Marilyn T.
Yelp
I read about their gnocchi as one of the must try pastas in Rome. They happened to be just a few blocks from where we were staying, so we came here for dinner. Unlike in the US where you can get dinner at 5pm, a lot of places in Rome don't open until 7:30 or 8pm (it was 8pm for L'Arcangelo). It was full shortly after opening, so make sure you get a reservation.
They do have a fixed menu option for €60 a person, but we opted for a la carte so that we could choose exactly what we wanted. Pastas are on the more expensive side compared to some other local places - around €15 each. Secondis are in the €23-25 range.
When you sit down, you notice all the tables have toy cars on them - turns out it's because the chef wants people to think of their childhoods when they eat his food, which I thought was cute.
The wine list has a good number of Italian bottles. Since we were in Rome (Lazio), we opted for a bottle of Cesanese.
Amuse:
- Bread: served warm, reasonably salted - better than most of the dry/unsalted bread we've had in Italy
- Pumpkin soup with coffee, anchovy oil, bread: it was a nice surprise to have an amuse
Food:
- Lesso e Concia: Roman Jewish chicken meatballs. These were super tender, flavorful, with Parmesan crisps and fried vegetables, over an herb green sauce. These were surprisingly great. I would get these again
- Tagliatelle: with a garofalato sauce (beef, garlic, onion, lard). Great flavor on the sauce.
- Gnocchi: amatriciana - red sauce, pancetta. The texture was more pillowy, and the pork had a weird gaminess to it. I got it because it was a dish many reviews and articles talked about, but I think it's just not my style
- Vegetables: cabbage, peas, and chicory. A little oily but good in flavor, and I needed some greens
- Baccala: with crushed peppers and tomato sauce. The cod was a bit fishy, and it's a shame the tomato sauce wasn't warm, but overall it was a pretty solid dish with a bonus of some kale
I ended up pretty full. We started off great with the chicken meatballs, but then I think most other dishes aside from the tagliatelle just weren't my style - they weren't bad but just not to my tastes ?
I like that it's located farther from the old town tourist areas and has more of a neighborhood feel. Come with a reservation or come at 10pm when tables open up on a weekday.
Note: there's also a 15% gratuity included in your bill. Credit cards accepted.
The owner wasn't particularly friendly - when we walked in saying we had a reservation, we got some annoyed sounding Italian discussion between her and the waitress. However, as for our waitress, service was great - she was way more friendly than most other servers we've encountered in Italy, and her English was really good. The other person helping out with the dishes and silverware was very nice, too.