now it is lunch time and I’m engaged in my favorite pastime – re-reading your posts. The list is really, really deeper than I first thought. By going through each spot, I had a VR moment of just living it all. Thank you for all of the time you put into your writing. It is grand.
I’ve said it before and I’ll repeat it again…I love your “hood”…can hardly wait to get back to Rome!
Beautifully written = thank you for sharing! I wonder if you know where there is a juice bar in Monti (or elsewhere in Roma)? Once you get this in your sysstem – it’s such a crave for jetleg, and for travelers may be a great tip! Best, in boca al lupo!
Thank you very much Elizabeth for this “tasty” post! I love Monti district, is the first place I suggest to friends come visit Rome!
I found your app and blog THE day we left Italy. We took a spur of the moment trip over Christmas to Rome, then north. Your blog is addictive, the recipes all tempting (and very easy to follow!), and your snapchat my daily morning coffee routine.
I hope to be back in Italy SOON and take a food tour!! Thank you for keeping me hungry!!
Thanks so much! And hope to see you back in Rome soon.
I LOVE reading everything you write, snap and record! My sister and I found your app and it guided our trip to Rome and Florence last year. My daughter and I are celebrating with a Med Cruise this year (ending in Cit.)and have (sadly) only 1 night in Rome this fall. I will scrub the app/blog – but Monti sounds like a perfect tranquil taste of Rome – any recommendations for a nice place to stay that is close? We can’t WAIT to come back! Any chance you are doing day tours/class October 9th? 🙂 thank you for all your inspiration and beauty you share!!
Thank you!! Glad to hear you find all my ramblings useful! I have a lot of places to stay listed on my app that are located in Monti. There are also a lot of airbnbs in the neighborhood. If you write me an email, [email protected] I can get back to you with some tour information, as well as hotels.
I love this post and your app to guide our travels as we are renting a Monti apartment for our trip to Rome in September. Of all our picks in Monti, where might be the best place for my husband and I to have dinner our first night for a great introduction to Roman food?
Hard to choose. Maybe Taverna dei Fori Imperiali? Although you may be tired, so pizza at Le Carrette may do the trick.
Thanks so much!
Hello Elizabeth!
Have you made or linked to a list of restaurants open this august in Rome? Anyway, I would be really thankful 🙂
No, sorry, I never make that list. Sometimes Tavole Romane does (another blog). It’s a HUGE amount of work, since the dates change each year.
Ok, thank you for your answer! I understand, and I checked their blog but looks like they haven’t made one for this year yet. Hopefully they’ll do one soon 🙂
Love your blog and especially your instagram, btw!
Thank you!!!
This is where I’ll stay when I’m coming to Rome. Your food list is waaay too long for only few days, it will be very hard to choose only a few! Thanks for the article!
We went to Taverna dei Fori Imperiali in the Monti area the other day on your recommendation and thought it was very ordinary. I had the spaghetti puttanesca, which was overdone with capers and had very little flavour. The place was filled with tourists and the service reflected that.
So sorry you had a bad experience. You’re the first person to tell me that not only they didn’t like the food, but that the service was bad. The place is run by just about the nicest family in town. If anything, they err on the side of being almost over friendly. They are warm and inviting and most people remark on that. Yes, the place is filled with tourists in the evening, but most places are in the center of Rome. Especially the ones that have been written about a lot. It’s the nature of the game. But sorry you had a bad time.
Monti Bio closed?
Google and TripAdvisor both list Monti Bio as being “permanently closed”…is it true? Anywhere else you’d recommend in the area for good organic produce?
Elizabeth I also want to thank you for this amazing website—my wife and I are about to make our third trip to Monti since we loved it so much the first two times, and it was largely thanks to your recommendations.
Yes, it’s closed. There is another store that took its place, but it never seems to have much. For organic I tend to go to the Farmer’s Market near Circo Massimo on the weekends. But I buy a lot of produce from the local market on Via Baccina these days.
Your list is unbelievably helpful. Reading general reviews seems to continuously point us to traditional fare. What we are really looking for is attention to quality and I am also specifically looking for gluten free options. We came to Monti hoping to find a living breathing place where artists and makers live. Tonight was our first night here and after looking at many general reviews (yelp, trip advisor) that felt unsatisfying, I bumped into your list by accident. I could tell right away that we share some common ground. We took your advice by going to Urbana 47. It was the perfect choice for us. We are looking forward to exploring more of your suggestions.
Happy to hear you had a good time!!
Can’t tell you how useful this list has been! We visited Broccoletti and it was incredible! Thanks again 🙂