Checchino Dal 1887 — Restaurant in Rome

Checchino was born in 1870 on Monte Testaccio (also called Monte dei cocci), an artificial mound in Rome made of testae (cocci in Italian), fragments of broken ancient Roman pottery. In the beginning, Checchino sold only wines, salumi and other uncooked goods. The restaurant was located in the cellar, the perfect spot for storing wines due to its nearly constant and cool temperature throughout the year. Then in 1887, the family obtained its first Osteria con cucina license, and took advantage of its proximity to the slaughterhouse which opened in 1890 and remained active until 1975.

Checchino became famous for serving the quinto quarto, which means the fifth quarter, the offal of butchered animals. Until modern day, the division of meat in Rome was made in the following way: the first quarto was sold to the rich nobles, the second for the clergy, the third for the Bourgeoisie and the fourth was for the soldiers. The lowest class proletariat could afford only the entrails, the quinto quarto.

The poorest workers at the slaughterhouse, the vaccinari (ancient term for butchers), were often paid with these leftovers, which they brought to the nearest eateries to cook up. This is exactly how the traditional cuisine of Checchino was born. This poor Roman style cooking has not only had influence on restaurants in Rome but has also sparked a new trend, a renaissance of "quinto quarto" trattorie including the iconic Trippa in Milano.

The highlight among the first courses is the Testaccio specialty Rigatoni with pajata, a savory sauce made with tomatoes, lamb intestines and a sprinkling of Pecorino. If you want something less extreme, opt for the well-made Carbonara.

One of Rome’s most historic dishes, the Coda alla Vaccinara (oxtail stewed in tomato sauce with celery, pine nuts and other ingredients) was invented at Checchino. Not surprisingly, this is their best dish, which takes over 6 hours to cook on a low flame. The meat is so tender, it melts in your mouth. Also, don't miss out on the great Roman cheeses and cured meats.

The service is impeccable at Checchino, with the elegant manager Simone Mina clad in a flamboyant but elegant jacket and tie leading a group of white jacketed waiters. I was impressed with their wine serving ritual, which I've only seen a few times in Michelin-starred restaurants. In addition to a great selection wines (600!), you can choose from a wide range of grappas from Nonino to finish your meal. If you're lucky enough to experience Checchino with Farulla, you may be granted a tour of the historic cellar, including the tasting of some truly rare homemade liqueurs and amaros

But that's not all. As it turns out, Simone is a skilled bartender and happens to be the European brand ambassador for Botran rum. He has set up a bar counter upstairs to serve great rum, but also some interesting cocktails such as his long list of Martinis. Checchino is an absolute must visit not only for the food and drink, but to discover the history of the important...

STAY AWAY! My family and I had placed a reservation for this place months prior since we really wanted to experience that authentic experience of Roman cuisine. According to guides we found, this place has both the history and the taste to back up its claim of being the go-to spot to really immerse yourself in ancient Roman cultures.

Towards the end of our day exploring Rome, we decided to make it to the restaurant a couple of minutes before our reservation since we were really eager and hungry to try their food. While waiting outside, the manager (who we figured out to be Simone) waltzed outside and started banging the chairs, blaming us for messing with the chairs outside.

Now we are from the Philippines and really love to travel around the world. Luckily enough, we seldomly are victims of racism in the countries we visit; hence, this would have been the last place we thought we would have experienced this type of behavior. Especially since this place has so much reputation to hold onto being such a historical landmark.

After the altercation, we still decided to eat at the restaurant since we already booked a reservation and pre-ordered our meals (we didn’t want to be rude, unlike them 😆). However, as time went on, we were treated with so much disrespect! As the same manager tended to all of the other guests (who were indeed the same skin color as him), he treated us and another table like so poorly like he had to just do it since his grandfather was watching. Eventually, the grandfather caught on to what he was doing and decided to change places with him in serving us.

Food-wise, everything was too salty that we ordered more drinks every time a dish went out (maybe that is how they earn 😂). Their pasta was also undercooked, and I strongly implore to run away from their carbonara (it was too salty). We were confused to see other customers really having a good time, but surely enough I’ve also seen similar reviews before that depict a similar story to us, just because we aren’t locals 🥲.

I really had high hopes for this restaurant, but please run away as soon as you...

I read an article in RomaToday that gave recommendations for where to eat in Testaccio, and Checchino dal 1887 seems like our style, so we checked it out. Our tastes veer towards classically prepared dishes and this restaurant checked all the right boxes.

The service in the restaurant was fantastic, including a very professional wait staff, some of which were white jacketed. We started with a Lazio red wine, which was fantastic as their wine menu divides them into light, medium and full bodied (strutturati) options, which helped us quite a bit. I was very surprised by the way that the bottle and glasses were prepared for us. The process is called “priming” or “seasoning” the glass, which is a technique (originating in Italy) that involves pouring a bit of wine, about an ounce, into the glasses and swirling it to coat the bowl before discarding it. It removes any leftover flavors or aromas from when the glass was washed or stored. Pretty cool and a new experience for us.

For an appetizer we shared a small taste of beans and cotiche, which were beans in a tomato sauce cooked with pork rinds. It was delicious and really got me in the fall mood. My main dish was Rigatoni al Sugo di Coda, which was a deliciously slow cooked oxtail stew and a Roman tradition. Slow cooking meat like this is a favorite and they didn’t disappoint. My wife’s dish was another traditional pasta: Bucatini alla Gricia. It was unsurprisingly equally enjoyable.

We each finished the meal with an espresso to go along with our Tiramisu and Panna Cotta. We left with a smile on our faces and a plan to return in the near future. This is a strong recommendation if you enjoy...