Nicole in Rome

Occasion: Saturday Evening Dinner

Initial Impressions: A reservation was made in the afternoon. Upon arrival, I was very pleased we had a reservation because a party of three ahead of us wanted to walk-in, but they were full for the night and not accepting walk-ins. There are two doors, which I appreciate, but the spacing between them were too close. It also has a little step that would make it difficult for wheelchair accessibility. There is no outside seating (as of winter, I don’t know if they have it in the summer). However, for non-wheelchair using handicapped persons there is space to walk through to your table without feeling claustrophobic.

Once Seated: The decorations are very nice and it was pleasantly warm inside the restaurant. The reservation book is done in a book with pencil and paper and the owner/manager/host used a magnifying glass to confirm our reservation. It was very fun. The ambience was warm and on the slightly dimmer side. The overall environment was romantic. A restroom is available and it was clean. A plus is that they sectioned off the door because the main dining room is a bit small. I’m happy I didn’t have to watch people go in and out of the restroom the entire night. The menu is available in Italian and English. However, it is single sided and felt a bit overwhelming as first timers. Wine is available and almost every table ordered glasses or a bottle. You can order a set menu or ala carte. We opted for ala carte.

The Food: We had bread and ordered water to start. By the end of the night we had two baskets of bread and two bottles of water. For antipasti we ordered Polpettine Di Nonna Lella, Tonnarelli alla Cuccagna for primi, and Pollo Ruspante alla Romana con Peperoni in umido for secondi.

5/5 Polpettine Di Nonna Lella: I was struggling between giving this four or five stars. I opted to give it five stars because al sugo was so good! The meatballs themselves were very good too, but I am not used to eating veal. Thus, because the al sugo with pane was delightful and I still found the polpettine (that I am not used to eating and normally wouldn’t like) good, I opted for five stars.

5/5 Tonnarelli alla Cuccagna: Ok the Tornnarelli I must admit is good. Maybe the best I’ve had so far in Roma. The pasta was cooked perfectly. Not too hard and not too soft. I enjoyed the shape of the pasta also. The sauce was also not too salty and not bland. The sausages were nice to eat. I typically eat a normal amount and work out, but as an American when it comes to carbs like pasta, I’m not so used to having secondi after antipasti and primi. So, after finishing this dish I could have not had secondi, but it was ordered so I was going to eat it. This is also kudos to Sora Lella, the portion of the tonnarelli is perfect. I didn’t feel robbed while eating it.

4/5 Pollo Ruspante alla Romana con Peperoni in umido: Now I must give this chicken dish a 4/5 stars. It was good, but I would not be coming back to Sora Lella thinking, “I must have the chicken again.” I will be thinking that about the tonnarelli. Perhaps next time I would try the fillet. The chicken could have been a bit more tender/juicy. However, I begin to think this is a trend in Italian restaurants, so with this in mind this is one of the best chicken secondi I’ve had so far in Roma. The sauce was good too. I am not a big fan of big pieces of peperoni (bell pepper). Thus, you see my reasoning for four stars.

Service: So this is a new section I am introducing because Sora Lella has done so well. The waiters were very fun and pleasant to speak to. They were very kind. They were also very attentive. We ended up eating our chicken with our fingers and ditched the fork and knife situation. This bone-in chicken was really supposed to be eaten with your hands anyways, although if you want to eat with a fork and knife you are fine to do so, I gave up 1/4 of the way in. The waiters and the owner/manager were satisfied and brava. They also provided us with wet napkins for our hands when we were finished. This is service that matches the price of the food. Also for such a small restaurant they were not being stingy on the employees present either. there were three servers for our tiny main dining room. Upon leaving the restaurant the owner/manager shook our hands and greeted us goodbye.

Payment: The bill total was 111 euros. I am not sure if they accept American Express or not because I was paid for. However I will say that this is more on the expensive side. Pane was 5 euros (two baskets), so I give this good value. Water was 4 euros (two bottles) so I was ok. Antipasti was 14 euros, I think that this was a bit expensive given that we only had four polpettine. It is up to you whether or not you want to order it in my opinion. The cost benefit analysis for me says, order it and try it once if you aren’t a huge fan of polpettine. The secondi was 24 euros each. I would say if you are in a big party, order a variety.