Our Italian Restaurant(s) - Rome, Part One

Let's be real. The best part about Italy was the food. It seemed like we started the day with a big spread at our hotel (where there was always hot cappuccino, and gluten-free options for me), and then we spent the rest of the day figuring out what our next culinary indulgence would be. In between, we checked out some famous - and amazing - historical sites, museums, and churches, but it was really all about the food. In this series, I'll share the amazing meals we had, just in case you're planning a trip to Italy anytime soon ;)

 We stepped of the plane, and my first thought was COFFEE! Unfortunately, we arrived at the hotel just after they stopped serving breakfast, so our very first mission in Rome was to find coffee. We landed on this spot, the Caffe' delle Arance (Orange Cafe) in the Santa Maria Trastevere Square. An itty bitty cup of coffee was €4,50, but it had caffeine, and we had a lovely view of the square.

After going back to the hotel and showering, it was time for lunch. We wandered around looking for restaurants with gluten-free options, and ended up here, at the Ristorante Carlo Menta.

They had one gluten-free pasta dish - penne in a creamy tomato sauce, with parmesan cheese sprinkled on top. The pasta was a little on the al dente side for me, but it was my first hot meal since our wedding reception. Here's how I felt about it, and the jet lag:

After lunch, Mike proceeded to drag me around Rome - to the Colosseum, to the Roman Forum, to the Trevi Fountain, to the Pantheon. (All gorgeous. And all a blur, between the amount of time we spent at each - not much - and the jet lag.)

Somewhere in there it was time for dinner. We went to a restaurant called Il Miraggio, which is near the Trevi Fountain. There we had gluten-free pizza and a fantastic bottle of wine, but I somehow failed to take a picture of either.

When it was time to head back to the hotel, we got lost. One wrong turn and everything looked like we were almost at our hotel, but we were walking in circles. And then, I started to feel icky. Like I had been glutened, but I'm not sure if it was something I ate or the jet lag. Yikes!

Anyways, I don't think I'd go back to either of these restaurants. The food wasn't great, and I'm not sure whether they kept the food truly gluten-free.

Stay tuned for next week's installment, where Rome redeems itself with good truly-gluten-free food!