Rome is a beautiful coming together of history and culture. Around every corner there is a piece of history for you to marvel over. When people think of Rome, they think of the Colosseum or the Pantheon or the Trevi fountain or Vatican city and its museum. However, there is a very unique part of the city, which is packed full of culture and history, but is often neglected and isn’t as known as other parts. It is a must visit for the culture junkies – so we must cover it here as a hidden gem. It is the Jewish Ghetto of Rome. Intriguing right?
This is the oldest Jewish settlement in all of Europe (dating back to the 2nd century B.C.). As a result, it homes a lot of historic Jewish architecture and kosher eateries.
Disclaimer: this post is going to detail our experience in this place and the negativity received (as you’ll see) is not a reflection of the people nor the faith.
This is the oldest Jewish settlement in all of Europe (dating back to the 2nd century B.C.).
First things first, let’s start with the name. The Jewish Ghetto is what the locals call it – the Jewish locals. It isn’t a ghetto as we know ghettos to be. And you actually soon realise this upon entering the area. It is the area of Rome where all Jews where forced to reside in – a dirty a smelly part of the city (an open concentration camp?). They were not allowed to reside where they wished. This is the history behind the name and area. This is a stark difference to what is the reality now. It has now become vibrant, quirky and chic – beautiful architecture and a wonderful variety of kosher restaurants. In summary, a must visit for tourists. It is somewhat off the beaten track, but at the same time it isn’t.
As you wander, you will find historic monuments and buildings. A good place to start and get a feeling of the history of the place and culture will be the Jewish Museum of Rome. Unfortunately, we did not visit (reasons to follow). And to be honest, everything is so pretty, just wandering is a great activity you could do here. Once you have finished getting a visual taste of the place, you can get a literal taste too. You’ll find numerous kosher Jewish Roman restaurants serving authentic classics like the Jewish-style fried artichokes (review below).
Our Experience
So far I have given you a brief history lesson on the place and some things you can do once you are there. Now, I will mention what we did and why our stay was short lived. As soon as we entered the area, we could feel a frosty atmosphere. Now, I’m going to give the place a benefit of the doubt and just say it was probably placebo effect. The first thing that happened was a man made a remark about my facial hair – upon being questioned he clarified he was just asking a question. Again, I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt and I must’ve misheard. We actually did laugh it off and shook hands. Then, when we went for dinner what happened to us, I’m sorry but I cannot give a benefit of the doubt as this was clear cut hostility and we not only felt but knew we were not welcome.
As soon as we entered the area, we could feel a frosty atmosphere.
Nonna Betta
This is the restaurant we chose to eat at. It was the most famous and the one that served the best food as per our research. Also, it was the one Mark Wiens had dined at. So, we felt we’ll be able to try out all the authentic dishes here. Before we get to the food, let’s talk about the hostility I’ve been building up toward since the introduction. As we walked towards the entrance of the restaurant the woman who was stood outside to greet the diners decided to tell us or warn us that the food here is NOT kosher. Even though, as you can see from the pictures, it is a restaurant that clearly prides itself in kosher food and the fact that it is in the central Jewish area serving Jewish locals and tourists alike, you would think they would most definitely be kosher. Knowing how strict the Jewish faith is with their food and the need for it to be kosher makes her statement even more surprising or difficult to believe. Yet, here we were – being told that the food in this establishment is not kosher. If this wasn’t her attempt to drive us away, then I don’t know what it was. Nevertheless, we decided to ignore her “warning” and went inside and sat ourselves down anyway. Then, strangely, an Arab chef (in Jewish Ghetto of Rome, Italy, Europe) came to our table and made some recommendations and assured us the food was halal too. Anyway, we weren’t thinking of ordering meat anyway, so regardless of whether it was kosher or halal, we would’ve dined there anyway. Now, after all of this I don’t think this restaurant is worth my time even reviewing. If anything, their speciality – the fried artichoke was way too salty (like the service). What this experience taught me here was that even if the food is outstanding, if the service is not up to scratch, it ruins the whole dining experience. That’s what happened here.
Edit: so apparently there are some restaurants that do kosher-style food, which may or may not be kosher. Nonetheless, there was no need for her to warn us like that considering the food was supposedly halal anyway?
