We consider ourselves lucky to have friends in Rome. On the evening that we met Alessandra and Michela, we had decided to take them to the Fillatteria Di Santa Barbara, a restaurant we've been meaning to go to every time we travel to Rome. We had been trying to make time for trying it for the entire two weeks that we were in Rome and only managed it on the second to the last evening. We were very pleased that we finally tried their fried baccala made from dried cod that had been soaked in water for three days. It was extraordinary.
Baccala was nothing new to any of us. Both my husband's grandmother and mine had spoken of it, and the girls had eaten it all their lives. I had finally put myself into the right head space to give it a whirl in Portugal, many years ago, but it was stringy, and very fishy in taste and I swore I would never eat it again. Learning its history in Norway gave me a greater appreciation of it, so I was willing to give it one more shot, though a bit begrudgingly. What a revelation! We loved its fresh taste and thought the texture was not unlike that of fresh caught fish. The batter was crisp too, and all was right with the world.
Dar Filettaro has a very interesting menu. It was extremely limited, and every item on it cost exactly five euro. The first thing the waiter asked upon arriving at our table, was how many pieces of baccala? Each piece was 5 euro. If we wanted salad, which was the traditional Roman salad composed of chicory and anchovy you paid another 5 euro. I wanted to try the giardinaria, pickled, grilled vegetables. That added an additional 5 euros. Fried zucchini anyone? Another 5 euro.
All in all, it was still the cheapest dinner that we ate in Rome, considering the number of people that were eating. Everyone had a good meal, everyone was full, and each of us has plans to return to this Roman institution of fried food. I'm grateful to report that the bread seemed to be gratis, but this was a no frills operation, as is evidenced by the, I use the term loosely, napkins. That did not deter the long line of people waiting at the door to get inside.
| Largo dei Librari 88 |
| Rome, Lazio Italy |
| 06 6864018 |
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