Rome favourite lunch Da Gino al Parlamento

Bill and I have many favourite restaurants in Rome but Da Gino al Parlamento has to be the best of them.

We're approaching today from the east, passing behind the Italian Parliament. That narrow gap in the block in the distance is where we will find our restaurant.

Look for the sign that says, Trattoria Gino, and the chalkboard with the day's dishes.

Today we have spaghetti with clams, linguine with anchovies and cherry tomatoes and, oh, look -- Fettucini al limone! That's what I'm having.

Da Gino  is in a building labled Bottiglieria (bottle shop). Typical gorgeous Italian typography.

Gino is open by reservation only. Owners Carla and Fabrizio are standing in the doorway greeting their guests, regulars and strangers both. Bill and I are already at our table.

We already have our mezzo (half litre) of the house red.

Gino has one of the most charming painted interiors in the city. We never tire of it.

Today Bill is having a side of fresh peas in butter. They really are fresh and good. Note my puntarelle behind.

This is the Da Gino version of the vignarola salad and includes onion and tomato. Yummy!

This party has filled several tables pushed together. Everyone looks good in front of the murals.

These two women seem to be together but are from two quite different lunch parties.

Here is my fettucine con limone -- pasta in lemon sauce. It's good!

On another visit Bill has the osso buco.

At yet another lunch I have the daily special. I wish I had written down the Italian name!

I see it has mushrooms and peas and guanciale (pig's cheek). I've pushed two guanciale apart to show a Toronto friend how the "bacon" is crispy at one end and fatty at the other. It's good all the way through.

While paying at the cash desk I peeked into the kitchen and got a big smile from the chef. It is that kind of place.

Rome favourite lunch Augusto

The Trattoria da Augusto is our favourite restaurant in Trastevere. It's five minutes from the Ponte Sisto.

Reliable, moderately priced traditional Roman food.

Two rooms inside, small patio outside.

Waiting to wash my hands I admired this nice marble sink near the cash desk. On the counter I see a newly delivered bag of fresh puntarelle salad greens.

And here is a serving of puntarelle under its traditional anchovy sauce. Crispy and light, we've become hooked. Available only in the spring.

Augusto has a loyal following of locals. Always a good sign. 

The light floods in through the large windows.

Here is our chef. She is a magician.

We always have a main dish -- a pasta or a meat -- and two vegetable sides, bubbly water and the house red.

Monday is lentil day. We come for the lentils and sausage.

But the wonderful lentil soup is also a temptation.

Vignarola salad is a traditional favourite composed of artichoke, fava beans and peas. This is also only available in the spring. Ask for it by name: vi-nya-ROLL-a.

Bill ordered beans one day and we got these flat beans in tomato sauce. We hadn't had this before but it was delicious. A real surprise. We'll order that again.

One day the lunch special was osso buco with fresh peas. Bill said it was stupendously good.

Augusto is a lively place. Bill and I love to watch the staff tease and provoke the regulars.

I think Augusto has the best tirimasu in Rome. And here comes Deborah bringing it now.

One order. Two forks. Then we waddle home in the noonday sun. Another wonderful Roman lunch!

Rome favourite lunch Da Tonino

When Bill and I are in Rome we are grateful for the reliable restaurant Da Tonino. We sometimes cross town to get here because we know how much we will enjoy ourselves.

We find it half way along Via del Governo Vecchio, ten minutes from Piazza Navona.

The two medium sized rooms inside can accommodate dozens of people so there is little waiting.

Da Tonino serves all the tradional Roman pastas and some superb meat dishes.

On the side I'm having a salad of arugula and tomatoes, Bill is having his beloved stewed greens [cicoria].

My pasta in ox tail sauce [sugo di coda] could not be more flavourful or more satisfying.

Bill's having slices of roast veal with arguably the best roast potatoes in the city: crispy outside, moist within. Veal delicious [arrosto di vitella].

Once the weather warms up we try to arrive at the stroke of noon for lunch so we can snag a table at the small patio.

It is lovely to sit outside on a Roman afternoon.

We always feel so good here. The vibe is mellow under the protective canopy.

Bill often orders a warm bean salad. I like the arugula and tomato salad. Sometimes we mix them on one plate.

All of their Roman pastas are excellent. They do their cacio e pepe on tonnarelli noodles.

Traditional pasta alla carbonara with guanciale.

Bill also favours the veal stew with mushrooms and peas [Spezzatino di vitella con funghi e piselli].

It is nice to chat with Francesca as she adds up our bill.

Rome favourite bar

Bill and I have regular habits. We try to reserve our table at the popular bar il Piccolo (the Little One) for 7 pm.

At this time the April sun is coming straight down Via del Governo Vecchio -- straight into our eyes.

Bill and I have been coming to il Piccolo for more than 10 years. Italians appreciate return customers.

We've seen the staff change but the vibe has not changed.

The servers are wine enthusiasts and customer care can involve detailed discussion of the wine list.

Service is quick.

Bill and I always order the same thing: a bottle of prosecco, or more often, an unfiltered varient, because the staff never tire of trying and recommending new things.

A Toronto friend asked me for What'sApp photos to distract her from her chronic pain. I sent this picture of the guy at the next table. She texted back: "Yes. More like this please."

Via del Governo Vecchio runs west then north from the bottom of Piazza Navona: a main artery in central Rome.

It is always busy.

This makes for reliably good people watching.

Every il Piccolo visit has a different crowd, a different feel.

Tonight, local artist Federico Ruxo, asked me to photograph him with two buddies -- all three are servers at the bar.

Bill caught this interesting group who had pushed several tables together. In town for a conference?

Il Piccolo is also a place where a solitary visitor can feel comfortable, unhurried, included.

The gentleman on the left sat alone with his drink for a long time. We observed this while drinking our prosseco variant. Then a friend appeared.

We'll leave them all under the attentive eye of Carlo, another of il Piccolo's fine servers.