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The Roman cuisine is fresh and
involves simple preparation methods.
Since beef was a rarity in the old
days, Roman gastronomy is a bit
heavy on the organ meats as they
were hard to come by for both the
poor and the royal alike back then.
Apart from the simple Spaghetti
alla carbonara and Lasagna,
you may want to challenge your taste
buds with extraordinary dishes like
Pajata, pasta with milk-filled
veal intestines, Coda della
vaccinara, a celery broth with
oxtail, or Trippa alla romana,
tripe in a tomato based
sauce.
To get a true Roman meal
experience, however, it might be
best to omit lunch or have only a
very light snack to hold down your
hunger until 5 pm where you take an Aperitivo
(apperatif) to prepare your
appetite. Then starts around 9 pm-ish, have an
Antipasto
(appetizers) before proceeding to Il
primo (generally pasta) as your
first course. Il secondo or
the second course is a meat or fish
dish, and then a Contorno
(salad or veggies) is served to wash
down your previous carb and protein
intake (those who come from the
States may find this order peculiar
since it's a complete reverse to
what they are used to at home, but
when in Rome, always do as the
Romans do). Last but not least,
round off your meal with Dolce
or Frutta (dessert or fruit)
and an Espresso (Italians
never order cappuccino at dinner).
Finally, finish off with a Digestivo
(digestif) which can be the strong,
crystal-clear Grappa, the
citrusty Limoncello or the
bitter Amaro, all of which
possess high volume of alcohol and
are great to help clear out your
stomach after a full, hearty
Italian-style
dinner.
Although Rome is not a great wine
producer, the municipalities
adjacent to it are. The area south
and south-east of Rome such as Colli
Albani and Castelli Romani are
homes to a small variety of d.o.c.
(government certified) white wines.
Some quality red wines can also be
found in Cerveteri and Velletri
which are located to the north and
north-east of Rome.
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