Going for lunch where the Romans go

If you can’t wait for dinner, the most part of restaurants and trattorias in Rome are open for lunch, too. What if you feel peckish on the way to some attraction in central Rome, really need to take away? You can find places for lunch where locals attend especially at lunch time, mostly snack bars.

There still is quite a few of them downtown, you can easily find a place for lunch around the traffic-lighted corner at Loft Corso Vittorio Emanuele, just down to the next block in the heart of Renaissance Rome. Caffè ai Banchi Vecchi is where many Romans go for a light lunch, consisting of a single dish from the counter.

You see what you eat, all the plates being displayed in front of you, mostly Roman recipes, but mind you need not a receipt from the cashier first. In some places you have to pay before you can have it, so get a scontrino. It goes for Gino Bar, metro Barberini, 5-minute walk from Casa Zeffiro, DormoDaLady and other properties FHTR manages nearby.

You decide whether you go for a single course, pasta or else, maybe just panini, one being panino! Bars display their collection of homemades, a varied assortment of savoury sandwiches or tramezzini – wrapped tea sandwiches, too. Well, not quite for teas, surely you can choose from an array of soft or alcoholic drinks.

You can try Caffè Antica Roma when you come around Casa Isabella by the Colosseum at the Caelian Hill, or Antico Caffè della Pigna while roaming the maze-like streets around the Pantheon, five minutes from Casa Cornacchie. There is plenty to experience with locals at lunch time, you’ll get to feel you are one of them. Have gnocchi on Thursdays, fish on Fridays, maybe tripe on Saturdays, as naturally as anyone in town would expect from their local bars.

In the end, everybody may seem to be native Roman, maybe just standing at the counter for an espresso, yet most bars have seating available for lunch. Just avoid the hour 1 to 2 pm, when more than a handful of people take a break from work. By the time you’ll have already had some food in the belly, pronto!