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Rome Essentials

Eats 

Near Santa Maria Maggiore

Tempio di Mecenate Ristorante/Pizzeria
Largo Leopardi, 14/18
(Via Merulana)
www.tempiodimecenate.it
This restaurant is always full of diners. There's usually a line in front of the outdoor dining room. The food is quite good and the bill for three with wine and bottled water adds up to €52. 

Panella
Via Merulana
This is a bakery and restaurant in one. They have a buffet table for a fixed price. Outdoor seating. Attracts a young crowd.

Cute animal shaped breads at Panella

Near the Pantheon

Capranica Enoteca and Taverna
Piazza Capranica 99/100
www.enotecacapranica.it/en

Bar at Capranica

This is a beautiful taverna inside the Palazzo Capranica, a renaissance era palace.  The bar, in warm tones of brown, is the backdrop of this elegant dining room. I had their salmon with risotto and zucchini.

Across from the Colosseo 

Oppio Caffè
Via delle Terme di Tito, 72
Colosseo, Roma
www.oppiocaffe.it

This café not only has the best view of the Colosseo, it also has the best "eat as much as you can" buffet for €10. This includes a glass of wine. This price can't be beat. The buffet includes several kinds of pasta, meat dishes, bread, dessert, and they keep replenishing the buffet table. 

In Piazza Navona

Tre Scalini
Piazza Navona, 30-35
www.3-Scalini.com


This is a good place to sit and people watch while enjoying a gelato. Piazza Navona can be incredibly crowded especially during the summer months and its nice to just sit back and relax at this restaurant which up has been here since 1815.

Sleeps

Hotel Giusti
Via Giusti 5
Cross street Via Merulana between Santa Maria Maggiore and St. John Lateran.
www.romagiusti.com
This hotel is managed by the Sisters of St. Anne of Providence. It's in a central location with a supermarket nearby and many restaurants in the vicinity. It's within walking distance to the Colosseo. €90 for twin bedded room (as of this writing) with continental breakfast, free wifi and air conditioning. Receptionist may help arrange private airport transportation which is a good idea especially if you are leaving on an early morning flight.  

Shops

Casa del Rosario
For religious articles and souvenirs, this is the place to go. It's right across from the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore. They have prayer cards, rosaries, postcards, and religious icons. There's also a tiny branch on the left side of the Basilica (facing Via Merulana).

Apostolato Liturgico Roma
Largo Brancaccio 57 (angola Via Merulana)
cal.roma@pddm.it
Phone: 06-48-14-794
I bought my beautiful Madonna icon from here. They sell a large selection of high quality religious artworks, statues, and vestments.

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Images by Charie

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