Elite Traveler July-August 2017

EXPLORE ROME GUIDE TO ROME

TOP RESTAURANTS

Crumbling ancient ruins and immaculately preserved Renaissance masterpieces, quiet cobbled piazzas and Vespa drivers spewing out colorful insults, hot asphalt and cold gelato — few places are as inherently contradictory as Rome. The Italian capital is a great, big, all-consuming love affair. There are times when you’ll need space, but it won’t be long before you’re under its spell again. But that’s the charm of the city — there’s a harmony to its chaos. Aside from Rome’s obvious historic attractions, a cool contemporary art and gastronomy scene is emerging. From speakeasy joints serving up potent vermouth and gin concoctions to the ultra-modern MAXXI (National Museum of 21st Century Arts) designed by the late Zaha Hadid, the Eternal City is certainly living up to its name.

Chef Giulio Terrinoni’s first restaurant Per Me (giulioterrinoni.it) gained a Michelin star in 2016, less than a year after opening, for his creative approach to fish. Sebastiano Lombardi, the head concierge at Hotel de Russie , recommends the seafood carbonara. Celebrity photos cover the walls at Antica Pesa (anticapesa.it) and this Trastevere favorite has been open since 1922. Everyone from Gwyneth Paltrow to Daniel Craig has tucked into the moreish signature dishes, which include cacio e pepe pasta and roast pork and mozzarella mille-feuille. Rome’s only three- Michelin-starred restaurant,

the Cavalieri hotel’s crowning jewel, La Pergola

decorated dining room overlooking the Vatican to the inventive reimagining of classic Mediterranean dishes by culinary genius Heinz Beck.

Enjoy Michelin-star seafood at Giulio

(romecavalieri.com/ la-pergola), offers a

Terrinoni’s restaurant Per Me

gastronomic experience like no other, from the lavishly

by Alix O’Neill

Photos Studio Moreno Maggi / Moreno Maggi, salajean / Shutterstock.com, Jeerapatmaitree / Shutterstock.com