Pizzarium: The Best Pizza in Rome?

Old pizzarium before remodel

When my friend came to spend the holidays with me in Italy, we went on an adventure to eat the best pizza in Naples.  Slow train journey to Naples and back in one day for Da Michele? Worth it.

After our Neapolitan experience, we were on a mission to find the best pizza in Rome.

I’ll preface this with a warning: I’ve become one of those people. One of those people who now insists on making a distinction between pizza and pizza al taglio.  They’re different.

Pizza is something you order at a restaurant. It comes to you taking up the entire plate and you look at it thinking “I’ll never be able to eat that whole thing.” But then you do.  Of course, you only eat it with a knife and fork! Don’t pick it up with your hand, heathen!  (Being non-Italian, I am often flexible on this last rule. American pizza is meant to be eaten in slices and I can’t quite give up that habit, even if it means dirty looks from fellow patrons).

Pizzarium has the best pizza al taglio in Rome:

‘Pizza al taglio’ literally means pizza by the cut.  In other words, this is how you get a slice of pizza in Rome rather than a whole pie all to yourself.

Pizza al taglio is sold by weight.  The person behind the counter will hold the knife over the pizza and you can tell them if you want a little more or less.  They will then weigh the slices and hand you a bill.

Pizzarium is step beyond famous in these parts. I first heard about it from Juls when she came to Rome for the day and we got to talking (surprise surprise) about food.

Let me tell you, 18 Euro/kg for pizza al taglio is a wee bit ridiculous.

Also, totally justified when you’re talking about Bonci’s pizza.

You can see the shrimp pizza to the right. I turned around just it was being brought out and came face to face with the man himself, Gabriele Bonci.  I stared at him with total awe and he stared right back, probably out of confusion and possibly a little bit of fear.  I didn’t handle my first Rome food celebrity sighting very well.  I definitely looked crazy.

Gabriele Bonci is the recognized ruler of all things slow-rise-doughy in Rome.  He has some special secret dough trick that makes 18 Euro a kilo seem like the best deal you’ve ever gotten. (There is also a Parioli location “Pane & Forno”)

In addition to mouth-watering pizza toppings, Pizzarium has a wide range of regional beers and drinks.  I’ve been jonesing for more Amalfi Lemon Gazzosa since I tried it there in December.

There’s not a lot of room in the pizza place itself, but on a nice day you can scarf down your slices outside before continuing on to explore the neighborhood. We grabbed ours and then headed over to the Vatican. (Pizzarium is just steps away from the Cipro metro stop on Line A, so its ridiculously easy to get to).

Note: These photos were taken pre-renovation (because I am lazy and my Italian internet is slow and it takes me forever to upload pictures).  You can read all about the updated Pizzarium (which is still very very good, if not better than ever before). Be sure to try the fritti!

Pizzarium

Via della Meloria, 43
00136 Rome

06 39745416

22 thoughts on “Pizzarium: The Best Pizza in Rome?

  1. Eleonora says:

    Ciao!

    Bonci Bo rules, and I agree, his pizza al taglio creations are the best in the Eternal City. The secret in his dough is all in the slow rising time and all-natural starter.
    Just don’t par his (or any other Roman bread baker’s) pizza with focaccia, they get very unpleasant when that happens. Did you see the sign outside Antico Forno Roscioli? πŸ˜‰

    Oh, and for the record, I am Italian, and I eat my round pies in slices, using only my hands.

    Buon appetito,
    Eleonora

    • La americana says:

      Oh I could have sworn they sold focaccia as well! My mistake! Ladies were coming in to buy bread and it didn’t look like pizza bianca to me. I will watch my terms and keep eating all pizza by hand πŸ™‚

  2. anna says:

    i think i have actually been there! my brother told me about it when he was studying at john cabot U! it was bigger than my head! i love the pic of Lurisia gazzosa.. that is actually from up where I am.. anyway.. i am so jealous that you get such great pizza!

  3. neekoh says:

    Damn it! Why am I reading this at 9:30am? So I can crave pizza all day to the point where nothing else even comes close to satisfying? :shakes fist:

    It’s ok, I’m sure Roma in (less than) 2 months will more than make up for it!

    Baci!
    Neekoh

    • La americana says:

      As soon as you guys are over your jetlag, I am dragging you to Pizzarium for lunch.

      Don’t worry, Italian pizza will kill any future cravings for American pizza πŸ˜‰

  4. Royce says:

    Holy crap you made me hungry. And it’s only 10am here. Grr.

    I’ve never had good focaccia outside of Italy, but they know how to do it right there. I could just eat their focaccia with olive oil on it nonstop while there. Don’t know how, but it’s delicious.

    So are there other good Italian beers? What is that one, like a lemon flavored alcoholic spritzer thing?

    • La americana says:

      ROYCE! I know I have been promising this for months, but I really really do owe you an Italian beer review. There’s a place here called “Bir & Fud” that I think you would like a lot, though their local beers are a little hit or miss.

      The gazzosa is actually non-alcoholic but 100% delicious. The lemon flavor is really crisp, and not overpowered by the sugar. It has a very different flavor from lemonade, though the ingredients are almost identical. The sourness is gone but somehow the tangy lemon essence is still there.

    • La americana says:

      WOW! Coming for the Beatification?? How exciting! Enjoy Roma and the ceremonies- and definitely make time for a little pizza. It is about a 15 min walk from the Vatican, since it is just one metro stop away.

  5. jann says:

    This pizza looks amazing & I will remember it next time I’m in Rome. I love that bright mottled green wall in the background of your photos, and hope they didn’t do away with that in their renovation! Amalfi lemon gassoza? Who knew? Sounds great.

    • La americana says:

      I love the wall, too! I think they might have tiled it πŸ™ But I’m sure they did a beautiful job. Let me know if you make it there for a slice!

  6. Piotr says:

    I must disagree with Your positive opinions, the dough is really good, not typical, but the pizza is quite expensive in fact (compared to other great pizza locations in Rome) and alltogether being only heated in the oven tastes like a fast food, cold panini bought on the railway station, not to mention that it is not the perfect location, neither the formula of one room eateria is there sympatheticly provided, overall 2 stars of five, only due to the interesting dough, was sadly very disappointed…

  7. Pingback: 10 Places To Go in Rome for Foodies β€” Browsing Rome

  8. flux says:

    italians only eat pizza with knife and fork? they gave you a bad look when you ate with your hands? either you just made up this part or you’ve never been to italy or you just pulled it out of your ass. i am italian and everybody eats pizza with their hands, you use knife and fork only to cut it.

    • L'americana says:

      Ha, thanks for stopping by. This was a post from a couple of weeks after I moved. It’s certainly not true of pizza al taglio when you get it like this style at Pizzarium, but whether I’m in Naples or Rome, I always do a scan of the pizzeria to see who people scarf down their pizza tonda. I’d say 90% is fork and knife all the way, but I eat it the way you described: cut and pick up.

  9. Pingback: ‘Street Food’ in Rom | Hipaway Travel Blog

  10. Tom says:

    Some friends took me to Pizzarium. I didn’t know of it or Bonci at the time. Amazing stuff. And to top it off, Bonci gave me a fresh hunk of his pasta madre (starter) to take back with me. It makes the most amazing bread in my oven. (I prefer to make napolitan style pizza myself, which I haven’t managed to master with that starter.)

  11. Pingback: Pizza Bianca Rome | ABC Pizza Cooking

  12. Pingback: Rome’s Pizzarium in 2016 – An American in Rome

  13. Melanie B. says:

    I’m practically salivating after reading this. I miss out on Pizzarium last year due to a crammed itinerary, but I’m making it a priority while in Rome this time around. That lemon soda looks so bomb, gotta try that too lol.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.