Hostaria
Antica Roma
Running over 350 miles south to
Brindisi and lined with cypresses and umbrellas pines, Via Appia,
begun in 312 BC, is the oldest of the seven consular roads. The
ancients both pagan and early-Christian came here by torchlight
to bury their dead then just outside the city limits. At no. 87,
not far from the festooned round Tomb of Cecilia Metella and across
from St. Calixtus's catacombs is Hostaria Antica Roma.
It's also known as Liberti” because
it was originally a columbarium or tomb
with niches for the urns of the Emperor Augustus 6,000 cremated
freed slaves. First excavated in the 18th century, there's been
a restaurant here since 1796, when it was the first stop on the
mail-route to Naples.
Today's
owner Massimo Magnanimi's specialties include homemade gnocchi
with clam sauce, homemade taglioni with
smoked salmon and asparagus tips or grated white truffle,
pennette with spicy lobster sauce and an array of
homemade desserts. Complimenti allo chef, Massimo's
son Paolo, for his white chocolate mousse and
peppery flan! Like Giulia up-the-street, affable Paolo is a disciple
of Apicius, and willingly caters Roman banquets. (six guests minimum).
Via
Appia Antica 87
tel. 011-39-065132888;
Website: www.anticaroma.it
E-mail: hostaria@anticaroma.it
Reservations recommended.
Closed Monday.
Ostaria
Da Nerone
After allegedly setting fire to Rome in 64
AD, the Emperor Nero, less well-known as the inventor of ice-cream,
decided to build himself an outrageously luxurious new palace,
called the Golden House”. On its
marshy grounds his successor Vespasian commissioned the Colosseum
and later on the Oppian Hill above Trajan built his Baths. Here
on the corner overlooking these majestic monuments and next door
to Michelangelo's awesome statue of Moses, since 1965 brothers
Enrico and Eugenio De Santis have provided impeccable service,
excellent home cooking and warm hospitality consistent with the
saying abruzzesi forti e gentili”.
There's
nothing fancy here two, small, wood-paneled rooms with an appealing
antipasto buffet at the center but this friendly, self-respecting
place is always booked solid with bespectacled professors from
the nearby engineering school plus tourists at lunch and neighborhood
regulars evenings. More like a club than a trattoria,
the house specialties are your classically Roman innards, succulent
roast lamb, an Abruzzese staple, and fettucine da
Nerone (with mushrooms, peas, ham, and salami in
an beaten egg sauce), but don't miss the tender grilled scampi
and swordfish steaks on Tuesday and Friday, traditionally fish
days in Rome.
Via
delle Terme di Tito 96
tel. 011-39-064817952.
Reservations essential.
Closed Monday and the month of August.
Reserve well in advance.
Taverna
Ulpia
Down the street from the Colosseum, with
a the terrace overlooking Trajan's Column, Forum, and Markets,
Taverna Ulpia, a popular hangout since the 1880s,
is the only restaurant in Rome owned by the Ministry of Cultural
Patrimony. Built into the Basilica Ulpia or law courts of the
Emperor Trajan's forum, the last and largest imperial forum, ask
for a table downstairs where the opus reticulatum
brick walls and mosaic floors date to the 2nd century AD. It's
also possible to book Mussolini's table. Before becoming Il
Duce”, he dined here regularly with his brother
Arnaldo, and afterwards arrived via a secret tunnel (now blocked)
from Palazzo Venezia for nightly government meetings.
Via
Foro Traiano 2
tel. 011-39066789980,
Closed Sunday, all major credit cards accepted).
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