In this article, you will find out what are the best street foods in Rome Italy, and where to find them.
The author of this food blog is a Roman native who has spent over 30 years scouting out the best food spots in Rome.
Street food lovers visiting the Eternal City will surely find delicacies to satisfy their cravings.
Street food in Rome is the real thing and it’s also very hearty, so jot down these tips on where to find the yummiest cheap eats in Rome.
I’ll start with the newest arrival, the trapizzino, to go over all the street food including pizza al taglio, supplì fried rice ball, gelato, and gluten-free street food.
You’ll find out where the Mercato Testaccio, the finest street food market in Rome is and where you can taste all the street food that, as you read this post, you will naturally add to your Rome bucket list.
15 Best Street Foods in Rome and where to have it
1. Trapizzino – latest entry in Rome’s street food scene
The latest entry in the Roman street food family has been so successful that it’s made its way to other cities in Italy and even New York.
What is Trapizzino?
An Italian immediately understands from its name that it has something to do both with a “tramezzino” (a small sandwich, almost a finger food) and pizza. But the trapizzino is much more than the sum of the parts of its name, and tastier, too.
Imagine a pocket of pizza bread filled with a portion of a traditional Roman or Italian dish.
It was Stefano Callegari, who owned a pizza al taglio shop in Testaccio, who had the idea.
The Trapizzino is the realization of his desire to offer the classics of local cuisine in a “to-go” format, and what better wrapper than a soft, crispy triangle of pizza bread?
To get your mouth watering, here are some of the trapizzino types you could try:
- trapizzino with chicken cacciatora,
- trapizzino with meatballs,
- trapizzino with cream and anchovies,
- trapizzino with Roman veggies,
- trapizzino with baccalà and peppers
WHERE IS THE BEST TRAPIZZINO IN ROME? - Trapizzino Trastevere| Address: Piazza Trilussa, 46 - Trapizzino Prati | Address: Be.Re. in Via Vespasiano, 2 (Prati)
TIP: Are you staying in Rome only for a short time? Then I suggest you join a food walking tour. The best one around is this one, which allows you to sample 6 typical Roman street foods (including fabulous gelato) while exploring a picturesque neighborhood with a local guide. Check the availability of this tour here
2. Stuffed pizza bread aka Pizza Bianca
Travelers often miss out on tasting one of the very best street foods in Rome. The locals call it “stuffed white pizza” (pizza bianca ripiena) but it translates better to “stuffed pizza bread.”
The concept is that of the sandwich, but the container is pizza bread, which Romans love. Pizza bread, when made properly, is soft but crispy at the same time, covered with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, freshly baked, and flavorful. It is one of the most popular Italian breads.
Locals like to eat it mid-morning, as a second breakfast, or for lunch.
The filling is your choice, usually consists of ham and cheese, but also grilled vegetables and caprese (a typical Italian summer dish with slices of tomato and mozzarella).
My favorite is with grilled zucchini and stracchino cheese. Romans generally prefer it with a bologna filling.
WHERE to find the best pizza bianca in Rome The place to eat it is at Zozzone, a stone's throw from Piazza Navona, which you will visit because it is the most beautiful square in Rome. The Zozzone is one of the best food spots in Rome, specializing in stuffed pizza but also offering typical Roman pasta and pizza by the slice. Address: Via Del Teatro Pace, 32
3. Pizza al taglio – pizza by the slice
The most famous Italian dish in the world in Rome is also a street food that locals consume in incredible quantities.
Pizza al taglio comes in two types: baked in a wood-fired oven or in an electric oven. Both are delicious if the dough is made properly, worked for a long time, and allowed to rise for many hours.
The main difference with pizza served on a plate at a restaurant is that it is easy to take away because it is folded as a sandwich.
To get it from a local shop is easy enough if you follow these steps:
- you go into the store and choose a type of pizza from the display case
- tell the clerk how much you want (you can also ask: give me €3 of that type of pizza, for example, margherita).
- Usually, the clerk, knives in hand, will indicate a quantity and you can ask for more or less,
- then he cuts it in half, folds it like a sandwich, weighs it in front of you and tells you how much it costs.
Romans’ favorite toppings include:
- mushroom and sausage,
- tomato and mozzarella (margherita)
- pizza rossa (tomato and oil, vegan!),
- spicy rossa (with tomato, garlic, parsley and chili),
- zucchini flowers, anchovies and mozzarella),
- potatoes and mozzarella or with potatoes only (vegan).
WHERE is the best pizza al taglio in Rome? Play it safe, try the most satisfying Roman street food at: Alice Pizza shop | address: Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, 35 Antico Forno Roscioli bakery | address: Via dei Chiavari, 34
4. Supplì
A cheap street food in Rome (but no less tasty) is supplì. It is a rice ball covered with breadcrumbs and filled with tomato rice, ragu’ (the original supplì is vegetarian, but the one with ground meat is more popular nowadays), and mozzarella, and fried in hot oil.
The result is amazing and hard to describe, just know that one supplì leads to another. This needs to be on your Rome bucket list.
Where will you find the best supplì in Rome? Supplì is usually eaten together with pizza al taglio, so you will find it in all shops selling pizza by the slice, but if you want to play it safe and eat more types of supplì (with varied fillings) go to: -La Casa del Supplì | Piazza Re di Roma 19/20 -Supplì Roma (Trastevere) | Via di San Francesco a Ripa, 137
5. Fried zucchini flower – fiori di zucca fritti
Vegetables covered in batter and fried in hot oil are typical Christmas foods in central Italy.
In Rome, the zucchini flower is much loved as street food.
This delicious treat is also easy to make at home. You put a piece of mozzarella and anchovy in the zucchini flower, bathe it in batter and fry it in oil.
WHERE: Try this delicacy together with the Supplì at "Supplì Roma" in Trastevere, Via San Francesco a Ripa, 137.
6. Deep-fried baccalà
Fried cod is a street food that originated in Roman Jewish cuisine. It is among the best food in Rome and the locals even go out to have it as a snack or at the aperitivo hour.
WHERE: Many restaurants in Trastevere and in the Jewish Ghetto serve it as a starter, but you can also have it together with a glass of local white wine at Dar Filettaro a Santa Barbara in the Parione neighborhood. Address: Largo dei Librari, 88.
7. Porchetta sandwich
Porchetta is a typical dish of central Italy, consisting of the hollowed-out trunk of a pig, boned and seasoned, and then cooked and served in slices.
The inhabitants of Ariccia, a town near Rome, claim its paternity, but they are not the only ones. Porchetta is a very tasty dish and is often eaten inside a pizza bread or a rosetta bread (like in the photo.)
It is easy to find at festivals, where food trucks sell porchetta sandwiches and drinks, and it’s better enjoyed in Rome in winter.
WHERE can you have the best porchetta in Rome? Porchetta e Panini's at Via Angelo Brunetti, 4, a short walk from Piazza del Popolo and the Spanish Steps, is excellent. At Teo's at Box 16 of the Street Food Market in Testaccio
8. Pastrami
The best pastrami in Rome is located in the heart of the old Jewish ghetto and is served inside pizza bread. For those who need an introduction, the pastrami is beef seasoned with various spices and flavorings and then smoked.
WHERE: At Bar del Cappuccino, where it is said you will also find the best cappuccino in Rome. Address: Via Arenula 50.
9. Tramezzino
Locals love to have a tramezzino when they have breakfast at the café, and they’ll have it next to their cappuccino or juice.
It is just a small sandwich, ideal for holding back the appetite while waiting for a bigger meal. The tramezzino is usually filled with:
- Cheese and ham
- Tomato and tuna
- Salami and hard-boiled egg
- Chicken salad
10. Panino – bread roll
In Italian food culture, the panino is a quick substitute for lunch or dinner.
The most popular bread in Rome for making rolls are ciabatta and rosetta (and of course pizza bread, as we have already seen).
The roll is probably the cheapest street food in Rome, as you can even make it yourself.
Here’s how: go to one of the many grocery stores in Rome or supermarkets.
Buy bread at the bread counter for filling and have it cut in half.
At the deli counter, buy some cold cuts or grilled vegetables and cheeses.
Don’t forget to buy yourself something to drink!
Once you leave the supermarket, head to one of Rome’s piazzas or to the Pincio Gardens or Villa Borghese Gardens and enjoy your picnic!
WHERE: -Try the gourmet rosetta in the Monti district at Zia Rosetta in Via Urbana 54. -Make it yourself from a grocery store like Coop Supermarket in Via Nazionale 214
11. Crepes
French crepes are adored by Romans, who also prepare it at home, especially in winter.
It is a very popular street food in Rome, in both sweet and savory versions.
WHERE are the best crepes in Rome? Creperia Michelangelo, a stone's throw from the Vatican | address: Via dei Bastioni di Michelangelo 3 in the cute Monti neighborhood at Crepes Galettes | address: in Via Leonina 21
12. Piadina
Another popular street food in Rome is piadina, which originated in the Emilia Romagna region but is now widespread throughout Italy.
Its success is its simplicity combined with a delicious taste. It is a very very thin flatbread, like a pancake, that you can fill to your liking with vegetables, cold cuts, and cheeses.
In the Piadineria shop, the menu suggests many very happy combinations of ingredients.
One of my favorites is the Verdissima, filled with avocado, tomato, grilled zucchini, lettuce, and artichoke cream.
Find it in Via del Boschetto, 98. There are many more shops around the city.
13. Gelato
The Italian dessert that no one can do without is for all intents and purposes a street food.
There are about 1,400 gelaterias in Rome; I covered the best gelateria in Rome’s historic center in a previous article.
Since there is so much competition, the most creative gelato makers, in addition to the classic gelato, that is, the one made with seasonal fruits (strawberry, lemon, blackberry, melon…) and those made with milk ( custard, pistachio, hazelnut, coffee…) have created many other variations.
WHERE TO HAVE THE BEST GELATO IN ROME: My top 3 choices for best gelato are: Neve di Latte in Via Federico Cesi, 1 La Romana Via Cola di Rienzo (Vatican) or Via Venti Settembre 60 (Termini) Fatamorgana Monti Piazza Degli Zingari 5
14. Maritozzo
Maritozzo is the most typical Roman dessert (the most popular is Tiramisu).
Although the exact origin of Maritozzo is unknown, it is to be found in the countryside of central Italy.
The name, translated into English, means “hubby”. It is a soft, fluffy bun that the wives would put in their husband’s lunch bags when they went to work in the fields.
Boyfriends used to give it to future wives, hiding a ring or jewelry inside as a promise of love.
Now that so many people have moved from the countryside to the city, maritozzo can be found in most cafés and pastry shops and is filled with fresh whipped cream.
WHERE you'll have the best maritozzo in Rome: Il maritozzaro, which specializes in maritozzi and cornetto | Address: Via Ettore Rolli 50
15. Cornetto – croissant
The French croissant, translated into Italian as “cornetto,” is a street food that pairs well with cappuccino and coffee, and is by far what Romans eat most often when they eat breakfast on the go.
It should be known that the quality sometimes betrays expectations, and the taste of the Roman croissant is unfortunately different from the original French croissant.
Romans also enjoy it at night, when returning from an evening spent perhaps dancing with friends. Croissant by night is one of the most beloved street foods among young people.
WHERE to find the best cornetto in Rome: - For an excellent quality croissant, eaten for breakfast: Le Carré Français, in Via Vittoria Colonna 30 - For the croissant by night: Il Maritozzaro open 24h in Via Ettore Rolli 50.
Try it all at the Testaccio street food market
The Testaccio neighborhood, popular with young people for its live music venues and the Faculty of Architecture, is home to the city’s finest food market. If you are short on time and don’t know where to eat in Rome, go straight here.
At the Testaccio Market, housed in a contemporary structure open on 4 sides but indoors, you will find both raw ingredients and all Roman street food as well as traditional Roman and Italian dishes.
It is one of the best venues in Rome for foodies!
Address: you can access the food market from these streets: via Beniamino Franklin, via Alessandro Volta, via Aldo Manuzio, via Lorenzo Ghiberti.
Have gluten-free Roman street food
Mama Eat is a unique food spot in Rome. It serves mainly fried delicacies, pizza, and traditional Roman and Neapolitan dishes also in gluten-free and lactose-free versions.
There are two chefs, two kitchens, and two ovens in the restaurant to meet the needs of those with food intolerances!
Where: Via di San Cosimato 7/9
Let us know if you have discovered some of the best street food in Rome that I haven’t mentioned in this article or a food spot in Rome that deserves attention. Send me a text!
Wrap-up | Best street food in Rome Italy
Rome has been described by the new york times as one of the top 10 foodie destinations in the world, and we Romans think it’s true. Locals don’t eat at restaurants too often but they eat tasty Rome street food every single day for sure, be it gelato, pizza by the slice, baccalà, or supplì.
So don’t stuff yourself in restaurants, make sure you always leave a space for a delicious and satisfying treat.
Further readings about food in Rome
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