Trattoria Vecchia Roma — Restaurant in Rome

I had high expectations of this place seeing as it’s so well sought out. But I don’t think it’s any better than any other restaurant in Rome. The guy handling the queue outside was very rude - we got lost and turned up for our booking 20 minutes late. Normally a restaurant should hold a table for 20 minutes or so to take these things into account. But when we spoke to him he raised his eyebrows at us like we were kids in school and told us to wait outside. Also when I booked there was a field to add information for the occasion. So I added that it was my boyfriend’s birthday. That was pointless because nothing was done about that. What’s the point in asking this question then? There was no special treatment given at all. They managed to get us our table after waiting outside for ten minutes. This place is BUSY and I get the feeling they just want to get as many customers in as possible. They’re clearly good at it but maybe they should focus on creating a nice experience too. The place was all together too loud, too busy and too rush-rush with waiters running around like headless chickens. The bread came in a paper bag and we got a single-use plastic spoon with our appetiser. Maybe they need to invest in bread baskets and cutlery! I had the breaded lamb and I ordered roast potatoes with it but got chips instead that had clearly been frozen and were not seasoned at all. My boyfriend had a pasta and he said it was good. The female waitresses saved the experience by being so polite and friendly - shame she couldn’t get my order right but her smiles saved the situation. I didn’t bother asking our waitress about the roast potatoes, it had been such a faff to get food in the first place. My aperol spritz was nice but anyone could make that. If I could go back in time and book somewhere else for my boyfriend’s birthday, I would. This place is a bit… overrated in my opinion. A classic case of a restaurant getting too big and complacent. I mean… single-use plastic and paper bags? Are we in 1999? Give your paying customers a bread basket at least. We didn’t stay for dessert, opting ti go for gelato nearby. A five minute experience at the gelato shop was way more inviting than what we’d had at...

A few months back I was shopping in an athletic apparel store nearby and the owner, out of nowhere, told me that Vecchia Roma has the best Bucatini all’Amatriciana around and I should try it. An odd recommendation, to be sure, as I was only looking for a sweatshirt and some joggers.

I eventually made my way there and I quickly realized that the man knows of what he speaks. We went there and had some traditional roman dishes, Tonnarelli Cacio e Pepe and Bucatini all’Amatriciana, and both were amazing. It was so good we decided to come back a week later and have something a little less well known, this time bringing my camera.

We made reservations and we were glad we did. The line of those people without a reservation was probably 100 people deep. We sat down on time and got a ½ liter of vino della casa and settled in for a great meal.

For my antipasto, I had the Supplì di Pasta. Although this is a simple dish, the frying skills are a big indicator of the quality of the restaurant for us. It was fried perfectly crunchy and not greasy at all. I also tried the Fettuccine al ragù bianco di Cinghiale and enjoyed it, although I don’t think my picture does it justice. I was expecting a gamier flavor but this was delicate and the pasta was nicely chewy.

My wife enjoyed Polpette di Melanzane (eggplant meatballs), which were also fried perfectly, and Arrosticini for her main dish. Luckily I was able to steal a skewer of the lamb and found it very flavorful, with the right amount of salt and that delicious grilled flavor. At only 10€, this greatly exceeded my expectations.

Even though the restaurant was packed, with a line out the door, the service was on point. They managed the crowds with a very well defined process of seating, ordering, serving and checking in with you. This probably limits the flexibility for the customer, but I’m not viewing this as a negative because I respect the level of organization and coordination in a city not known for it.

If you are around Esquilino, definitely make a reservation and stop in for...

This restaurant was enthusiastically recommended to me. The experience was very mixed. The restaurant was very busy on a Tuesday and they had a lot of table turn over. Obviously a popular place, as all these folks could not be tourists. The deep fried artichokes, recommended as a daily special were bland. Without the lemon wedge it would jave had no taste at all. Disappointing. My companion had the raviolli in red sauce and it was very tasty! My oxtail was one of the most insiped savory dishes in recent memory. There was zero seasoning...no salt and pepper. The tomato sauce was bland and somehow very different than the fresh and vibrant sauce on my companion's dish. Wjen I asked for salt and pepper to season the meal, I was given a small packet of salt loke you woukd recieve in a fast food deive through. No way to evenly spread the salt on the food..suprising. The bread was fantastic; however, with great crust, good chew and tasted very fresh. We shared a pistachio tiramisu and once again was surprised with how poor the dessert was. It tasted like packaged pistachio mousse pound over a lady finger. It was seved in a small glass bowl much like I would expect to be served in a school cafeteria. As I said, a meal with significant highs, and disappointing lows.

UPDATE: I was talking to some locals and they raved about how they enjoyed Vecchia Roma. So I decided to give it another try. Once again it was very busy, but the staff was fantastic in engaging with the customers...getting them seated quickly and answering any questions asked. Top notch! This time the food was good across the board. The highlight of the night was the Tonnarelli with squash, amazing bacon chunks and pecorina cheese. The combo was fantastic. Pasta was cooked perfectly. The Spaghetti Carbonara was well executed, but fairly average. The same red wine was ordered and greatly enjoyed. This time we didn't order dessert. Overall a much better experience. Rating has been amended to reflect the...