Rome at Christmas - making dinner reservations

Have no experience with Christmas in Rome. Ours was in Seville. But since nearly everything was closed on Christmas day in Spain, I would assume something similar in Rome. We only found restaurants associated with big hotel being open. The lines were very long at these restaurants. Probably a good idea to make that reservation as soon as possible.

I agree. I was in Rome for xmas eve and day and almost everything was closed mid afternoon the 24th through the 25th. It is a big family get together and eat type holiday for them. I would start asking now (via email) if they will take reservations. You might ask your hotel what might be open near them and make a reservation or ask them to.

I just remembered something I want to add. One thing I enjoyed about xmas in Rome was a large percentage of the tourists were Italian that week. I think maybe they come to visit family. I also remember they closed part of the road that leads to the Colosseum and it was a pedestrian walkway for a couple days. You will have a wonderful time, but remember to bring a good raincoat and an umbrella.

This site was pretty easy to find. Can’t personally vouch for any of the restaurants or accuracy of the webpage: https://www.romewise.com/where-to-eat-in-rome-at-christmas.html

Hi. We were in Rome for Christmas 2017. We had Christmas lunch at Tavernaccia da Bruno. It was amazing. It was a recommendation from Katie Parla. We made the reservation via their website in October.

If you can make reservations online for a place you want to eat, go ahead and do it as early as mid-October. Be aware, though, that some places may not have sorted out their plans for Christmas quite that early. Many places will have expensive fixed price menus, so watch for that. They are fine, just know you might end up at over €100 per person. If a phone call is required, ask your hotel to do it for you in advance if you are unsure of language skills or have trouble hooking up due to time zone differences.

I have made Christmas Eve and Day reservations as little as two weeks out but not anywhere fancy or expensive. Il Giardino Romano in the Ghetto is open holidays and we’ve found it to be good food, not crazy prices.

Thank you all for your responses. Laurel, I saw Il Giardino Romano in the Ghetto from one of your previous posts. The food on their website looks amazing!