Eleonora d'Arborea — Restaurant in Rome

Being in Rome there are multitudes of places to choose from!!! Every inch in Rome is not without a osteria/trattoria/ristorante, so this came as a recommendation from the Uber driver. I’d selected a restaurant, and unfortunately it was closed. So the Uber driver suggested this locale, he and his family frequent this place quite a bit and he was eager to take us half a block up. This Sardinian restaurant is outstanding in every aspect! The service is bar. One the best i have had here in Rome. Quick table service, very polite and positive attitude. When the fare was brought I had questions, more or less curious of the dish. He explained thoroughly what it was and prepared and some Sardinian culture behind it. It was more than a culinary experience.

Various dishes were ordered and to start the course was a flat Sardinian cracker with olive oil, herbs and tomatoes….that was the ice breaker. It was light, simple, and tasteful. Ravioli stuffed with potatoes and cernia fish were a delight and set the standard for the main course. One of the mains were fried calamari and shrimp….absolutely decadent for a fried fare. It was not oily, the calamari and shrimp were cooked to perfection….none of it was rubbery. The second was grilled calamari, once again grilled beautifully and the consistency was of fine cream with a slight snap of freshness. Great char marks, outstanding flavor/seasoning. The plating was simple and elegant. The final dish was oven roasted orata fish stuffed with shrimp and zucchini. This was the patriarch at the table, the fish was oven roasted wonderfully, very fresh and every flavor was noted. The tones were light and fresh with the zucchini with the earthy garlic undertones of the shrimp melded well with the fish.

I have no clue why ratings are so low. This is a classy place, an older place with history(as most of Rome locales do) do a research for Eleanor’s d’Aborea…learn who the place is named after.

For service and one of the better culinary excursions in Rome, please stop here. It is highly...

A restaurant that only serves food from Sardinia? Yes, please! My friends - including one who’d lived on the island of Sardinia for years - took me and I loved all that was put in front of me. They have meat, but we only ate seafood; except dessert and one of the appetizers - everything was seafood. Fresh, delicious and unless you’re from that part of Italy, flavors you may not have eaten a lot of. One of the dishes, spaghetti alla bottarga, is made with the roe of mullet shaved over the pasta. It’s a delicacy with a strong flavor of the sea. I enjoyed it.

Everything you see in the photos was devoured by just four people. We just went with the waiter’s recommendations, so I had to ask for a menu at the end so I could take pix. The staff, from the waiters to the owner, were lovely.

In typical Roman fashion, it was empty when we arrived at 7:50 pm. By 9 it was packed with large groups of businessmen (yes, all men) and a smattering of male-female couples and other small groups.

The restaurant is named for the most famous and important woman in the history...

Il buongiorno si vede dal mattino, è proprio vero, già dall'esterno e già da quando entri capisci l'altissimo livello del posto in cui stai entrando, dagli arredi, allestimenti, apparecchiatura dei tavoli, musica di sottofondo jazz con cover di artisti famosi, dress code dei camerieri, rigorosamente in gilet e cravatta alla clientela stessa tutta ben vestita. Il livello del personale non è solo di facciata, sono tutti educatissimi, gentilissimi e si prendono cura del cliente dalla A alla Z. Appena ti siedi ti danno il benvenuto con bollicine, credo sia torbato sardo o similare, comunque molto buono, un antipastino caldo, nel mio caso un calamaro ripieno, quello che vedete in foto e carasau con olio e pomodori. Ordini ed il servizio è veloce e puntuale, ti riapparecchiano/cambiano le posate ad ogni pietanza, anche 1000 volte se necessario. Le porzioni sono generose, non sto a fare paragoni con trattorie ignoranti perché sarebbe offensivo per il ristorante dato il livello premesso, se vi volete ingozzare a scapito della qualità andate altrove, dicevo, ad onor del vero, volendo fare il confronto con i ristoranti che offrono pesce nelle vicinanze, a parità di piatto (intendo tipo di pesce, tonno, orata, ecc) spendi un 50% in più ma ottieni porzioni ben più generose del 50% quasi doppie e di qualità almeno un gradino su, forse anche due quindi anche se paghi di più come qualità/prezzo è come se pagassi di meno. I piatti non li sto a descrivere, ci sono le foto, si presentano da soli, comunque offrono tutti abbinamenti creativi e con gusti sorprendenti, gnocchi cernia, vongole e tartufo bianco, fiori di zucca ripieni rombo e gamberi, orata ripiena zucchine e gamberi. Per finire, capolavoro, ti offrono i dolcetti Sardi, amaretti fatti da loro e mirto e limoncello. Personalmente non dico che con un piatto ero già a posto ma quasi. Son 2 volte che ci vado in pochi giorni ed ogni volta mi alzo soddisfattissimo. Due portate e acqua viaggi sui 45/50 euro a persona, con contorno arrivi anche a 55, ma non è tanto considerato che sei quasi nel centro di Roma, ti offrono calice e antipasto di benvenuto e dolci e mirto. Concludo dicendo che vivo a Cagliari da più di 10 anni e sono di passaggio per lavoro, se aprissero a Cagliari credo proprio che darebbero filo da torcere anche ai ristoranti del posto più rinomati. Penso che nel futuro sarà tappa obbligatoria ogni qualvolta dovessi tornare a Roma....