Where to get a quick lunch in between St Peter's and Vatican Museum

I recommend using the pedestrian but satisfactory cafes within the Vatican Museum complex, especially if you can skip the outdoor line (procedure unknown to me ...) by having your morning guide deliver you there. I would reevaluate any plan after seeing the actual Museum "with reservation" line on the day.

Since we didn't take the scavi tour, it would be helpful to know if its line is in a different place than the various Museum and Garden tickets.

I don't often post reccomendations for restaurants etc as opinions are so subjective but I feel I need to highlight this little gem across the bridge from the Vatican. I can thoroughly recommend the Porchetta board https://m.facebook.com/lasalumeriaroma/

Four of us popped in for a quick bite to eat, we emerged two hours, four bottles of wine and three meat and cheese boards later!

Congrats on your upcoming scavi pilgrimage! That experience still ranks as one of my favorite moments on all my trips (so far!) to Rome.

A few clarifications and considerations for your inquiry:

• The scavi pilgrimage guide ends the tour in one of the papal chapels in the grottoes under St Peter’s Basilica. The guide will not escort you to the Vatican Museums. You are on your own after the end of the scavi pilgrimage.
• Lunch at restaurants in Rome starts around 12:30 at the earliest, but more often is between 1:00 and 3:00pm. Also, as already noted, meals can be (and deservedly so) an extended affair in Rome. Don’t shortchange yourself of a quality dining opportunity just to make another sightseeing deadine.
• The entrance to the Vatican Museums is on the west side of Vatican City, the exact opposite area of where your scavi pilgrimage ends in St Peter’s. Factor in at least 30 minutes to walk around Vatican City to get to the museum entrance.
• As noted already, there are a number of touristy restaurants and cafes on the street opposite the entrance to the Vatican Museums. I only had a coffee at one place while waiting for my tour group to arrive. Can’t speak to the quality of dining in this immediate vicinity.
• Check out The Roman Guy for dining recommendations in the greater Vatican area. I saw a post from them on Twitter recently where they profiled the 3 neighborhoods around the Vatican. Great info and full of ideas for dining, etc.
• Consider booking your Vatican Museums tickets for mid-afternoon. Will give you more flexibility and you won’t feel so rushed. Better yet, visit the Museums on a different day to enjoy them at a more leisurely pace.

Let us know if you have additional questions, and happy planning!

I would book a later afternoon tour and have a nice lunch break. After the Scavi tour, spend an hour-or-so looking around St. Peter's Basilica (Rick Steves has an excellent audio tour you can download), then off to lunch at 12-12:30. Make a museum tour res for 14:30.

We always liked Osteria delle Commari which I see opens at Noon!

We had a great 'quick' lunch at Bar Il Postiglione. Everyone agreed that the sandwiches were great! While it is relatively close to St. Peter's (just outside the walls) everything is further than it seems around Vatican city. You might map it out. The service was quick and the food tasty.

Since it is November I believe the Sistine Chapel closes at 4 so taking a 2:00 p.m. tour does not give us enough time. I think we will try the cafeterias nearby. Thanks to all.

Just read the reviews of the cafeteria, awful. I guess a granola bar might have to do

What about Bonci Pizza? It's a walk around the back side of the Vatican so you'd have to map it to check the timing (quick google search shows about 20 minutes, but not sure where the Scavi tour gets out). It's a cafe where you order pizza by the slice/weight and then eat at standing table outside. It gets busy (it's known in the tourist guides) but maybe earlier isn't so bad? And if you walk by the Cipro metro station, you can fill bottles on the way at a water station that gave you both still and sparkling water.

We ate at the Vatican Museum pizza/hero sandwich cafe (a separate dining product area, one of at least three), which was, as I wrote before, pedestrian but fine. The buffet/cafeteria area looked entirely satisfactory. I walked around to look at the bowls and steam tables on purpose. It was a little too slow (busy) for our needs - that's why we settled for reheated pizza, cherished by many budget travelers to NYC. I've had worse pizza in Italy than I got at the Vatican Museums.

Originally we were going to Bonci as they open early and we still might but it looks like a 20 minute walk there and back and if we spend any extra time @ St. Peter's after the scavi or if we need to get through security again at the Vatican, I am afraid it wouldn't be enough time. The scavi is 9:30 to 11, and say we spend another half hour, leaving at 11:30, then to get to Bonci and back isn't much time. Perhaps the hero shop will do at the Vatican. Thanks

Hi Mary Ellen,

After some additional digging, I hope the below extra info helps with planning your day at Vatican City:

• Google Maps offers this route as the shortest walking path to get from St Peter's Basilica to the Vatican Museums entrance on the opposite side of Vatican City. As you'll see in the map, there are a ton of dining options along this route. In particular, there is a Carrefour Express supermarket (loose term as you'll see it's more of a NYC bodega-size grocery store). The store on the map closest to the VM entrance is at Via Sebastiano Veniero, 10 A, 00192 Roma Italy. The Carrefour Express supermarkets are great for stopping in to get takeaway salads, pre-made sandwiches, and sliced meats and cheeses. I enjoyed a great quick snack of salad and sliced meats and cheeses from the Carrefour Express across from the Capitoline Museums before hustling all the way out to the Tomb of the Scipios for my next tour which was in a short transfer window. It can be done!
• Except for closure days, the Vatican Museums website states that the museums and Sistine Chapel are open until 6pm, not 4pm, even in November. This should hopefully offer you some flexibility with deciding on what time to sign up for a Vatican Museums tour.
• Yes, you will go through security a second time at the Vatican Museums entrance.
• Granola bars and protein bars are smart backup snacks. I should have packed more protein bars on the first trip to Rome - big lesson learned. Since being diagnosed with celiac disease, I have to be much more careful with dining choices, and the protein bars are a wise backup plan. Highly encouraged! :-)

Based on the comments so far, it definitely sounds like it is a priority for you to be able to do both the Scavi piligrimage and the Vatican Museums in the same day. It's doable, and I'm confident with continued research, you'll find a solution that works for you!

Let us know if we can help further and happy planning!

Thanks - it looks like a good option and maybe a gelato stop too