Located up a side street off of Corso Vittorio Emanuele in Rome, Enoteca Corsi is very easy to find on Via Del Gesu, just across the street from Chiesa Del Gesu. As you walk up the street and it narrows and darkens from the shade from the surrounding buildings, don't lose heart. The enoteca is just up the street to the left at number 87-88.
Number 87 is the enoteca with its dark wood paneling and matching bar. Bottles of regional wines and grappa make their way to the ceiling surrounding a smattering of wooden tables. Take in the atmosphere and enjoy it. Enoteca Corsi is from another era and you will likely not see more places like this in the future as modernization sweeps the many trattorie and osterie in this city.
When we walked in, we saw local workmen at the bar, ordering carafes of wine filled from the spigots behind the bar. Old world charm revealed itself in small ways, like the tiled floor is a small side room. Most of the other diners lingered over their meals and were speaking Italian. With the exception of ourselves, the only other person speaking English was our hostess. Her family owns the enoteca, and her husband was proud to point himself out in one of the photos, after I showed them the David Downey book Food and Wine Rome, one of his new terroir books. They were tickled to see the book, because they had only seen an article, perhaps a tear sheet, from the author.
We told them that we had come for the Carbonara, which was not on the daily menu. They were happy to make it up for us and even offered us a choice of pasta; we ordered both. The menu was very modest in price with pasta costing 9 euro instead of the usual 10 - 12. It included meat and fish as well as antipasti. As it turned out our special order cost 12 euro per plate, but we were very pleased to be accommodated and were happy to pay that.
We tried the local Frascati and found it refreshing. The bread that appears on every table in Italy was excellent, rustic Italian bread and came with a condiment of fruity olive oil.
What about number 88? I walked outside and discovered a very large room filled with more tables. It can easily be imagined completely full, but since we walked in within 20 minutes of closing, it only had the family and their friends sitting around one of the tables chatting. I'll bet this restaurant is lively during lunch hour. After looking through their website, it seems they also offer accommodations across the street from the osteria. It's a great central location.
| Via del Gesù, 87/88 |
| 00186 Rome Italy |
| +39 06 679 0821 |
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