ROME LIKE A LOCAL
Relaxing, eating and drinking in Rome with a local designer.
Discovering Rome with a local designer.
Born and raised in Rome, Umberto Mantineo is an architect, designer and gallerist. He designs and produces limited-edition lamps, tables, sofas, chairs and ceramics. He displays his work alongside museum-worthy vintage pieces by such premier Italian designers as Gio Ponti and Piero Fornasetti in his studio in central Rome.
BAR ITALIA
“I work, eat and drink in the area around my studio, and my preferred place to unwind with friends is Il Goccetto, a well-loved wine bar that serves as sort of the living room for its corner of central Rome.”
A TAVOLA
“I spend every Sunday at Porta
Portese, a sprawling and hectic flea market. After some window shopping, I might head up to Janiculum Hill to lounge in
Villa Doria Pamphili, a vast and verdant park, before lunch at
Trattoria Da Teo in Trastevere. I always order something different there – the first daily special the waiter suggests.”
COUNTRY ESCAPE
“Whenever I need to escape from Rome or share a special moment with a friend, I head to Santa Maria di Galeria near Lake Bracciano. This tiny village is more like a fortified compound than a town and it’s a place I have been going my whole life. A meal at Ristorante
Claudio is essential.”
SIGHTS TO SEE
“There is so much incredible architecture all over the city. I love the neo-Baroque Villa
Brasini near Ponte Milvio.
It’s not open to the public, but whenever I can, I’ll talk my way in past the grumpy doorman. At the other end of the spectrum, I enjoy just walking in EUR, the austere neighbourhood built for Mussolini. I park and I walk and I take it all in.”
“There’s no gallery in Rome quite like Galleria Lorcan O’Neill.
The artwork he displays is, of course, exceptional, but I especially love how you enter through a courtyard with a fountain, turn the corner and the hidden gallery reveals itself.”