Osteria del Pegno Roma — Restaurant in Rome

My first time here was 2019 with my wife, which I liked. But this time (2023), I visited a second time with my mom, and it wasn't satisfactory.

1. First of all, it seems like the waiter tries to recommend that you not do the best food according to your taste, but only expensive ones. I told specifically that my mom doesn't eat pork, mushroom or seafood and she wants pasta, and the waiter insisted to order something with mushroom or seafood, didn't offer any option without them, then I checked menu myself and realized that everything is cheap without that. We ordered for mom normal pasta.
2. I asked some recommendations for me, and it offered me a steak. I saw price reasonable, I ordered. It came so huge steak, and price in the end as 65 euro. I asked the reason they told me the price was 0.1kg, and my steak was 1 kg. They wrote 0.1kg in Italian to the menu, and they didn't mention 1 kg at all in the menu.
3. The waiter asked me if I wanted my water with gas or without. I thought it was complimentary as we didn't ask for water. They charged us for water.
4. We didn't ask for bread, and they gave us anyway and charged us for it.
5. I asked my steak for well done, and my steak was medium, not well done.
6. The waiter insisted that we order wine, not soft drinks. Finally, I accept his annoyance, and he offered and insisted I order bottle wine, which cost over 100 euro. When I ordered 2 cups of wine only, his face was totally disappointed and left very annoyingly.

I am so disappointed that this has become too robbing place.

P.S. Pasta was tasty. Let's note...

Came here on perplexity.ai’s recommendation for authentic Italian in Rome and Osteria del Pegno delivered. Tried several Italian/Tuscan places during our 6-day trip to Rome and Florence, but from the food to the service & atmosphere, this was the most memorable meal. Hosts/waiters were super attentive and the atmosphere was cozy. We booked a reservation for 2 people for Friday evening the day before. Dinner reservations seem preferred as there’s limited seating and it filled up fast but you might be able to walk in depending on availability.

Came out to ~€70 for our dinner (did not order alcohol). Also had no issues paying via Visa credit card at the end of the meal.

We ordered (pics attached):

Antipasto (Appetizer): Prosciutto & fig was an amazing but unexpected pairing. The fig was also super fresh. Complimentary basket of fresh bread provided.

Primo (First Course): Spaghetti alla Carbonara was super rich with just the right amount of Parmesan - a good portion to share. Funghi Pizza came right out of the oven and I believe it was a sourdough base. Similar but fresher than classic NYC pizza (thickness & taste-wise, not size).

Secondo (Second Course): Polpette della Casa al Pomodoro o al Limone (3x meatballs) were a great recommendation to share. Meatballs seemed 100% beef and the sauce tasted homemade without added sugar or excess oil.

Dolce (Dessert): Tiramisu was homemade and super moist but not soggy. Had two other tiramisus during our trip and this ranked #1.

Bookmarked for when we (hopefully) venture back to Rome....

We had one of the most insulting and unhygienic dining experiences we’ve ever encountered.

We ordered a lamb with potatoes and a fungi pizza. The pizza was tasty. But only a few bites into the lamb, we found a hair embedded inside the meat. We calmly reported it. The waiter didn’t even look at the plate, just took it away. No apology, no concern. Still, we stayed polite and declined a replacement.

Trying to salvage the experience, we ordered panna cotta. When we reached the bottom, we discovered a piece of plastic inside. Again, we called the waiter — and this time, we were outright dismissed. He waved his hand at us, said “Impossible,” and walked off without even checking. He later claimed there was nothing in the lamb either, because he “didn’t have time to look” due to other customers. That’s not our problem.

We were treated like liars trying to get free food — when in fact, we barely ate. No one took responsibility. Not a single sincere apology. We were made to feel like an inconvenience for pointing out serious hygiene issues — twice.

To top it off, they charged us for everything except the dessert, as if that was a favor. Disgraceful attitude, poor service, and shocking disrespect.

❗We strongly recommend avoiding this place. Rome has so much better to offer than this unprofessional and...