The short answer: book Armando al Pantheon for a classic Roman lunch two minutes from the Pantheon, where carbonara, amatriciana and gricia are €16 each. For Rome's offal-and-oxtail cooking, go to Testaccio and eat at Checchino dal 1887 (coda alla vaccinara, oxtail stew, €25). For one big night, La Pergola at the Rome Cavalieri is the city's only three-Michelin-star restaurant (€295 for seven courses, €350 for ten).
Rome's best food is still the trattoria: a short menu of the four Roman pastas, carbonara (egg, pecorino, guanciale or cured pork cheek, and black pepper), cacio e pepe (pecorino and pepper), amatriciana (tomato and guanciale) and gricia (guanciale and pecorino), then a meat dish such as saltimbocca or oxtail, and artichokes when they're in season. The restaurants are grouped by area, so you can eat well near where you're sightseeing. Trastevere has its own guide. For a cheaper meal, see cheap eats in Rome; if you can't eat gluten, our gluten-free Rome guide; and to eat your way round the city with a guide, food tours and cooking classes.
Three things before you go. Check the menu: a coperto (cover charge) isn't allowed in Rome; restaurants may charge for bread or service only if it's printed on the menu before you order (€1.50 to €4 a head at the restaurants in this guide). Tipping isn't expected. Book dinner at the famous places, and check the closing day, because many trattorias shut on Sunday evening or one weekday. And eat at Roman hours: lunch from about 12:30, dinner from 7:30pm. For what a day of eating out adds up to, see the cost of a trip to Rome.
