AIRicMAC in Europe: Roman Recommendations: Gelato

As I walk around the center of Rome these days and notice that it's infiltrated with tourists more so than any other part of the year, I can't help but feel dismayed when I see these tourists going to subpar tourist traps and so called authentic places which really in fact cater to out of towners more than anything. But as tourists in any foreign place, could we possibly know any better? I was around the Vatican running some errands when I saw what I think were Americans sitting around eating this gelato and raving how big it was. Ok...so the fact that it's gelato in Italy already means it's better than average ice cream found elsewhere. However, there's been many a time when I have wanted to interrupt these people and say, "Excuse me, if you want to find really good [fill in the blank], you should go here."

So I figured, I'd start a "series", if you will, of my favorite places in Rome. So if you ever come to Rome you should try to find these places. Most of these favorites and recommendations were suggested to me by Italians and have been thoroughly tested by me (mmmmmm) and all my visitors (yes...many of them) that have come by.

Since we're on the subject of Gelato, why don't we start with my favorite Gelato place (pictured above) called Da Quinto. Its address is:

15 Via di Tor Millina (right near Piazza Navona). Click the Map to go to Google Maps.

This place was recommended to me by Francesco as one of the bests in Rome. Unlike most Gelato places that usually show off the actual gelato, all you can see are the list of flavors. It's kind of like "we know it's good, you don't need to see it". All of their gelato is made in house by the husband and wife duo of owners. Their help is fantastically nice and proof is on the wall that they've had many famous customers such as Ben Stiller and the red head kid from "Harry Potter". They also have their gelato flavors listed in about 5 different languages. The decor is fresh with a tropical theme. And how can you go wrong when they have a Florida Gator t-shirt on their wall in addition to a lot of University of Illinois paraphernalia (that's for you LeAnne and Holly V.).

The key to this place is value. You can get a cone here for 1.50 euro. While most places limit you to either 2 or 3 (sometimes only 1) I've rarely seen them turn down a request to put how many flavors you want. My friends Holly H. & Melanie managed to pack in 5 flavors in a cone (see pic below). In fact during their 4 day visit to Rome, we went everyday to Da Quinto. Whenever my family was here we would go out of our way just to go. You can also get many other things when you're not in the mood for gelato, such as fresh squeezed juice, smoothies, slushies, etc.

My favorite flavors (and others favorites) at this place include: