Foodies In Rome

I like to eat. So let's just put that out there.

My brother is a chef and his one goal on our Italian vacation was to eat as much good food and drink as much good wine as possible.  I signed up for that immediately.

Beanie is a carb addict at the ripe old age of 12 and was excited to consume her top three foods with reckless abandon: bread, pasta and Nutella. And Brandi is a woman after my own heart- she was game for any restaurant, any kind of food at any time. I love her.

And then we get to Bert. Bert is a mutant and would be happy eating ramen noodles every night for the rest of his life.

I don't like to talk about it.

So we started our vacation in Rome- 5 days. And these photos just can't do it justice. Look at how beautiful these sandwiches are!  

And by the way, you should have seen the eye rolling I got from the men in our party, "Hold on guys, Lori's gotta take her 537th photo of gelato...."

Yes, the gelato was very photogenic.

And cute shop-fronts, quaint restaurants...

Bars (for coffee not beer), pizzerias and gelaterias are everywhere...

We ate our weight in pizza, I believe, and most was excellent. Generally, if we were in a nicer restaurant the pizza was well worth it. And the toppings were wonderful- anchovies, ham, fresh basil and the quattro formaggi- which was an artery clogger- was sooooooooo delicious!

I may have to buy a red check table cloth...

Did I mention that we had beautifully DRY weather for 98% of our glorious Italian vacation? And dining outside (with a heater of course) provided some great opportunities for people watching!

And did I mention that Italians apparently don't get sick of eating Italian food every day.

There isn't the culinary variety that we take for granted over here. We did see a couple of Chinese restaurants and an Irish Pub but mostly you have small neighborhood restaurants serving fresh pasta, beautiful salads and pizza. (I am spoiled by my beloved Portland: Mexican, Thai, Sushi, Middle Eastern food--and Italian-- all in my neighborhood!)

Food presentation is big here.  This is the little shop beside our condo with its meats and cheeses displayed so beautifully.  The pastries always looked gorgeous, the gelato was piled high and the holiday candy and bakery displays were amazing.  

Next up: the Colosseum, Palatine Hill and the Forum in Rome. Brace yourself.