Brunch in Rome, our favorite weekend lunches.
Update 2017: click here
PIAZZA FIUME
Macro 138
In the former Peroni factory, impressively transformed by Odile Decq into a winding museum of contemporary art, a good brunch is served on the rooftop terrace. Miraculously, Macro has lowered its prices (it once costed 25 euro, and now 20). A large room and buffet are to enjoy to your heart’s content. Cold and hot pastas, grilled foods, cheeses, salamis, desserts, or a salad bar.
Price: 20 euro (12 for children)
Hours: From 1-3pm Saturday and Sunday
Via Nizza 138 (Pinciano), Tel. 06.8548274
TESTACCIO
Rec23
In Testaccio there is a corner of New York at Rec23, in Piazza Emporio. Saturday and Sunday are brunch time: a savory buffet with dishes prepared in the moment, a dessert buffet, water, orange or pineapple juice, and American coffee all included in the price of 16.50 euro. On the menu, you can find tomato, basil and vegetable lasagna; scrambled eggs; chicken wings with barbecue sauce; Buffalo Mozzarella; vegetable caponata; foccacias and salads. Amongst the desserts: cheesecake, jam tarts, tozzetti (hard cookies often with nuts), donuts and pancakes. Sometimes on sunday between the tables and the buffet you can happen upon a vintage market, The Other Porta Portese, with the stand Chip & Chic. On Saturdays it’s time for “children’s brunch,” a party completely free for little ones with games and workshops organized in the historic art center of Maxxi, WorkInProject.
Price: 16.50 euro (10 euro for children)
Hours: From 1 to 3:30pm Saturday and Sunday
Piazza dell’Emporio 2 ,Tel. 06.87462147 – Cell. 3921207722, – www.rec23.com
PIGNETO
Rosti
In Pigneto, Rosti is the place to be for brunch, where every Saturday and Sunday offers a lunch like at grandma’s (“pranzo della nonna”) with a menu from chef Marco Gallotta. In good weather it is possible to enjoy the meal in the large garden with red tables, table cloths, and umbrellas. The cost is 20 euro and dishes vary weekly depending on the products in season. Some examples? Greek salad, Salad Niçoise, potato and parsley salad, lasagna with mint and asparagus, potato gnocchi with mozzarella and tomatoes, vegetable couscous, roast beef, octopus salad, zucchini layered with herbs and zucchini flowers, basil cod, and peperonata (a dish of stewed peppers, onions and tomatoes). Leave some room for deserts, which are seriously good: walnut, red berry, or apricot tarts; pear and cinnamon cake; or chocolate cake. Coffee is included in the price.
Price: 20 euro (10 for the children’s menu) with coffee included
Hours: From 12-4pm, Saturday and Sunday
Via Bartolomeo D’Alviano 65 (Pigneto), Tel. 06.2752608 – www.rostialpigneto.it
PONTE MILVIO
Panificio Nazzareno
Panificio Nazzareno is a bakery that is always open. From 7 am until midnight it is a restaurant, cafeteria and American bar. Sundays are dedicated to brunch, in pure Anglo-Saxon style. A gastronomic route that goes from breakfast to lunch, where where you can taste specialty desserts and savory dishes prepared by the restaurant’s chef. Cold pastas, lasagna, cous cous, spelt wheat, mixed fried fishes, crispy salmon, pork cutlets, Eggs Benedict, and omelets. And then brownies, pancakes and tarts.
Price: 20 euro
Hours: from 11:30am – 3:30pm Sundays
Piazzale di Ponte Milvio 35 (Ponte Milvio), Tel. 06.33220720 – www.panificionazzareno.it
OSTIENSE
Porto Fluviale
It is the dining room of this gigantic restaurant that hosts the buffet during brunch. With more than fifty offerings, including cold and hot pastas, soups, raw and cooked vegetables, meats, and cheeses with condiments, as well as desserts, fruit juices, and more, all for a price of 19 euro (12 for kids). You can’t make reservations, but you can leave your name at the entrance.
Prices: 19 Euro (12 for kids)
Hours: from 12:30- 4pm, Saturday and Sunday
Via del Porto Fluviale 22 (Ostiense), Tel. 06.5743199 -www.portofluviale.com
DELLE VITTORIE
Haus Garten Bagel Bar
The Sunday brunch is called “Brunchotto” at Haus Garten, a stars-and-stripes bagel-bar in the Prati / Delle Vittorie neighborhood. Select one of the three menus (16 euro), or add a bagel, waffle, or pancake to bring the cost up to 20 euro. “The Candy” menu includes pancake with maple or chocolate syrup, orange juice, American coffee with refills, and a green and red buffet plate. “Il Poldo’s” menu, on the other hand, contains: a chicken bagel with cesar salad and lettuce, orange juice, and American coffee with refills plus a green and red buffet plate. “The Brunchotto” menu: a bacon tortilla and french toast, orange juice, American coffee with refills, and a green and red buffet plate. On the men there is also yogurt with chocolate chunks and pralines, chocolate fondu with fruit, the special bagel with chicken and figs, muffins, desserts, dried fruit salad, or soup with crostini.
Price: Starts at 16 euro (20 euro with an additional item)
Hours: From 1-4pm, Sundays
Piazza Montegrappa 1 (Delle Vittorie), Tel. 06.32120073 – www.hausgarten.it
TESTACCIO
Ketumbar
At Ketumbar the bio brunch on Saturdays and Sundays is a fundamental part of this restaurant. The buffet menu, that ranges from appetizers to desserts, is always changing depending on seasonal products. Alongside the brunch portions on the weekend, you can find fettuccine with an arugula pesto and cherry tomatoes, chickpea fritters, chicken morsels with a sweet and sour sauce, turkey hamburgers with zucchini and ginger, panzanella (a salad of bread and tomatoes), and couscous croquettes. And then there are fresh juices (white melon, cloves and lime; carrots, apple, basil and lemon grass; beets, cucumber, pineapple and mint). There is also a vegan section. Some examples? “Cream” of barley with potatoes and artichokes, tofu and amaranth soup, tomatoes with basmati and oregano from Pantelleria, handmade fettuccini “all a vignarola” (a Roman sauce with spring vegetables, such as peas, zucchini, asparagus and fava), cabbage tart, roasted root vegetables, and for dessert, an extra-virgin olive oil tart with papaya compote. And for the little ones there is a “baby parking” service with babysitting by qualified assistants.
Price: 15 Euro excluding drinks (10 for children, entertainment included)
Hours: 12 to 4pm, Saturday and Sunday
Via Galvani 24 (Testaccio), Tel. 06.57305338 – www.ketumbar.it
SAN LORENZO
Zero Zero 100
The atmosphere teeters slightly between rustic, with daub painted walls and exposed beams, and modern from the organization of the square counters. In this cocktail bar / restaurant in Via del Verano, ZeroZero100, brunch is every saturday and sunday. The menu is varied: there is American breakfast with eggs, bacon, muffins, pancakes, toast; Roman cooking with saltimbocca, amatriciana, roasted chicken; then there are the cold plates, such as couscous, cold pasta and salads; and the desserts with 6-7 different cakes, including strawberry or limoncello, or a mixed berry tart. Oven-fresh products and the pizza by the slice are churned out in abundance.
Prices: 15 euro (including a drink and coffee)
Hours: From 12:30 – 15:30, Saturday and Sunday
Via del Verano 27 (San Lorenzo), Tel. 06.4470234
PIETRALATA
Lanificio Cucina
The large glass wall on the Aniene river gifts Lanifcio a unique atmosphere, suspended between high design and vintage details. The perfect excuse to go and poke around is during brunch. A big buffet with a few nods towards American cooking: grilled Pata Negra, eggs and bacon, veal meatballs in sauce, assorted vegetables and a dessert corner with pancakes, american coffee and espresso, fruit juices and water. Off the menu there are also oysters and gourmet offerings to order in addition, for those who may have the craving. It is best to reserve and arrive before 2pm to enjoy the full buffet.
Price: 20 euro
Hours: from 12 to 3pm Saturday and Sunday 15
Via di Pietralata 159/A (Pietralata), Tel 06.4501384 – Cell 347.1809123 – www.lanificio.com
CENTRO
The Perfect Bun
Here is the most American brunch in all of Rome, with omlettes, bacon, onion rings, cheesecake, cupcakes, pancakes, muffins and potatoes. This cafe, with the perfect amount of fashion, lures also for its design: long central wooden tables, leather couches, a notice board on the walls at the entrance/exit in an old train station style.
Prices: 25 euro (excluding drinks)
Hours: From 12-3pm Sundays
Largo del Teatro Valle 4 (Center). Tel. 06.45476337 – www.theperfectbun.it
DORIA PAMPHILI
Vivi Bistrot
At Vivi Bistrot in Villa Doria Pamphili the weekend brunch offers bio scrambled eggs with bacon and toast, bio white yogurt with müesli and honey, pancakes with maple syrup and American coffee. There is also the possibility to include other dishes on the menu (bagel, muffins and baguettes, just to give some examples). It can be enjoyed inside, with newspapers and free wifi, or in the park picnic-style with many varying menus (and prices) to chose from and carry away in a basket. The new location in Palazzo Braschi in Piazza Navona has the same hours and the same prices, and here brunch includes juices, coffee, bagels with egg and bacon, yogurt with müesli, and pancakes with maple syrup.
Prices: 16 euro
Hours: From 9am-2pm Saturday and Sunday
Via Vitellia 102, inside Villa Doria Pamphili (Monteverde) – Tel. 06.5827540 (other location: Piazza Navona 2, inside Palazzo Braschi, tel. 06.6833779) – www.vivibistrot.com
OSTIENSE
Doppiozero
A good brunch that benefits from oven-fresh products that are baked on site, Doppiozero in via Ostiense, is a trendy bar-restaurant but also a bakery. The weekend brunch has pasta, pizza (in a thousand variations), bread with olives, couscous, salmon, meats, Buffalo mozzarella, bakery sweets in abundance from muffins to brownies. The price includes water and coffee.
Prices: Saturday 15 euro, Sunday 19 euro (kids 10 euro)
Hours: From 12:30 to 3:30pm Saturday and Sunday
Via Ostiense 68 (Ostiense), Tel. 06.57301961- www.doppiozeroo.com
BORGO SANTO SPIRITO
La Veranda
La Veranda is a beautiful and elegant restaurant on Borgo Santo Spirito, a street leading from the Vatican to Castel Sant’Angelo, that has frescoed vaulted ceilings and a gallery with a view on the internal patio. Once an antique refectory, great atmosphere is a guarantee. Brunch is served every Sunday, with an Anglo-Saxon style menu that varies weekly, made by chef Claudio Favale. Amongst the plates that can’t be missed are bread, butter and marmalade; eggs with bacon, cheese and potatoes; pancakes with yogurt and fruit. For the little ones, the brunch menu has smaller portions and a bend to the rules: hamburger with french fries, muffin and a surprise. And if you don’t manage to get through it all, there is a doggy bag.
Prices: 25 euro (light version without eggs and bacon, 16 euro); kids: 13 euro
Hours: From 11:30am to 3:30pm Sundays
Via Borgo Santo Spirito 73 (Vatican), Tel. 06.6872973 – 06.68199360 – www.laveranda.net
TREVI
Baccano
Baccano presents itself as a Parisian-style bistro: wood, mirrors, cream and black colors with red napkin rings. Let yourself reflect in this nice spot over tasty brunch on saturday and sunday. You can select from the gastronomic section offerings such as burrata from Andria (15 euro) or Pata Negra (20 euro), and then fried eggs with cherry tomatoes and french fries (10 euro), burgers, sandwiches, cocktails and dessert. It will be as if you have landed on an island, a bubble of fresh air, in the touristic jumble that heaves around.
Prices: Menu is à la carte (appetizers from 9 to 22 euro, pastas and soups from 12 to 15 euro, main courses from 18 to 23 euro, burgers from 16 to 20 euro, desserts from 5 to 8 euro).
Hours: From 11am to 4pm Saturday and Sunday
Via delle Muratti 23 (Center), Tel. 06.69941166 – www.baccanoroma.com
CENTRO
Giardino di Ripetta
Every sunday il Giardino di Ripetta organizes the “Ripetta Garden Brunch,” with a buffet from Chef Chieroni with hot and cold plates, finger foods and desserts, and to drink a selection of Prosecco, fruit juices, fruit smoothies, and American coffee. With a space entirely reserved for children, the Brunch is also family-friendly: entertainers amuse them with games, music, group dances, baby dances, “art-attack” laboratories, inflatable mascots, and balloon sculptures. Parents can relax and enjoy the brunch while their children are busy playing instructional activities.
Prices: 30 euro a person, drinks included
Hours: From 12:30 to 3:30pm Sundays
Via di Ripetta 231 (Center), Tel. 06.3231144 – www.residenzadiripetta.com
TRIDENTE
Margutta RistorArte
Known also as ‘Ristorarte,’ this vegetarian restaurant in Via Margutta (one of the most characteristic streets in Rome) offers a biological and strictly vegetarian buffet, not only on the weekend but also throughout the week with varying prices and menus. Some 50 recipes are prepared with bio products and cooked in special ovens that safeguard the nutritional values of every product. Included in the price is bread, water, fruit salad, fruit juices and American coffee.
Prices: 25 euro
Hours: From 12:30 to 3:30pm Saturday and Sunday
Via Margutta 118 (Centro storico), Tel. 06.32650577 – www.ilmarguttavegetariano.it
PIGNETO
Bottigliera Pigneto
“A cozy and informal place where you eat, drink and chit-chat with friends,” this is the declared goal of Bottiglieria in Via del Pigneto. A place where you can savor Brunch slowly and peacefully, just like at home. Leaf through newspapers or read them online (there is wifi). The buffet is abundant and inexpensive: other than pasta courses and main courses, you’ll find grilled or boiled vegetables, basmati rice, faro, barley, and couscous. Pigento Style.
Prices: Saturday 10 euro (water and coffee included), sunday 15 euro (dessert, fruit salad, water and coffee included)
Hours: From 12 to 3pm on Saturdays, and from 12 to 4pm on Sundays
Via del Pigneto 106/A (Pigneto), Tel: 06.272362 – www.bottiglieriapigneto.it
NAZIONALE
Open Colonna
Chef Antonello Colonna is renown: his peaceful and professorial face looming over the entrance in the nice space of Open Colonna, at the top of the Palazzo delle Esposizioni. The weekend Brunch is of quality and abundance, as well as “local”. From 12:30 to 3:30pm, you can try a complete breakfast from appetizers to desserts, to cheeses and vegetable side-dishes. For the kids, there is a big space to play both inside and outside. What’s more, for those under 6 the brunch is free, and kids under 12 have a discount of 50%.
Prices: 30 euro (drinks excluded); 15 for kids up until 12 years; free for kids under 6
Hours: From 12:30 to 3:30pm Saturday and Sunday
Scalinata di via Milano 9 (Centro storico), Tel. 06.47822641 – www.opencolonna.it
TRASTEVERE
Enoteca Ferrara
The weekend brunch at Enoteca Ferrara is a brunch with traditional products, and a rich buffet served directly by waitstaff to the tables without the long and wearying buffet lines. Here there are no American recipes, and space is made for traditional Roman dishes and more. Some examples? Mixed fried foods, rich salads, roasted peppers, artichokes “alla giudia,” roasted potatoes, meatballs in sauce, small meatballs of meat and vegetables, beef carpaccio, spicy chicken, tripe, omelets, and rustic tarts. Again there is a wide variety in the pasta plates, from timballi, lasagnas, gnocchi, pasta with chickpeas, rustic soups, meat fettuccine; as well as mozzarella, breads of every type, tarts, desserts, tiramisu– all homemade. And with a wide selection of wines by the bottle or the glass. For the little ones, there is entertainment by Federica and Carin.
Prices: 25 euro (drinks excluded), 15 euro for the baby buffet (including drinks, entertainment with assistance in english and italian, lunch, and workshops)
Hours: from 1 to 4 (service stops at 3) Saturday and Sunday
Piazza Trilussa 41 (Trastevere), Tel. 06.58333920 – www.enotecaferrara.it
TRASTEVERE
Zoc
The weekend brunch at Zoc is like a small lunch: a complete meal, but in miniature. The formula includes a menu with four courses at a fixed price (18 euro) including an appetizer, pasta, main course, and a dessert of the day. The plates change week by week, depending on the seasonality of produce. To be eaten in the restaurant, inside the dining hall, or while there is good weather, in the courtyard. At the end of the meal, it is possible to use a bicycle for free to have a ride in the center.
Prices: 18 euro, excluding drinks (or a single plate for 12 euro)
Hours: From 12 to 4pm saturday and sunday
Via delle Zoccolette 22 (Trastevere), Tel. 06.68192515 – www.zoc22.it
MONTEVERDE
Mò Mò Republic
In a beautiful villa built at the start of the last century, with high ceilings and parquet flooring, Mò Mò Republic is nearly an obligation for the fashionable city slickers. The sunday brunch unites the mediterranean and Anglo-Saxon traditions: from an intercontinental breakfast to a vegetarian corner, appetizers, pastas, meat and fish main courses, hot and cold plates, and then a variety of desserts, exotic fruits, and chocolate fondu. Oh, and for an alternative, you can choose amongst the menu offerings. And live jazz.
Prices: 25 euro (drinks excluded); 15 euro (for kids under 6 years)
Hours: From 1 to 3:30pm Sundays
Piazza Forlanini 10 (Portuense), Tel. 06.5373087 – www.momorepublic.it
PIGNETO
Spirito & Premiata Panineria
Two of the eateries that have most characterized the new openings of Rome in 2014, Spirito and Premiata Bakery in Pigneto, unite to offer their clients “Spirito Brunch Sessions,” the new brunch à la carte in Pigneto. Already adjoining, Premiata and Spirito on Sunday leave the “secret” door that connects them open: you can eat in the internal dining room, in the courtyard, or on the terrace of Sprito, as well as on the balcony of Premiata. Small jam sessions with jazz music accompany brunch, where you can find specialties of the Premiata Bakert that enrich the menu served to your table. For brunch there is a special plate, the “Bongiorno!”, with a homemade english muffin, eggs of San Bartolomeo, crispy bacon, maple syrup, grilled tomatoes and mushrooms and seasonal vegetables (5 euro). For the drinks the bartender of Spirito has put together a special brunch cocktail list, with both alcoholic (M’arysveglio, Lilly da Braccio, Pimm’simonio, Cochi and Renato) and non-alcoholic (Sellerone, Pigneppol, Virgin Maria, Spirito Mediterraneo). The list also includes sparkling wines, white and red wines, and beers.
Prices: Menu à la carte, “Bongiorno” plate is 5 euro (with a 9 euro options– small formula, with a plate plus dessert; 11 euro for a large option)
Hours: from 12 to 4pm Sunday
Via Fanfulla da Lodi 53 (Pigneto). Tel. 06.4550236 www.premiatapanineria.com www.club-spirito.com
Translated by Marybeth Tamborra
