Restaurant Suggestions in Rome

Used the RS book for suggestions near where we were ( either our hotel or where our wanderings had us at dinner time). Did not go to anything that required a reservation.

Ate very well!

What area of Rome are you aiming for? We found if you go close to opening time, you usually don’t need a reservation. But if you go later and it’s a popular place, it may very well book up. We’ve often had our hotel call and make reservations for us for the next day or even the same day. Enjoy.

Hostaria Romana: http://www.hostariaromana.it/ Make a reservation, it's very small and fills up quickly.
Armando al Pantheon: http://www.armandoalpantheon.it/ Best to reserve for lunch or dinner. Very popular.
La Pentolaccia: http://www.lapentolaccia-restaurant.it/ May need to reserve for dinner, though I've been twice without reservation

Buon Appetito!

Cul-du-Sac. Located in Piazza Pasquino. Go right at 7 pm. Popular place, not large. Piazza Pasquino joins Piazza Navona at the SW corner near the Brazil building on Piazza Navona. You can look up the history on the small Pasquino sculpture. Casual, excellent food, moderate prices.
Taverna Luciferno - near Campo Dei Fiori. Personally, I have not been to this place yet. It was recommended to me and it's on my radar for next time.
You can tripadvisor these places in advance for info..
Gelato - San Crispino and monte ... (Next to pantheon, I can't remember the name.)

The thing about reservations is that it shows respect, even if you are arriving early, say at 8 pm. (Yes, that is early in Rome.) With a reservation you will probably get a better table than a walk in, and if it is busy, you will be so happy you reserved.

There are tons of restaurant recommendations on this Forum. You can search in the bar above. But don’t stress out too much. Avoid the places with someone outside beckoning you in.

There are tons of restaurant recommendations on this Forum. You can
search in the bar above. But don’t stress out too much. Avoid the
places with someone outside beckoning you in.

Heed the last sentence from Laurel for sure. We spent a week at an apartment in Rome and the best places we found were the ones we just stumbled upon in our walking around, places we had never heard of via research.

I posted numerous places recommended to me by friends who live in Italy, including a link to the website/tripadvisor review. Try searching the RS forum. If you cannot locate my reply to someone's post, let me know and I will send them to you in a private message.

The advisability of making reservations in Rome has been discussed here fairly often. In my experience in Trastevere, you run a risk of pounding the sidewalk for a long time if you don't make a dinner reservation. As has been explained by folks with a lot of experience traveling to Italy, the restaurants there do not expect to turn their tables during the evening. If someone makes a reservation for 9 or 9:30 PM, that table will not be available to you at 7 or 7:30 PM.

In Trastevere I have gotten to really like Carlo Menta and Osteria Ponte Sisto.

https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/where-should-we-eat-in-rome-and-florence

Terri W's list is in the above