Going to the Aroma Michelin Star restaurant in Rome was always on my bucket list. Rome is one of my favorite places in Italy. Some say it’s too touristy…I think it’s perfect. The city is so big you could walk all day and not uncover even half of it.
During my first trip to Rome, I explored to the Colosseum and for my second trip back, I had reservations at the beautiful restaurant overlooking that Colosseum. It was so fitting.
The Aroma Michelin Star Restaurant is housed on the rooftop terrace of the luxury residence of Palazzo Manfredi.
Food
The food was very good. The bread, breadsticks, and bread knots were very good. Each having a different density and texture was really appealing.
The first course was simple but filled with layers and flavor that each complimented eachother. (I was so excited to dig in, I forgot to snap a picture of all 4 pieces lol).
The seafood soup included fresh calamari, squid, and shrimp with little broccoli cutlet vegetables. It paired very well with the red soup and was a perfect combination of light and fresh seafood with a zestful broth.
The carbonara was a very interested rendition of the Chef. With the al dente penne noodles and long Guanciale, it was a nice variation I don’t typically see.
Unfortunately, The next plate I wasn’t a fan of. It housed two different variations of meat which one in particular was too rich for my liking at 3:30pm in June.
I tried their pre-dessert which was very nice but I forgot to take a picture.
Wine
The welcome Prosecco was in a beautiful champagne glass with a yellow stem. The yellow stem glass was so fun and exciting to pair with the Prosecco. They had a nice list of white wines for each meal but only one stood out to me, so I took a quick picture. The red I did have with the meat plate was also a little too much for my palate but it was still a nice choice.
Plating
The plating entailed beautiful, large, thin, white plates with different shapes. The silverware and glassware were also my favorite housing random pops of colors to highlight the meals.
The soup’s silverware I liked a lot in particular, being long, blackish-chrome to enjoy the soup with. The yellow stemmed Prosecco glass was my other favorite. It was an enjoyable surprise to each round.
When I received the bowl for the soup, the waiter brought what looked like a small tea kettle to pour the broth over the soup, it was a lovely presentation.
And the carbonara was brought to me in a cocktail shaker. The waiter shook the carbonara with one hand before delicately spreading it across my plate. I love a good presentation.
Service
The service was generally nice and accommodating but I got a sense of urgency when being sat and selecting my choice of tasting from the Menu. Which, I totally get if their sense of urgency being that I had called ahead and asked to move my reservation back 30 minutes due to my late Airbnb checkin.
But, if they were not able to accomodate my 30 minute change I felt like they should have informed me they could not make it happen rather than make my beginning experience feel rushed. They did not ask if I would like the tasting explained in English or Italian but that was fine.
I am very much aware that the staff talks with each other and to the chef and watches how you perceive and take the food. However, I felt like there was a lot more whispers and chatter than I have been used to.
Sure, there were more people out at restaurants in June than there had been before, but it was an unusual amount of whispers and staring that I noticed right away. I think I would have liked it if they could stay behind the one way privacy window between the kitchen and the guests.
And when I informed them of a health incident I was facing, I believe they were as accommodating and polite as they could be for the information they had.
*These were all things I noticed. I am not saying they were this way or that way, but it was what I observed and how I felt. I obviously do not knowing the intentions that day. But, that is my job to do…is inform you of how I experience things no matter how they were perceived.
Ambiance
The rooftop restaurant was smaller than the pictures made it look, but it was still a beautiful view of the Colosseum.
Michelin Review
Please note, I am by no means a professional food critic, let alone a Michelin critic. Therefore, my own personal review as a ‘Tiny Plates Girl’, is solely based on my experience.
The 1) tastes, textures, and flavor of the food, 2) how well the wine pairs with the food and the choice of wines, 3) the creativeness or personality of each course and their plating, 4) the staff’s politeness, attentiveness, and knowledge, and 5) the ambiance of the restaurant.
Food
Wine Pairing
Plating
Service
Ambiance
During my Aroma Michelin Star experience and jaw dropping views, I also had an Autoimmune flareup in the middle of my lunch at Aroma. You can read more about what I believe led to my flareup and mine and the staff’s reaction to you on my post, Autoimmune Flareup at Aroma Michelin Star Restaurant.
