For authentic Roman food try the suppli

I have a confession to make. Whenever I travel, be it for a day or a month, I tend to count my time in terms of meals. My travel notebook has scribbles all over it that look a little like this:

3 meals/day x 5 days = 15 meals + snacks.

Of course I’m excited to see the sights, hear the sounds, smell the smells but whenever I buy a guidebook the first section I turn to is food. I’m methodical about it – I pick out the best places to eat near the attractions I want to see, a selection near my hotel and then a few wildcards in case I decide to take an aimless wander. If an area sounds particularly promising, I’ll book a hotel there. And I stick by my guns. When you only have a matter of days in a place it’s important to make every meal count. What’s the point in wasting time and money on a slice of day-old pizza when someone is rolling fresh pasta down the street?

Nowhere is this more true than in Rome – a city whose restaurants vary wildly from awful tourist trap to tastebud heaven. To that end I would like to welcome you to our new column, Rome Restaurant of the Week. Over the coming weeks and months and who knows, maybe years, we’ll be asking our guides to recommend restaurants for you to work into your eating schedules because really, who could know better? These are people who look at their city from a tourist’s perspective every day. People who have made it their mission to know everything about the city they live in – from secret murals in churches to best pizza in town. The only problem is getting them to agree on one, hence the need for a weekly slot.

To get the ball rolling we decided to go with a little spot that screams authenticity at you before you even walk through the door. Those are the kind of manners you can expect here. La Montecarlo in Vicolo Savelli comes recommended by our guide Francesca who says of it:

"The bill is usually written on the end of your paper tablecloth and for a few euro you can get a really big plate of Carbonara that can easily be shared with your friend or partner."

The main draw here is the location near Piazza Navona, the incredibly reasonable prices, the pizza and the pasta. Don’t come expecting romance or high-class dining and certainly don’t come for the service. Come instead with the kids or with friends for delicious, casual eats and a break from sightseeing. It may not be perfect but we rate La Montecarlo for its authenticity and as one of the few places in this area where you can get a decent meal without breaking the bank. Count on about €30 for two people for three courses and soft drinks. And if you fancy trying some local delicacies we recommend the suppli - rice balls stuffed with mozarella, a Roman specialty.

For more information see here. So authentic is this place that it hasn’t bothered to have an English speaker write the English section of its site, so expect such gems as, “If you want a pizza then tell it!” Go on, tell it! Just don’t click on the menu section if you have epilepsy. In fact don’t go to the website at all. Clearly these people are far too busy cooking and abusing customers to create a website. This one was built by mice.