Rome Day 2: Cotto and La Taverna dei Fori Imperiali

The jet lag struck again. After a fitful night, we wound up sleeping until 1pm. Oops. So our plan to check out a certain distant lunch spot quickly changed and we wound up finding a really cute place close to our hotel - Cotto Ristorante. 

We decided to be adventurous and try the octopus carpacchio (delightful thin slices!). 

Then Mel got mixed veggies with buffalo cheese (so fresh and well-seasoned)... 

 

and DJ went for a pizza margherita (perfect dough/cheese/sauce ratio). 

 

Feeling energized, we ventured by foot to check out the Colleseo and surrounding area. Amazing! 

After wandering for a bit, we meandered back to our hotel to get ready for a romantic dinner. Thanks to getting a wee bit lost, we had quite a bit of exercise and had worked up an appetite. :) 

DJ is a master trip planner and had made many restaurant reservations in advance, essentially creating our own private food tour. The first on the list: La Taverna dei Fori Imperiali. It's a quaint little place with classic red-checkered tablecloths and an old Italian chef/owner who greets you at the door with his apron and chef hat. Love it! Every person working there was extremely friendly and seemed genuinely excited to share their authentic Italian cuisine. 

 

Unsure of portion sizes and not wanting to overdo it, we decided to skip appetizers and go straight to our pasta course. Thank goodness because the pasta plates were meals unto themselves! 

Mel had her first gnocchi in red sauce (pillowy puffs of potato pasta perfection)... 

 

and DJ had the cacio e pepe - thick noodles coated in a sauce of olive oil, sheep cheese, parmesan, black truffle, and freshly cracked pepper. The flavor combination on that plate could best be described as heavenly. 

 

Nearly reaching our limit, we decided to share the meat course. Usually Mel feels a tad guilty eating veal, but when told it was the special for the night she figured, "When in Rome...". So glad, because the veal steak came in a sage and butter sauce that had us wondering if it would be possible to put butter and sage on everything we ever eat. (A cookbook in the making perhaps? We'll keep you posted.) 

 

With a nice buzz from the food and house red wine (amazing, by the way), we enjoyed a brief serenade from the accordion player and headed back onto the cozy side streets of Rome. 

Our next meal has a lot to live up to!