Testaccio: The Hearth of Roman Food Tradition

(29 reviews)

Rome audio tour: Testaccio: The Hearth of Roman Food Tradition

This is a 1.2mi walking tour

It takes an average of 45 mins to complete.

Rome

Italy

$8.99

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About the Tour

Rome’s history is incredibly long and fascinating, and so is its culinary tradition. Testaccio, today a busy and lively borough which never lost its popular and authentic character. It’s the perfect place to explore both the history and cuisine. Since Roman times, the area hosted the emporium, a river port where the boats hailing from the several corners of the empire docked to unload different goods. A market area since then, Testaccio is also famous for another reason: here was born the local culinary tradition of the so-called quinto quarto, or five quarters – referring to the habit of cooking and eating offal – due to the presence of the old slaughterhouse. Today, the borough honors its origins being the heart of the most genuine Roman food scene. You can experience it browsing around the market stalls, dining in some of the best traditional restaurants of the city, grabbing delicious street food or having a drink in an up-to-date venue. I’ll show you my favorite spots, while pointing out the milestones of the local history and some examples of the contemporary artistic soul of the borough.

Tour Producer

Luciana Squadrilli

2 tours

I was born in Naples, the home of pizza, yet I moved to Rome over 20 years ago and now I call this incredible city my hometown. After studying communication and marketing, I decided to follow my passion for food and travel, becoming a professional journalist and food critic. After 10 years at Gambero Rosso, one of Italy’s leading Food&Wine publishers, I decided to freelance fro a while. Today, I'm Senior Editor at Food&Wine Italia and Travel + Leisure Italia. I also contribute to several italian and international magazines and websites writing about restaurants, chefs and products and I tirelessly travel all over Italy and abroad to discover new fancy restaurants as well as awesome products created by artisans. Over the last few years my main focus has switched to pizza. I love this humble yet fantastic food and, after writing La Buona Pizza, a book dedicated to the work of some great Italian pizzaioli and their bond to the places they live and work in, I also launched with my co-author Alessandra Farinelli, the pizza-related website pizzaontheroad, now closed. You can listen to my (Italian-only) podcast Metepoconote to discover more about Italy's most underrated destinations.

Preview Location

Location 18

Mercato Testaccio

Turn right to enter the Mercato Testaccio. You'd never know it by looking at the modern building you are entering in, yet the Testaccio Market is the heart of Roman food tradition.  

While you freely browse around the stalls I'll tell you something about the market history.... Turn right to enter the Mercato Testaccio. You'd never know it by looking at the modern building you are entering in, yet the Testaccio Market is the heart of Roman food tradition.  

While you freely browse around the stalls I'll tell you something about the market history. Then, I'll give you some tips about my favourite ones to stop by to eat something!  

Launched in 2012 on the original location where the local market used to be, once a working-class place, it is now a trendy destination for grocery shopping as well as eating out, with a choice of gourmet or down-to-earth food.   Here the quinto quarto tradition was born, when the butchers working at the slaughterhouse and the local cooks came up with tasty ways to consume cheap meats or discarded cuts. Moved to another square of the same borough in 1920, in 2012 the market was relocated close to its original location, in this brand new spacious and neat building.   

Of course many things have changed over the decades, and today the market is a lively spot popular with locals and tourists as well. Here you can find fresh vegetables and fruits often sold by the growers, fish, bread and many kinds of meat including entrails such as sweetbreads, brain, oxtail or pajata, the sucking calf's upper bowel. Yet, next to those stalls perfect for your groceries, you'll find many street food boxes, offering hearty bites or gourmet options.

For example, a good place for a great pizza al taglio with seasonal toppings is CasaManco, at box 22.   

At Corrado (box 18) you'll find a small yet interesting offer of “rediscovered” recipes from different Italian regions - such as the Neapolitan “scammaro” pasta, made of oven baked spaghetti - served along an interesting choice of wines from small producers. If you’re lucky, you can take a seat at the bar.  

Same at box 3, right in front, where RuraliS sells excellent, organic cheese, bread, pasta, wine and preserves from small growers and producers from Lazio region and beyond, and uses them to cook simple yet delicious dishes such as the polenta with black cabbage and black lentils. It’s worth a try!  

To taste the most genuine essence of the market and of Testaccio, instead, stop at Mordi e vai (box 15) to indulge in one of the substantial bread loaves filled with traditional recipes such as picchiapò beef or meatballs.   

Once you are full and satisfied, you're going to exit the market using the first exit that is to the left of the entrance you came in by. It will lead you onto Via Manuzio. Read More

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Major Landmarks

Pyramid of Caius Cestius
Monte dei Cocci
Testaccio Market

Getting There

Route Overview

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Start location
Via Raffaele Persichetti, 00153 Roma RM, Italy
Total distance

2km
Final location
Via Marmorata, 181, 00153 Roma RM, Italy
Distance back to start location

706.24m

Directions to Starting Point

Start: Via Raffaele Persichetti, 00153 Roma RM.

The tour starts from the sidewalk right under the Piramide, in piazzale Ostiense. You can easily get there by metro, taking the B line and stopping at Piramide, then just cross the road. Otherwise, you can take the 3 tram from Trastevere, the 769 from the Basilica di San Paolo or the 77 from San Giovanni in Laterano. If you already are in Testaccio area, you can take one of the many buses and trams running along via Marmorata towards Piramide.

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

Various eateries on the tour, Monte dei Cocci, Mattatoio, Testaccio Market. Please note Felice is reservation only.

Best time of day

While Testaccio has many highlights even for the nightlife, I’d recommend to take this tour with the daylight to enjoy most of the places.

Please see the opening times for all the stops on the tour below:

Volpetti
Monday - Friday: 8:30am-2pm, 4:30pm-8:15pm
Saturday: - 8:30am-8:15pm
Sunday: Closed

Taverna Volpetti
Monday: Closed
Tuesday - Sunday: 12pm-11pm

Felice a Testaccio
Monday - Friday: 12:30-3pm, 7pm-11pm
Saturday: 12:30-3pm, 7pm-12am
Sunday: 12:30-3pm, 7-11pm

Flavio al Velavevodetto
Monday-Sunday: 12:30-3pm, 7:45-11pm

Mercato Testaccio
Monday - Saturday: 7am-3:30pm
Sunday: Closed

Trapizzino
Monday - Sunday: 12pm-1am

Contesta Rock Hair
Sunday, Monday: Closed
Tuesday, Friday, Saturday: 9am - 7:30pm
Wednesday, Thursday: 10am - 10pm

Precautions

Testaccio is a safe area, yet quite congested at times. So take care when crossing busy streets and when walking on streets without sidewalks, and beware of pickpockets.

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