Restaurants in Rome serving Complimentary Wine/Cheese?

There are several establishments in Rome,in the Trastevere neighborhood, where when you buy an aperitif or glass of wine and you can get a few snacks for free. Note the younger set love these places.

Peruse these two sites.

https://www.tavoleromane.it/rome-restaurants-english/20-places-for-happy-hour-in-rome/

https://foursquare.com/top-places/rome/best-places-happy-hour

Plenty of places all over Rome.

It is not really 'free'. The cost of the 'free' stuff is just built in to the cost of the other items.

Thanks for the links, Gerri. I wonder whether any of these places would let me get free snacks if I ordered an expensive fancy coffee/cappuccino or Italian Soda instead of a wine/aperitif? Any idea?

I don't think I could actually order a wine/aperitif and get free
snacks, but if a restaurant brought me a complimentary wine with my
meal, that's a different story...

You have it backwards. It's with aperitivo, at bars which offer it, that you would either be served some snacks or be allowed to self-serve snacks from a buffet with your drink order. We haven't been served complementary wine with dinner anywhere at all, although we have been offered very small glasses of gratis limoncello here and there at the end of a meal. Doesn't mean it can't happen but that hasn't been our experience.

https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/food-and-wine/aperitivo-in-italy-what-it-is-and-how-to-enjoy-one

We have occasionally been provided with a light nibble of snacks with an afternoon beer or wine at a sit-down table but that isn't standard everywhere.

Oh, the answer to my question is in your good article, Kathy! Thank you: "You don’t have to drink alcohol in order to take part in the aperitivo, but you do have to order a beverage of some sort if you want to eat. Do yourself a favor and try something beyond a typical soda."

I remember a couple of places in Florence which provided snacks if you order a glass of wine. Same thing in Siracusa. It wasn't the experience everywhere we went, but hey - it made the drinks far more fun. ;-) You can always check the menu to see if they offer something. The one place in Siracusa even alternated what they offered based on the hour.

"Now I'm curious as to what Limoncello tastes like. "

Imagine strong lemon and strong alcohol, mixed together. You should definitely try it, but you may or may not like it.

I've also had the experience of getting a free limoncello after dinner, in several restaurants in Italy. While I'll have it when it's free, it's not something I like enough to pay for. Since taste, as always, is in the view of the taster, you'll just have to try it yourself to see how you feel about it.

Many places throughout Italy offer a glass of Prosecco before dinner. It's not usually good Prosecco, but very low-end stuff Ditto Limoncello. No one is going to the poor house giving it away as a thimbleful after dinner.

I would not build my dining around free food or drink. Quality is just too important to us. One place that is very popular in Roma is Freni e Frizioni in Trastevere. Be aware, it is not a quiet little place as it attracts a younger crowd looking for cheap food with their alcohol.

If you really want free, go to Milano, home of the Apericena where the buffets of free food are generous when you have a beverage. Also in Torino, near the university, lots of places serve generous buffets of cheap carbs.

I've also had the experience of getting a free limoncello after
dinner, in several restaurants in Italy. While I'll have it when it's
free, it's not something I like enough to pay for.

Hoo boy. This discussion takes me back to a trip to Florence in 2015, to a cellar restaurant that was highly-recommended on the Italian foodie boards. Open for over 100 years. An experience not be missed!

We walked in, were greeted by no less than five waiters, directed to our table, and got the 'Italian schmooz' by the host, the sommelier, the waiter, everybody. When I saw on the menu that a half-bottle (375 ml) of fair Chianti was 33 Euro, I knew I was in trouble and we should've walked out, after labeling this joint as a tourist target. But we didn't...

Had a fair meal, then afterwards a separate waiter was walking around with a tray with glasses and a bottle of limoncello. Did I want some? Sure, so did my wife. It was fine--I've had limoncello before. Until the bill came and we were charged 8 Euro apiece for the tiny amount of limoncello. Not wanting to cause an international incident, I paid the bill & gotthehell out of there. A big argh!

It didn't ruin my trip but I have been extremely wary of restaurant tourist traps ever since, and I always ask whether something proffered is gratis or the cost, please.

Imagine strong lemon and strong alcohol, mixed together.

LOL, emphasis on "strong". eh, Harold? Like you we've had some we liked and some we didn't. Some were sweeter, others more tart, and still others with knock-you-silly fumes.

Fave experience with the stuff was a little trattoria we'd landed into for dinner at the opening hour with no reservations. We were kindly asked if a little table near the door would be OK (yes, absolutely!) and assigned the only wait person who could manage a bit of English. Minutes later the place was PACKED with lively Italian families, and we had a wonderful time! At end of the meal it was storming heavily outside - lots of vivid lightning - as we asked if we might order coffee and stay a bit longer until it let up? No, no! We will not ALLOW you to go out in that! Along with our coffee, a BOTTLE of homemade limoncello was presented with earnest invitation to stay as long as we wished to and have as much of it as we cared to. Needless to say, we did the polite thing, only had a wee glass apiece, thanked them profusely, and were lavishly wished buonasera! by all - even the cook - when the storm eased enough to be able to head out.

They refused our offer to pay for those wee glasses. Ah, the Italians.

Just came back from Rome, complimentary crisps and bruschetta were the norm in many of the bars we visited however there was one bar, Treebar, not far from the Stadio Olimpico that provided plates full of complimentary sandwiches, prawns, fritatta, skewered chicken etc with every round of drinks purchased. The drinks were relatively good value in comparison to bars situated closer to the main tourist areas. The place was very busy and popular with the young and beautiful, we simply stood in the shadows and stuffed our faces and indulged in their excellent cocktails.

Oh and to the OP, Limoncello is a very thick, very sweet, very lemony and very alcoholic liqueur. Best served cold it is pleasant enough and is often given as a complimentary digestif, not just in Italy, I've had it provided in restaurants in Spain as well. I did buy a bottle once as you do when you get carried away when on holiday, I'm sure it's still lurking at the back of a cupboard somewhere.

Thanks for the great info on Limoncello. Interestingly, after learning what Limoncello is just last night, today I was delighted to see the calendar page in my Gallery Calendar of Italy (365 photos of Italy) features a fabulous photo of Limoncello as the photo for February 16, 2018! Fun coincidence, and it looks delicious! The caption says, "Along the Amalfi Coast and in other lemon-growing regions, every family has a secret recipe for Limoncello, the sweet and potent liqueur often served to top off a meal." I need to watch my Pierce Brosnan movie set on the Lemon Farm in Italy again, to see whether Limoncello is served in some of the scenes.

I see that Limoncello IS mentioned in the review of the movie I mentioned: www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/10004176/Love-is-All-You-Need.html

Going back to Laurel's earlier post:

Many places throughout Italy offer a glass of Prosecco before dinner.
It's not usually good Prosecco, but very low-end stuff Ditto
Limoncello. No one is going to the poor house giving it away as a
thimbleful after dinner.... I would not build my dining around free
food or drink.

This is what some of us are trying to get at? We haven't made conscious drinking or dining choices around what gratis extra may be offered. We did stumble into a bar in Milan and another in Bergamo with nice Apericena spreads but neither were planned, and we ordered a (alcoholic) beverage for each little plate of selections, to be polite. Depending on the place - and this may be particularly true in Rome - a couple rounds of aperitivo beverages can easily add up to more than the price of a restaurant meal. From the WOI piece I'd linked earlier:

Prices range, of course, but in general, an aperitivo including food
and a glass of wine costs between 8 and 10 euros in Italy’s major
cities.

I've no idea what a 'mocktail' might cost in Rome but sodas (e.g. Coke) can be as or more expensive than house wine or beer. A friend of ours related a common tourist mistake of lunching at or within view of a major tourist attraction (in their case, the Colosseum), being billed €10 apiece for their Cokes, and they each had two. Ouch.

And yes, there is good and bad Prosecco or Limoncello, and you're almost certain to get the latter if it's 'free'.

So who said there is no such thing as a free lunch? Interesting way to travel.

That Treebar place sounds really fun, JC. I hope I can talk my sis into trying it with me. We are staying near the Colosseum.

That Treebar place sounds really fun, JC. I hope I can talk my sis into trying it with me. We are staying near the Colosseum.

It's a bit of a schlep from the Colosseum area. We only went there because we had been to the rugby match and after a quick bit of research regarding recommended bars on the route back to our hotel we stumbled across it. It'd probably take a 1/2 hour walk to get there from the Colosseum but that's if you're fixated on getting there and not taking in everything around you. Personally, unless you're in the vicinity I would choose somewhere closer to your hotel, in a city bursting with so many good places to eat and drink you'll struggle to go wrong.

In all honesty we were grateful for the food because we'd been drinking all afternoon and it was an unexpected and welcome gesture. However, if we were a bit more sober I would certainly forgo such freebies and opt for a decent (paid for) meal every time. As it was we all found our 'second wind' around 10pm and ended up stumbling upon a little gem of a place in one of the most inconspicuous of areas and had a very much needed carb heavy meal.

My advice is not to tie yourself down to recommendations, take on board advice but ultimately let your gut instincts guide you. If you pass somewhere that looks good and you fancy it, go for it.

I'd really love to try some new restaurants in the Monti area. It is
close to where we'll be staying and our Colosseum Tour Guide
recommended that area for dining. Does anyone have some great Monti
dining area suggestions? I discovered I love Sicilian type food and
décor while in Rome.

Maybe you should ask your "Colosseum Tour Guide" (who is that, BTW?) or try a forum search for restaurants in Monti? That's easy to do with the search box at the top of this page.

Where did you have Sicilian your last time in Rome?

We ate at 2 Sicililan Restaurants, Kathy-- oh, make that 3. One was in Trastevere, very near Santa Maria's. It was a downpour, and we ducked in. We had this traditional Sicililan thing. I wish I could remember what the waiter said it was called. Maybe you would know? It was like a "hot pocket," but the crust was super flaky and marvelous and it was filled with some sort of fancy sounding ham and cheese. The napkins said Braccio's but hubby says they didn't match the name on the restaurant. I have the receipt but don't remember.

The waiter came over at one point with a Kleenex and wiped off my eyelid. I couldn't imagine what he was doing-- I thought maybe my mascara had run in the rain? And then he said, "A piece of cheese. Just wiping some cheese off your eyelid." I don't know whether he was teasing my husband and me or not. I thought that was very strange, but we laughed, and it made for a fun memory. Terry had his first ever canoli there-- with pistachio filling-- miniature ones. He liked them.

As I posted here earlier, we also ate at Sicilian Bocca in Prati, on the recommendation of someone in this group. I had a wonderful traditional Sicilian pasta with sardines and pinenuts and raisins (can't remember what it was called?), and hubby had an eggplant dish. My dessert was a pear and cheese concoction-- to die for.
The décor there is quite fun and colorfully Sicilian. Big open chest full of seafood on display.

The other spot was off the Appian Way. A little tiny place. They used to have gelattos there, but they said they no longer served it, although they had the empty gelato containers under the counter. We had some sort of delicious pastries there that they said were Sicilian. This place had a two syllable name. I got a pic under the sign. Something like Kulu or Tuwu or something like that. We crossed the street, after passing the Catacombs of San Callistus to get to it. We were killing time, waiting for the Catacombs to open for the afternoon tours.

Maybe you should ask your "Colosseum Tour Guide" (who is that, BTW?)

Never mind. It sounded like the guide was someone you'd booked for an upcoming tour, not one you'd already taken.