A taste of Rome’s glorious past
IN A brand new series, our Holiday Hero NEIL SIMPSON takes an in-depth look at a brilliant break idea, doing all the gruelling legwork so you don’t have to. This week, he loosens his belt and explores food tours in Rome...
EVEN history buffs get hungry, which is why food tours are increasingly popular. Your guide will not only take you to Rome’s key sights, they’ll make regular stops so you can taste local delicacies in all the best cafes, restaurants and farmers’ markets along the way.
Early bites: A mid-morning tasting tour is a great way to get a flavour of a city. During a Secret Food Tours trip around Rome, you start with an espresso or cappuccino (and learn their history) in your first-stop cafe. You’ll then explore Piazza Navona, Campo dei Fiori market and the Jewish quarter, as well as sampling three types of pizza, two of pasta, a host of cheeses, risotto balls, cannoli and each day’s ‘secret dish’.
Book it: The three-and-a-half-hour tour departs at 11am and costs £62 (secretfoodtours.com/rome/).
Make your own: If your children get bored just tasting Italian food, then pick a tour where they can also make it. With Walks Of Italy, you start with snacks in favourite trattorias before heading to cheese shops, delis and finally to a pizzeria, where balls of ready-proven dough will be waiting for you to knead and roll out in the kitchen. Add your choice of toppings, slide the pizza into a wood-burning oven and then eat your creation. The tour ends with a gelato in a neighbourhood cafe.
Book it: The three-and-a-half-hour tour normally starts at 4.45pm and costs £70 (walksofitaly.com).
Scooting about: Nothing feels as Italian as zipping around t he Eternal City on a Vespa – and a food tour on two wheels lets you cover more ground.
Scooteroma has two tours. The first is a street food experience starting at one of Rome’s oldest bakeries, where you sample espresso with zabaione cream, classic suppli and panini and a host of goodies at the Testaccio farmers’ market, known as ‘the stomach of the city’. Alternatively, try the Chef’s Menu, with food from a selection of the city’s rising star chefs.
Book it: The four- hour tour has various start times and costs £150 (Scooteroma.com).
Drink and dine: Want the perfect evening? If the thought of a nighttime food tour appeals, why not pick one with wine included.
Join The Roman Guy guides and you are promised at least three glasses of wine and six food stops, with eight or more dishes to try. The guides take you to ‘hidden gem’ neighbourhood restaurants for the first tastings, before you settle down for a full dinner halfway through the tour. Make room for something sweet in one of Rome’s best gelato shops.
Book it: The three-and-a-half-hour tour usually starts at 5.30pm and costs £81 (theromanguy.com).
Greedy for more? True foodies may want to kick off with two tasting nights in Rome and spend the rest of their holiday on the road, taking in some of the country’s other bestknown culinary spots. With Imaginative Traveller, you’re driven around by private taxi, guided by a variety of experts to enjoy food, olive oil and wine tastings, cooking masterclasses and a sunset dinner overlooking the Adriatic.
Book it: From £1,580pp for sevennight tours (imaginative-traveller. com/food).