Of Carbonara and an Onomastico

I am, thanks to some of you readers, now ensconced in my apartment in Rome. I met friends tonight for supper.

Some of you said that you live vicariously through travel entries, so I will obliged as time permits.

The trip across the pond was uneventful and the trip into the City was equally smooth.  After taking possession of the flat, I picked up some groceries and ran errands, and then met a friend for lunch.

Back to the flat and a nap.

Carbonara at a well-known place in the Borgo Pio along with the usual insider Vatican baseball box scores for the past few days.

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Mixed greens salad to follow.  Honestly, I should have just had the salad, but today is my Name Day, which is a bigger deal here than in the USA.

A stroll across St. Peter’s Square on the way home.

 

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I have seen (both of) these things more times than I can count but they are always welcome, like old friends.  It is nice to be here and not to have the urgent desire to go “see things”.  I can just be.

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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19 Comments

  1. Sid Cundiff in NC says:

    Was your restaurant in the Borgo Pio at #180, Il Mozzicone? It’s the only restaurant in the area that I like. I had the carbonara there last April, and the fried cod. Both quite tasty.

    Last year you recommended L’Angoletto near the Pantheon. I ate there last March, outside, with pleasure. Thanks for the recommendation. [I am glad you like L’Angoletto. They are a little over priced but the food is always good, the seafood as fresh as can be, the service good, and the little corner quiet.]

  2. Happy Name Day, Father!
    We are praying for you…

  3. StWinefride says:

    Buon Onomastico, Padre!

    We had lunch a couple of times during Holy Week at Il Pozzetto, 167 Borgo Pio. The staff were friendly and the food was nice.

    [A couple times there might be excessive, but I am glad you had good meals!]

  4. Yes, it was Mozzicone.

    Perhaps some of you know what that means?

    o{];¬)

  5. acardnal says:

    Aaahh….finally a food post. And Italian cuisine, too. I needed a fix!

  6. APX says:

    Mozzicone…I was going to say something related to a cheese cone similar to that of a cheese wheel (this is why I can’t travel to countries that don’t speak English), until I Googled it.

    What’s that big tall monument thing in Vatican square called? [Fr Z? … no… obelisk?]I remember studying it and its significance to engineering technology in Art History, but can’t remember its name. Apparently when it was being moved, those who were moving it were required to remain absolutely silent under the punishment of death. [Only excommunication. And I have written about that on this blog!]My roommate insists that it was built by Masons as a replica of the Tower of Babel. [piffle]

  7. acardnal: You suffer, I know. But at the SPTDV I have only hot plates and in the new city … well… food hasn’t been in the least engaging.

  8. xsosdid says:

    Great to see that you made it there safe and sound. Enjoy!

  9. StJude says:

    Yum!!!

  10. James Joseph says:

    When I first learned carbonara it was 7-minute dish: penne rigate, pecorino pepato, and trying like mad not to scramble the egg, topped with more pepper.

  11. OrthodoxChick says:

    Just made carbonara the other night from my grandmother’s recipe. Her family was from the Caserta area though, so maybe the southern version varies from the Roman? Not sure. Do they use eggs and pancetta in carbonara in Rome? I think I spot bits of pancetta in the photo, but I can’t make out much else.

  12. iPadre says:

    I’ve had the carbonara there, very good. Roberto’s makes a good norcina and their salad is ummm.

  13. mamajen says:

    I’m glad you were able to get there! I always love the food pictures.

  14. StWinefride says:

    Father Z says: [A couple times there might be excessive,…]

    When the children are happy… sometimes that’s all that matters! :)

    … and it was Holy Week – Penance, Penance, Penance!!

  15. Fr. Erik Richtsteig says:

    Only salad while in Roma? Father, that would be a sin!

  16. Fr. Richtsteig: After the carbonara I just wasn’t that hungry.

  17. techno_aesthete says:

    I LOVE carbonara and haven’t had any since my last visit to Rome which was four long years ago. I hope to return to Italy in October. Please pray that I can go.

  18. pattif says:

    When I’m looking for carbonara in Borgo Pio, I usually head to Trattoria Marcello (next to Mancinelli’s, the tailor’s); it’s a bit more touristy than Il Mozzicone, but they’re very nice to me., and their carbonara is very good. Il Mozzicone does the best spaghetti caccio e pepe I know, and their piccatta al limone is better than Da Roberto’s (and they’re located next to one of my favourite Roman fountains). Da Roberto, on the other hand, excels at saltimbocca alla Romana, and their gnocchi on a Thursday is not to be missed.

  19. pattif says:

    Forgot to say: Happy name day for Monday, Father.

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