Rome restaurant options abound and a heady mix of cheap eats, mid-range menus, and exceptional fine dining choices are all readily available throughout the city. Centuries ago, Rome’s elite was famed for creating some of the most incredible food presentations known in Europe. Banquets featuring flashy menu items such as flamingos and peacocks were plucked, cooked, and redressed in their very own plumes to create culinary centerpieces that were both delightful to look at and delicious to eat.

Though the history of Roman culture and the grand repasts of the centuries elapsed offered a look at some of the finest culinary art, today, Roman food more greatly reflects the cooking practices of commoners who created delicious, filling, and simple meals on a budget. From the small, thatched homes of Romans came concern for rapidly spreading flames from small indoor stoves, so eating outdoors was common. Since then, Roman culture has long embraced al fresco dining. There is hardly a street around all of Rome’s attractions that doesn’t feature open-air osterias and trattorias filled with dining patrons. From the homes of the poor arose a tone in cooking which has been followed throughout Roman history and sets the mark for excellent hospitality enjoyed the city over.

Agrarian and agricultural, Rome’s age-old practices reflect the modern cooking practices seen today. Lamb’s milk creates sweet-tasting cheeses, fertile soils produce savory vegetables, and fresh is always the name of the cooking game in every Rome restaurant. Imaginative, creative, and innovative practices turned food from even the poorest families into tasty meals that all enjoy. In Rome’s earliest days, the Tiber River blossomed with fish and individual gardens became a common supply for fresh vegetables. Streams once ran throughout the entire city, passing alongside now historic sites such as the Colosseum, the Pantheon, and St Peter’s Basilica. These streams fed family gardens, producing an array of Roman food that, after much care, made its way to the family table.

Rome Map

Modern Rome food still mingles with ancient customs, and mint, bold spices, and powerful peppers are evident in many dishes. Rome food bears the fruits of the Lazio region, where cured pork meat, olive oil, olives, mushrooms, prosciutto, and a variety of cheeses dominate tables. Big families dine together and each meal is a dynamic affair celebrating all the gifts born from much hard work picking, cleaning, curing, marinating, and cooking.

Visiting a Rome restaurant means a taste of true Italian delights. Popular Roman food such as asparagus, beans, peas, artichokes, and rosemary preside over many dishes, as does a great sense of pride from the chef. Tender lamb, oxtail, salted cod, and veal, a favorite, are top meat choices cooked into stews, pasta dishes, and other meals. Cheese is another cherished food enjoyed alongside and with most meals and artichokes reign as an especially beloved choice for Roman Italians. Pizza and gelato figure among the quick and delicious eats that are simple to grab in just about every part of town.

Today, the answer to the best dining in Rome is arguable and there are many exceptional restaurants to choose from. Those on Rome vacations will pleasure in myriad options for seafood, pastas, soups, stews, risotto dishes, and plenty of scrumptious pastries featured throughout cafes, eateries, patios, cantinas, coffeehouses, and pizzerias. Roman culture shines through in every restaurant where booming Roman voices signify pleased patrons devouring every last morsel of food on their plates. All that and a killer view from top restaurants with backdrops including the likes of the Vatican, the Santa Maria Maggiore, and the Sistine Chapel.