Rome is the source of a plethora of emotions. The Eternal City wasn’t christened so without proper justification. It is where romance, art, culture, and tradition unwind over Carbonara and Lazio Bianco. Food, in Rome, is not just a necessity. The city of love is as much about its culinary tourism scene as it is about anything else. As such, food tours in Rome create widespread buzz and are a rage among tourists. Rome Food tours take you beyond the familiar pizza and pasta, introducing you to the city’s epicurean side. Read on to find out why food tours in Rome are a must try and how you can plan a Rome Food Tour that conforms to your unique taste.
How to Choose the Right Rome Food Tour?
Given its obvious popularity, numerous food tours are now available for you in Rome. Trying to pick one tour over the other can be cumbersome. In order to help you with the process, let’s segregate the tours.
Some food tours in Rome afford you an experience that will keep reeling you in for a reverie long after you leave. For instance, a tour of the neighborhoods of Trastevere and Campo de’ Fiori will lay bare before you the Roman cuisine in its rawest form. You can also opt for the Vatican Neighborhood Evening Food Tour that will let you experience the picturesque surroundings while encountering the native taste.
If you are one of those who would prefer to keep the tours just about the food and not dilute it with tourism, there are several tasting and sampling tours at your disposal. Take a short trip to the countryside and stroll about in the vineyards and groves while tasting local wines. Alternatively, you can transport yourself to ancient Rome. Exploring the Colosseum while sipping on wine could be the best thing you have ever done in your life.
In case you prefer a hands on approach to food, there are a few activities you can indulge in. This includes an expansive gelato and tiramisu making tours. You get to recreate these classics under the supervision of an expert. A traditional Roman pizza is said to be a cut above the rest in terms of taste. With a particular food tour of Rome, you will have the opportunity to make the pizza from scratch.
Make up your mind regarding which of these categories suit you and pick any food tour from the list below. Bon Appétit!
Top Food Tours in Rome
With the interest in Rome food tours exponentially increasing, there are variety of options available.
Best Cooking Classes in Rome
The most widely chosen among them are cooking classes. Adding handy skills to you culinary arsenal while exploring Rome has to have its own charm. Here are the top cooking classes you can opt for when in Rome.
1. Pizza Making Course in Rome
Tour Duration
5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
Going to Rome and learning the art of preparing the perfect pizza, isn't that unreal? This trendy cooking class in Rome is hosted at the That's Amore Restaurant, overlooking the majestic Fontana di Trevi. Under the keen supervision of the professional chef, you will be learning the art of making a pizza from scratch.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- The course includes the insider tips and tricks of the art that make a traditional Roman pizza stand apart.
- You will be provided with dinner and drinks during the class
- To commemorate this experience, you will leave with a rolling pin memento once the course is over.
Tour Group Size
Upto 12 people
2. Pasta-Making Class: Cook, Dine & Wine with a Local Chef
Tour Duration
3.5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
Pasta is a signature Italian fare. While it is available almost everywhere in the world, nobody captures its essence better than the Romans themselves. In this class, you will perfect the complex steps that result in a scrumptious bowl of pasta, while sitting under the open sky, dining with your classmates. Insider food tours don't get any better than this.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Learn the trade secrets from the deft chef.
- Cook with two different variety of pasta, including ravioli.
- Gorge on choice pasta, prosecco, appetizers, digestif, wine, and dessert.
Tour Group Size
Upto 14 people
3. Tiramisu and Gelato-Making Tour
Tour Duration
2 Hours
Food Tour Summary
The fact that Italians take their desserts very seriously, often takes the backseat, given the popularity of pizza and pasta. Both tiramisu and gelato are prized assets of Roman desserts assortment. This tour will establish the eminence of these two desserts in the Roman cuisine by bringing you to the playhouses where they are created. Apart from the complete breakdown of the process, you get to taste the dishes too.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Understand how the choice of ingredients affect the result in these delicate dishes.
- Taste your preparations and that of your classmates’ after the class.
- Retain the exhaustive recipes of the dishes for recreating at a later time.
Tour Group Size
Upto 5 people
4. Food Tour with Pizza-Making, Trattoria & Gelato Tasting
Tour Duration
3.5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
The Old Jewish Ghetto of Rome houses the taverns that had proudly assumed the responsibility of nurturing the budding culinary tradition of the city, before the appearance of the fancy restaurants and eateries. With this tour, you get a glimpse of the city’s well preserved past while making your own pizza pie. Also included are tastings of several other Roman offerings.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Learn about Roman culture and how it has affected the cuisine of the region over the past few centuries.
- Taste iconic Roman food like, charcuterie, Pecorino Romano, Supplì, from the old part of the town.
- Prepare your own pizza while receiving important pointers from the professional pizzaiolo/pizzaiola.
Tour Group Size
Upto 12 people
5. Cooking Lesson in the Roman Countryside
Tour Duration
5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
As history has coursed through the vein of time, almost everything has changed, save intimate bond between food and countryside. As you will find out in this tour, a dish is at its best when the produce used is fresh. By the end of this tour, you would know the nitty gritty of a four course Roman meal, what goes into which dish, and the effort that goes into it all.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Travel to the Mazzano Romano in air conditioned coach for the tour.
- Accompany the chef through the entire process, from picking the right ingredients from the farmers’ market to preparing the meal.
- Sit back and enjoy the food after it has been prepared, along with choice wines.
Tour Group Size
Upto 12 people
6. Exclusive Cooking Lesson & Grocery Tour
Tour Duration
5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
No matter how long you page through the archives, the first hand experience of Roma is always the one to beat. This food tour in Rome is designed to afford you an up close and personal look at the core culinary culture of the city. The focus here is not only on cooking, but also on discovering the places in the city that bring you the best opportunity to prepare a dish that is essentially Roman at heart.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Hone your grocery shopping skills in the local Roman markets
- Prepare a bowl of piquant pasta from scratch with the assistance of the expert guide.
- Kick back with your preparation and wine at one of best rooftop viewpoints in the city.
Tour Group Size
Upto 8 people
Best Rome Food Tours
If you are less of a cook and more of a foodie looking to spend your time eating and tasting, Rome has a few rather interesting food tours to offer.
7. Secret Food Tour
Tour Duration
2.5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
It’s not a secret that Roman cuisine has the capability of delighting you in more ways than one. Perhaps, it will take you several tours of the city to familiarize yourself with every great preparation Rome has to offer. If you are willing to sneak a taste of quintessential Rome with minimum hassle, this tour is for you. Since you can begin this tour early in the morning, it can be an altogether spiritual experience.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Breathe in the wallpaper-like symmetry of Trastevere as you gear up for the foodie experience of a lifetime.
- Allow your guide to lay bare the intertwined history of Rome and its cuisine.
- Feast on the freshly prepared pasta and wine at the heart of Roma.
Tour Group Size
Upto 8 people
8. Testaccio Market Food Tour
Tour Duration
3.5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
Despite being a modern Cosmopolitan city, Roma has tucked away its delightfully obsolescent vibe at select nooks. Testaccio happens to be one of those, housing the working class spine of this historic city in the form of earnest food vendors. This tour will bring forth the side of Rome that an average Roman sees. Less glamorous, but as graceful as ever.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- See the famous man made Terracotta hill and eat at the restaurant adjacent to it.
- Find out for yourself if the best pizza in Testaccio lives up to its repute.
- Sample the best local pasta, gelato, and panino sandwiches from the food vendors at the local market.
Tour Group Size
Upto 8 people
9. Local Foodie Tour in Trastevere with Wine and Dinner
Tour Duration
3 Hours
Food Tour Summary
We can see that with the advent of technology and the boom of the tourism industry, the old fashioned expeditions are losing the battle of existence. However, there is at least one tour that keeps the essence of a food tour intact. With this food tour, you get to visit the best restaurants of Trastevere, sip on local wine and aperitivo. The tour, of course, ends with an exquisite dinner. Classic.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Stop at six different eateries and explore the entire Roman platter on a single tour .
- Try the traditional Roman street food, the salted codfish, or Baccalà.
- Enjoy the local wine available throughout the tour and end the day with some gelato.
Tour Group Size
Upto 10 people
10. Vatican Neighborhood Evening Food Tour
Tour Duration
3.5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
There are a few cards up the sleeve of the city of love that can never be matched, no matter how far and wide you look. This food tour is one of those trump cards. An evening tour in Vatican neighborhood with its impeccable cobblestone lanes are a delight by itself. Add to that the local cuisine, the variety of cheese, cured meat, and wine. If it ended with a dinner, it’d have been perfect. Oh wait, it does end with dinner!
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Ask the local expert about the city and the neighborhood, they’ll be more than happy to gush about the city.
- Visit a typical prosciutteria just like a local would.
- Complete your ample dinner at a traditional Italian family-run tavern.
Tour Group Size
Upto 10 people
Best Rome Wine Tours
Although, all food tours in Rome provide you with wine, only a dedicated wine tour will do proper justice to the array of the offerings in Rome. Here are a few wine tours you can pick.
11. Countryside Vineyard Estate Tour with Wine Tasting
Tour Duration
3.5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
Wine and its accessories are best enjoyed close to its source. This wine tour is curated to take to hearts of the people who like to enjoy things the right way. Travel to the Frascati region right outside Roma and discover the process of wine making. Enjoy your wine at the placid pace of the countryside, while learning about oldest winery in the region.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Smell and taste some of the highly revered wines of Italy.
- Feast on a dessert wine and fresh extra virgin olive oil.
- Observe the countryside lifestyle up close and personal.
Tour Group Size
Upto 25 people
12. Rome Wine Tasting Tour
Tour Duration
1 Hour
Food Tour Summary
The Lazio region in Italy, like all other regions in the country, has its unique take on every aspect of food and cooking. With this tour that will let you explore an important part of Roman history, you get to experience the region’s inimitable wine culture. You will be familiarized with the significance of pairing food items with the drinks, all the while sipping on assorted regional wine.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Sip on three elect wines during the course of the tour.
- Visit Castelli Romani, the home of numerous vineyards.
- Learn how wine and the process of making it is an integral part of Roman history.
Tour Group Size
Upto 12 people
13. Ancient Rome and Roman Vineyards with Wine Tasting
Tour Duration
8.5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
Staying true to the adage, we have certainly saved the best for the last. As the name elaborates, this tour includes an extensive tour of ancient Rome. You begin at the Colosseum, the absolute must visit place in the city. Then you touch upon the Roman Forum, and the Palatine Hill before ending up at the picturesque Pallavicini Estate. Keeping you company will be an assortment of regional wines and food.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Take a stroll in the sprawling vineyards of the Pallavicini Estate.
- Utilize your time hitting several local cafes in the area, and collecting souvenirs.
- Dine on the famous tomato bruschetta of the Pallavicini Estate along with their trademark dessert wine, Stillato.
Tour Group Size
Upto 25 people
14. Evening Paint and Sip Tour
Tour Duration
3.5 Hours
Food Tour Summary
When you are at the Eternal City, you can expect art to permeate everywhere. This one of a kind tour calls you to experience Roman history and development through architecture, art, and of course, food. The delightful plunge into Roma’s illustrious past ends with a canvas, paint brushes, colors, and a menu exclusively curated for this tour. A better match never existed.
Why You Should Take This Food Tour
- Learn about the historical figures of Rome and how they were responsible in bringing the city where it is now.
- Take a fully guided tour of Baroque Piazza Farnese, Campo di Fiori, Piazza Navona, and Basilica Sant’ Andrea della Valle upon arriving at the art studio.
- Pick up valuable tips from experienced art instructors during the tour.
Tour Group Size
Upto 12 people
What to Eat in Rome?
Like they say, when in Rome, eat as Romans do. But what all should you definitely eat? Here are the top 5 dishes you must try on your trip to Rome. Most Food Tours in Rome give you a sample of these, but if you're doing a self culinary tour of Rome, make sure you try these!
Tips to Relish Food Tours in Rome
- Reach all pick up and meeting points 15 minutes in advance.
- If you are planning to pack multiple tours in a day, grab the morning slot of the tours that offer one. Most of the tours begin post noon, and going for the early hours will help you keep your options open.
- Enquire about the food tours in Rome that include a visit to the farmers’ market only if you opt for the early morning tour.
- Skip the queues at the Colosseum, Roman Forum, and the Palatine hill by opting for the Ancient Rome wine tour instead of a separate visit.
