Street food lovers visiting Italy’s capital will surely find delicacies to satisfy their cravings. Street food in Rome is the real thing and it’s also very hearty, so jot down these tips on where to find yummy and cheap eats in Rome. The author of the article is a Roman native who has spent years scouting out the best food spots and the best street food in Rome. We’ll start with the newest arrival, the trapizzino, to go over all the street food including pizza al taglio, gelato, and gluten-free street food. We will see where the finest street food market in Rome is and where you can taste all the street food that, as you read this post, you will naturally add to your Rome Bucket list.
READ ALSO: A Local's Guide to Rome for Foodies
THE BEST STREET FOOD IN ROME’S HISTORIC CENTER – WITH A MAP!
TRAPIZZINO – ROME’S STREET FOOD LATEST ENTRY
The latest entry in the Roman street food family has been so successful that it’s made its way to other cities in Italy and even New York. An Italian immediately understands from its name that it has something to do with a “tramezzino” (a small sandwich, almost a finger food) and pizza. But the trapizzino is much more than the sum of the parts of its name, and tastier, too.
Imagine a pocket of pizza bread filled with a portion of a traditional Roman or Italian dish. It was Stefano Callegari, who owned a pizza al taglio shop in Testaccio, who had the idea. The Trapizzino is the realization of his desire to offer the classics of local cuisine in a “to-go” format, and what better wrapper than a soft, crispy triangle of pizza bread? To get your mouth watering, here are some of the trapizzino to try: trapizzino with chicken cacciatora, trapizzino with meatballs, trapizzino with cream and anchovies, trapizzino with Roman veggies, with baccalà and peppers.
WHERE: -Piazza Trilussa, 46 (Trastevere) -at Be.Re. in Via Vespasiano, 2 (Prati)
STUFFED PIZZA BREAD
Travelers often miss on tasting one of the very best street foods in Rome, the locals call it “stuffed white pizza” (pizza bianca ripiena) but it translates better to “stuffed pizza bread.” The concept is that of the sandwich, but the container is pizza bread, which Romans love. Pizza bread, when made properly, is soft but crispy at the same time, covered with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, freshly baked, and flavorful. Locals eat it mid-morning, as a second breakfast, or for lunch.
The filling is your choice, usually consists of ham and cheese, but also grilled vegetables and caprese (a typical Italian summer dish with slices of tomato and mozzarella). My favorite is with grilled zucchini and stracchino cheese. Romans generally prefer it with a bologna filling.
WHERE: The place to eat it is the Zozzone, a stone's throw from Piazza Navona, which you will visit because it is the most beautiful square in Rome. The Zozzone is one of the best food spots in Rome, specializing in stuffed pizza but also offering typical Roman pasta and pizza by the slice. Address: Via Del Teatro Pace, 32
READ ALSO: The Most Popular Italian Bread Types
PIZZA AL TAGLIO – PIZZA BY THE SLICE
The most famous dish of Italian cuisine in the world in Rome is also eaten as street food that locals consume in incredible quantities. Pizza al taglio comes in two types: baked in a wood-fired oven or in an electric oven. Both are delicious if the dough is made properly, worked for a long time and allowed to rise for many hours.
The main difference with pizza served on a plate at a restaurant is that it is easy to take away because it is served as a sandwich. It’s easy enough: you go into the store, choose a type of pizza from the display case and tell the clerk how much you want (you can also ask: give me €3 of that type of pizza, for example, margherita). Usually, the clerk, knives in hand, will indicate a quantity and you can ask for more or less, then he cuts it in half, folds it like a sandwich, weighs it in front of you and tells you how much it costs.
Romans’ favorite toppings include mushroom and sausage, tomato and mozzarella (margherita) pizza rossa (tomato and oil, vegan!), spicy rossa (with tomato, garlic, parsley and chili), with zucchini flowers, anchovies and mozzarella), with potatoes and mozzarella or with potatoes (vegan).
WHERE: Play it safe, try the most satisfying Roman street food at: -one of the Alice Pizza stores ; address: Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, 35 -at Antico Forno Roscioli ; address: Via dei Chiavari, 34
BEST SUPPLI’ IN ROME
One of the cheapest street food you’ll find in Rome but no less tasty, on the contrary… A cylinder covered with breadcrumbs and filled with tomato rice, ragu’ (the original supplì is vegetarian, but the one with ground meat is more popular nowadays), and mozzarella, fried in hot oil. The result is amazing and hard to describe, one leads to another.
WHERE Supplì is usually eaten together with pizza al taglio, so you will find it in all stores that sell pizza by the slice, but if you want to play it safe and eat more types of supplì (with varied fillings) go to: -La Casa del Supplì; Piazza Re di Roma 19/20 -Supplì Roma (Trastevere); Via di San Francesco a Ripa, 137
FRIED ZUCCHINI FLOWER – FIORI DI ZUCCA FRITTI
Vegetables covered in batter and fried in hot oil traditionally are the food of great occasions, such as Christmas Eve dinner or Easter breakfast. In Rome, the zucchini flower has also had big success as street food. You put a piece of mozzarella and anchovy in the zucchini flower, bathe it in batter and fry it.
WHERE Try this delicacy, together with the Supplì, at "Supplì Roma" in Trastevere, Via San Francesco a Ripa, 137.
DEEP-FRIED BACCALA’
Fried cod is a street food that originated in Roman Jewish cuisine.
WHERE: Many restaurants also serve it, but in Rome have it accompanied by a glass of white wine at Dar Filettaro a Santa Barbara. Address: Largo dei Librari, 88.
TESTACCIO MARKET – ROME’S STREET FOOD MARKET
The Testaccio neighborhood, popular with young people for its live music venues and the Faculty of Architecture, is home to the city’s finest food market. At Testaccio Market, housed in a contemporary structure open on 4 sides but indoors, you will find both raw ingredients and all Roman street food as well as traditional Roman and Italian dishes.
Address: entrances from: via Beniamino Franklin, via Alessandro Volta, via Aldo Manuzio, via Lorenzo Ghiberti.
MAMA EAT – GLUTEN-FREE ROMAN STREET FOOD
A unique food spot in Rome serving mainly fried delicacies, pizza, and traditional Roman and Neapolitan dishes also gluten and lactose-free. There are two chefs, two kitchens and two ovens in the restaurant to meet the needs of those with food intolerances!
WHERE: Via di San Cosimato 7/9
GELATO
The Italian dessert that no one can do without is for all intents and purposes street food. There are about 1,400 gelaterias in Rome; we covered the best ones in the historic center in a previous article. Since there is so much competition, the most creative gelato makers, in addition to the classic gelato, that is, the one made with seasonal fruits (strawberry, lemon, blackberry, melon…) and those made with milk ( custard, pistachio, hazelnut, coffee…) have created many other variations.
WHERE TO HAVE THE BEST GELATO IN ROME: In my top 3 best ice cream shops in Rome are: Neve di Latte in Via Federico Cesi, 1 La Romana Via Cola di Rienzo (Vatican) or Via Venti Settembre 60 (Termini) Fatamorgana Monti Piazza Degli Zingari 5
CREPES
French crepes are adored by Romans, who also prepare it at home, especially in winter. It is a very popular street food in Rome, in both sweet and savory versions.
WHERE: You can find it at Creperia Michelangelo, a stone's throw from the Vatican, address: Via dei Bastioni di Michelangelo 3 in the cute Monti neighborhood at Crepes Galettes in Via Leonina 21
TRAMEZZINO
Italians grab it when they have breakfast at the café, next to their cappuccino or juice. It is just such a bite, ideal for holding back the appetite while waiting for a bigger meal. The tramezzino is a small savory sandwich usually filled with:
- Cheese and ham
- Tomato and tuna
- Salami and hard-boiled egg
- Chicken salad
MARITOZZO
Maritozzo is the quintessential Roman dessert, although its exact origin is unknown, to be found in the countryside of central Italy. The name, translated into English, means “hubby”. A soft, fluffy bun, wives would put it in the lunch bag of their husbands who went to work in the fields. Boyfriends would in turn give it to future wives, hiding a ring or jewelry inside as a promise of love.
Now that so many have moved from the countryside to the city, it can be found in most cafés and pastry shops and is filled with fresh whipped cream.
WHERE: at Il maritozzaro, which specializes in maritozzi and cornetto in Via Ettore Rolli 50
READ ALSO: The Best Desserts to Try in Rome
CORNETTO BY NIGHT
The French croissant, translated into Italian as “cornetto,” is a street food that pairs well with cappuccino and coffee, and is by far what Romans eat most often when they eat breakfast on the go. It should be known that the quality sometimes betrays expectations, and the taste of the Roman croissant is unfortunately different from the original French croissant. Romans also enjoy it at night, when returning from an evening spent perhaps dancing with friends. Croissant by night is one of the most beloved street foods among young people.
WHERE: For an excellent quality croissant, eaten for breakfast: Le Carré Français, in Via Vittoria Colonna 30 -For the croissant by night: Il Maritozzaro open 24h in Via Ettore Rolli 50.
PANINO- BREAD ROLL
In Italian food culture, the panino is a quick substitute for lunch or dinner. The most popular bread in Rome for making rolls are ciabatta and rosetta (and of course pizza bread, as we have already seen). The roll is probably the cheapest street food in Rome, as you can even make it yourself. Here’s how: go to a supermarket that sells Italian food (convenience stores run by foreigners are common downtown, but that’s not what you’re looking for). Buy bread at the bread counter for filling and have it cut in half. At the deli counter, buy some cold cuts or grilled vegetables and cheeses. Don’t forget to buy yourself something to drink! Once you leave the supermarket, head to one of Rome’s piazzas or to the Pincio Gardens or Villa Borghese Gardens and enjoy your picnic!
WHERE: -Try the gourmet rosetta in the Monti district at Zia Rosetta in Via Urbana 54. -Make it yourself from a grocery store like Coop Supermarket in Via Nazionale 214
PORCHETTA ROLL
Porchetta is a typical dish of central Italy, consisting of the hollowed-out trunk of a pig, boned and seasoned, cooked and then served in slices. The inhabitants of Ariccia, a town near Rome, claim its paternity, but they are not the only ones. Porchetta is a very tasty dish and is often eaten inside a pizza bread. It is easy to find at festivals, where food trucks sell, porchetta sandwiches and drinks.
One in two Romans will tell you that the porchetta sandwich is the best street food in Rome.
WHERE: -Porchetta e Panini's at Via Angelo Brunetti, 4, a short walk from Piazza del Popolo and the Spanish Steps, is excellent. -At Teo's at Box 16 of the Street Food Market in Testaccio
READ ALSO: A guide to the best food of Lazio
PASTRAMI
The best pastrami in Rome is located in the heart of the old Jewish ghetto and is served inside pizza bread. For those who need an introduction, the pastrami is beef seasoned with various spices and flavorings and then smoked.
WHERE: At Bar del Cappuccino, where it is said you will also find the best cappuccino in Rome. Address: Via Arenula 50.
Let us know if you have discovered a street food in Rome not mentioned in this article or a food spot that deserves attention, send us a comment!
