Looking for reasonably priced restaurants near central station in
Rome. What's the best way to order and what's good? Do you tip? any
information appreciated.

Thanks SD

[email protected] (Julie) wrote:
    > Looking for reasonably priced restaurants near central station in
    > Rome. What's the best way to order and what's good? Do you tip? any
    > information appreciated.

We stayed across the street from Termini. There are many restaurants
in the neighborhood. Some might be expensive but each at which we ate
was moderately priced, our meals generally being less than $30 for two
including wine.

In one town, we accidentally found ourselves in The Best Restaurant in
Town. It deserved a good reputation and it, too, was modestly priced.
__________________________________________________ ________________
A gourmand in San Francisco who says: "You serve it, I'll eat it!"
http://geocities.com/dancefest/ http://geocities.com/iconoc/
ICQ: http://wwp.mirabilis.com/19098103 IClast at SFbay Net

On 16 Apr 2003 19:49:32 -0700, [email protected] (Julie)
wrote:

    >Looking for reasonably priced restaurants near central station in
    >Rome. What's the best way to order and what's good? Do you tip? any
    >information appreciated.

You're heading for a tourist-ripoff area. Beware mysterious
surcharges, charges for items you didn't order, and high prices, all
of which happened to us routinely there.

Make your acquaintence with a local and treat him/her to dinner (if
they will allow you to pay at all!)

He/she will order, etc - and you can learn first hand from the
pro's...

Ahh, Italia!

grey wrote:
    > You're heading for a tourist-ripoff area. Beware mysterious
    > surcharges, charges for items you didn't order, and high prices, all
    > of which happened to us routinely there.

How/Why is it that our experiences vary so? Your impression/experience
is radically different from ours. We don't speak Italian. I cannot
imagine what you might have done to speak so ill nor we to have not
had a bad experience. We must've done somethng right; you must've done
something wrong. Someone can surely speculate an enlightenment.
__________________________________________________ ________________
A gourmand in San Francisco who says: "You serve it, I'll eat it!"
http://geocities.com/dancefest/ http://geocities.com/iconoc/
ICQ: http://wwp.mirabilis.com/19098103 IClast at SFbay Net

[email protected] (Icono Clast) wrote in message news:...
    > grey wrote:
    > > You're heading for a tourist-ripoff area. Beware mysterious
    > > surcharges, charges for items you didn't order, and high prices, all
    > > of which happened to us routinely there.
    >
    > How/Why is it that our experiences vary so? Your impression/experience
    > is radically different from ours. We don't speak Italian. I cannot
    > imagine what you might have done to speak so ill nor we to have not
    > had a bad experience. We must've done somethng right; you must've done
    > something wrong. Someone can surely speculate an enlightenment.

Statistical variation. You might have been lucky, or they un-so.
You might have not noticed some of the incidents to which they allude.
The techniques are intended to produce that result. You may choose
better. Maybe he has higher standards. Maybe you are more likely
to lend the benefit of the doubt.


FWIW, I frequently find errors in restaurant bills.
And some places have the strangest account procedures which make
it difficult to decipher what they were doing. And that was all
here in the US where I could understand the language. In countries
with foreign languages and customs, it is all that harder. Throw
in some suspicion and what might be taken as a simple mistake
here at Denny's suddenly takes on the parameters of an scam outside
the Termini.

[email protected] (me) wrote:
    > [email protected] (Icono Clast) wrote:
    > > How/Why is it that our experiences vary so? . . .
    > > Someone can surely speculate an enlightenment.
    >
    > Statistical variation. You might have been lucky, or they un-so.
    > You might have not noticed some of the incidents to which they allude.
    > The techniques are intended to produce that result. You may choose
    > better. Maybe he has higher standards. Maybe you are more likely
    > to lend the benefit of the doubt.

What an excellent response! Bravo!

    > FWIW, I frequently find errors in restaurant bills.

I usually have an idea of what the amount will be. If it's close
enough, I don't check carefully. If it isn't, I do check carefully.
But I always check.
__________________________________________________ __________
A San Franciscan who says: "You serve it, I'll eat it!"
http://geocities.com/dancefest/ http://geocities.com/iconoc/
ICQ: http://wwp.mirabilis.com/19098103 IClast at SFbay Net

On Thu, 17 Apr 2003 11:04:10 -0400, grey wrote:

    >On 16 Apr 2003 19:49:32 -0700, [email protected] (Julie)
    >wrote:
    >>Looking for reasonably priced restaurants near central station in
    >>Rome. What's the best way to order and what's good? Do you tip? any
    >>information appreciated.
    >You're heading for a tourist-ripoff area. Beware mysterious
    >surcharges, charges for items you didn't order, and high prices, all
    >of which happened to us routinely there.

I never had a problem in Rome with this -- even in what have seemed like
"tourist" restaurants I got great food at what I thought was a reasonable price.

One thing you need to be aware of is the possibility of service charges in
tourist restaurants and also the customary "pane e coperto" charge -- ballpark
$3 -- in a traditional Italian restaurant (where neither tipping nor a service
charge are expected). There are surcharges that you won't find mysterious if
you read the menu first.
--
"If this is coffee, please bring me some tea. If this is tea, please bring me some coffee."
- Abraham Lincoln

    >I never had a problem in Rome with this -- even in what have seemed like
    >"tourist" restaurants I got great food at what I thought was a reasonable
    >price.
    >One thing you need to be aware of is the possibility of service charges in
    >tourist restaurants and also the customary "pane e coperto" charge --
    >ballpark
    >$3 -- in a traditional Italian restaurant (where neither tipping nor a
    >service
    >charge are expected). There are surcharges that you won't find mysterious if
    >you read the menu first.

I always eat in tourist restaurants. There are many around the Termi area
(train station) and for fixed price you get either a 3 or 4 course meal. You
can't go wrong for the price. If your wait staff speak English always ask if
there is an additional service charge. the "pane e coperto" is to cover the
silverm glass and plate charge.

Mike Quint

In article ,
[email protected] (Icono Clast) wrote:

    > [email protected] (me) wrote:
    > > [email protected] (Icono Clast) wrote:
    > > > How/Why is it that our experiences vary so? . . .
    > > > Someone can surely speculate an enlightenment.
    > >
    > > Statistical variation. You might have been lucky, or they un-so.
    > > You might have not noticed some of the incidents to which they allude.
    > > The techniques are intended to produce that result. You may choose
    > > better. Maybe he has higher standards. Maybe you are more likely
    > > to lend the benefit of the doubt.
    >
    > What an excellent response! Bravo!
    >
    > > FWIW, I frequently find errors in restaurant bills.
    >
    > I usually have an idea of what the amount will be. If it's close
    > enough, I don't check carefully. If it isn't, I do check carefully.
    > But I always check.

errors creep in the world around -- but it is an art in some tourist
areas and I am convinced on my experience that restaurants that do this
target people they think will be bullied or unobservant e.g. when my
husband and I dined in Rome we had this experience only once in many
meals. My elderly mother and I dining together had seriously padded
bills at three different restaurants in Rome, three nights in a row.
The most common was to bill for two items when one was eaten e.g. if my
mother had pasta and I had a pizza -- we would be billed for two pastas
and two pizzas. I always check bills and caught this --- but I assume
they thought older women were either less likely to check or less likely
to insist on a correct bill. [one of these jerks actually told us the
'tip wasn't included' after we had pointed out the gross error in hopes
I am sure we would then add a tip.] So experience may vary based on who
you are or appear to be.

Because a young man is not hassled on the street, he should not assume a
young woman might not be. Because a young large man is not overbilled,
he should not assume that an elderly woman might not be.

As a middle aged woman renting an apartment in Italy for the summer, it
took me several rounds of correspondence to get an overcharge taken from
my rental agreement. [the company includes electricity in the rent
during summer, but had also added a utility supplement such as they
charge in the winter]

I love Italy but it is wise to be vigilant in financial matters.