<a target="_blank" href="http://www.salumeriaroscioli.com/">Salumeria Roscioli</a>

21/22 Via dei Giubbonari

00186 Rome, Italy

Tel. +39
68 75 287

Food:

Fresh
fried anchovies with pepper sauce and chili

Buffalo
mozzarella and semi-dry Pachino cherry tomatoes

“La
carbonara” (spaghettone tossed with
crispy pork cheek, Malaysian black pepper, Paolo Parisi eggs, and Roman Pecorino cheese)

Beef
Hamburger (Fassona beef hamburger grilled and topped with crispy bacon,
farmhouse cheddar, fresh mayonnaise, Bloody Mary sauce, and grain mustard)

Sicilian Cannolo Express

Wines:

<table>
 <tbody><tr>
 <td>
 2004 Bonneau du
 Martray Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru&nbsp;
 </td>
 <td>
 92
 </td>
 </tr>
 <tr>
 <td>
 1962 Scarpa Barolo
 Riserva Speciale
 </td>
 <td>
 94
 </td>
 </tr>
</tbody></table>

Back in 2002, Alessandro
and Pierluigi Roscioli decided to add an upscale bistro to their family
specialty food shop and have never looked back. Today, Roscioli is a
hangout of real foodies who know they can dig into dishes made with
superbly sourced ingredients of the highest quality, ranging from plump
anchovies from the Cantabrian sea, sun dried tomatoes from Italy’s sunny South,
cheeses of all kinds from myriad provenances (just check out the numerous blue
cheeses, for example) or especially flavorful San Daniele and Iberico
prosciuttos. As if high quality ingredients weren’t reason enough to “run,
don’t walk” over to&nbsp; Roscioli, the place
fast developed a reputation for what might well be Rome’s best Carbonara, the
Roman pasta dish based on eggs, Pecorino cheese and cracked black pepper
(this being Italy, there are numerous variations, some more successful than
others). Last, but certainly not least, Roscioli also boasts one of Rome’s best
wine lists, with numerous older vintages of wines from Italy and abroad. Having
rightly sung Roscioli’s many praises, not all is perfect: some of the cooked
dishes can miss the mark, and the place is rather snug, with table heaped upon
table (at least, those in the narrow corridor leading from the door allow you
to people-watch, always fun in Rome). However, the place is a genuine
wine &amp; food mecca that deserves to be on every serious traveling sybarite’s
radar. Just remember that as Roscioli is always full, a reservation is not just
a good idea, but a necessity.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1435313325995-alici+fritte-S.jpg"> 

Fresh fried anchovies with pepper sauce and chili On this day, I stopped
in for lunch and decided to have all-out fun (I was very generously offered a
glass of Champagne while deciding on what to eat and drink). Food-wise, I opted
to start off with probably the best rendition of fried anchovies I have had in
the last ten years (no small feat: one of my favorite dishes I indulge in roughly
80-100 times a year, I have had my share of bad ones): very flavorful and
meaty, the anchovies were perfectly fried, crispy dry on the outside and moist
on the inside, revealing noteworthy culinary ability.&nbsp;<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1435313857792-carbonara+2.JPG"> “La carbonara” (spaghettone tossed with crispy pork cheek, Malaysian black pepper, Paolo Parisi eggs, and Roman Pecorino cheese) The Carbonara was also simply spectacular, creamy rich yet light on its
feet, with an unctuous yet delicate egg sauce that was of just the right
peppery spiciness. Sounds easy enough to do, but it isn’t; getting the right balance for a perfect
Carbonara is a playing ground reserved for only a very talented few. Serious
pastaphiles should not miss trying Roscioli’s delicious version at least once
in their lives. That said, the Bufala mozzarella wasn’t as flavorful as one
might expect from a similarly famous food emporium (while the sun-dried tomatoes
were exquisite) and the hamburger average at best, coated with a slab of
artisanally-made cheese that was thick and generous, but flavorless.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1435313419579-mozzarella.JPG"> 

Buffalo mozzarella and semi-dry Pachino cherry tomatos Roscioli has two large
wine lists (one devoted to Italian wines, the other to wines from outside of
Italy), both loaded with great bottles. I zeroed in on two wines that though
not cheap, were very fairly priced for their quality or rarity. I began the
meal with the 2004 Bonneau de Martray
Corton-Charlemagne, which is drinking beautifully at present: a whiff of
reduction blew off with aeration, revealing precise mineral driven acacia
flower, honeyed stone fruit and delicate hazelnut aromas and flavors. At 200
years and counting, the family running the Domaine knows a thing or two about
the Charlemagne vineyards, and it shows. This turned out to be a great food
wine, full of lively acidity and no undue weight (even better, this white
Burgundy showed no signs of premox). It matched very well with the mozzarella,
and even the anchovies weren’t overwhelmed, given the wine’s still bright
acidity. It’s drinking beautifully at present, so I am not sure there’s much to
gain by hanging on to any bottles much longer. An admittedly hard act to
follow, but the 1962 Scarpa Barolo
Riserva Speciale (a wine I hadn’t tried in the last six or seven years and
was curious to see how it was holding up) was up to the task, and then some.
This bottle was in perfect shape (decent provenance is always a problem with
older Italian wines), still showcasing bright red cherry, rose petal and
delicate tar aromas and flavors of noteworthy intensity, supported by vibrant
acidity; unfortunately, thirty minutes after opening the bottle, less memorable
woodsy and underbrush notes took over, while the&nbsp;fruit disappeared.
Nevertheless I was very impressed by the wine, especially considering that 1962
is remembered as a vintage of mainly elegant Barolos but of dubious
ageworthiness. Clearly, they were confident of the wine’s merits at Scarpa, as
they chose to make a Riserva Speciale, something I wouldn’t have thought to be
a particularly good idea in the 1962 vintage. Clearly, this wine proves me
wrong. My sincerest compliments to Roscioli for owning such well stored wines,
not at all a given in Rome.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1435313580264-VINI.JPG"> 

Two gems from the international wine-listI finished my lunch off
with a delicious freshly made (“Express”) cannolo, that was melt in your mouth
delicious and truly irresistible. When it was all over, I waddled, not walked,
out of the place into the warm Roman air, happy as could be: admittedly, not
every Roscioli arrow had hit the bullseye on this particular day, but those
that did made for absolutely memorable wine and food moments. And I have no
doubt those will make my “Best of the Year” list when December 2015 rolls
around.<img alt="" src="https://allgrapes.s3.amazonaws.com/uploads%2F1435314292268-hamburger.JPG"><img alt="" src="http://"> Beef Hamburger (Fassona beef hamburger grilled and topped with crispy bacon, farmhouse cheddar, fresh mayonnaise, Bloody Mary sauce, and grain mustard) -- Ian D'Agata

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