This book is dedicated to my mom, Joj, who scrimped and saved to send me to Italy for that first trip back in the ’90s, and who only panicked a little when I announced my move to Italy as a high school sophomore.

This book was absolutely a team effort. Ed Anderson’s photographs bring Rome’s grit and beauty into focus. Ian Dingman’s design raises the bar yet again for what’s possible when the publisher lets creative genius run wild. Heather Rodino’s edits kept the prose sharp, and Ken DellaPenta’s meticulous index makes the whole thing navigable.

None of this would exist without the generosity of the people who welcomed me into their kitchens, bakeries, enoteche, dining rooms, and cocktail bars. Rome is endlessly complicated and always changing, and having the chance to cook, eat, and talk with those who keep its food culture alive was a gift. I am especially grateful to the Gargioli family of Armando al Pantheon; Leonardo Vignoli and Maria Pia Cicconi at Cesare al Casaletto; the Roscioli family; Sarah Cicolini at Santo Palato; chef Nabil Hadj Hassen at Baccano; Andrea D’Alfonsi, Umberto Mussato, and everyone at Piatto Romano; Gabriele Bonci and the crews at Panificio Bonci and Pizzarium; Antonio Cossu of Latteria; Patrizia and Paola Persiani and Giuseppe Ruzzettu of Tavernaccia da Bruno; Stefano Callegari of Trapizzino and Romanè; Fabrizio Roscioli and the whole Forno Campo de’ Fiori team; Francesca Barreca and Marco Baccanelli of Mazzo; Il Vinaietto; Massimo Crippa at L’Angolo Divino; Sora Lella; Da Corrado; Tram Tram; Pastificio Mauro Secondi; Trecca; Al Moro; The Jerry Thomas Bar Room; Sami El Sabawy at A Rota; Ale Ruver of Ruver Taglia Frazionata; Forno Colapicchioni; Eroi della Pizza; Artenio; Boccione; the winemakers of Icaro; Matteo Zed and the crew at The Court; and Pizzeria Ostiense. Your time, trust, and generosity made this project possible.

The wardrobe was by Jessica Harris, whom I first met as a student in Rome back in college. She dreamed up Leopardessa originals and paired them with loaned and gifted pieces from Repe, Iosellani, AS Roma, and Miss Sunshine, making me look like an extremely fashionable adult human for once. Additional wardrobe came from Pezzi Roma.

Dario Polani, aka the Roman Baker, generously shared his ciambelline al vino recipe. Doje.

Thanks also to Mattia Gandini for support during the shoot, Lydia O’Brien for a first read, and to the Parla Tours guides for pressing pause on their jobs as the city’s finest culinary ambassadors to show up and eat and drink for the camera.

Grazie to Roberto, who endures my endless editing agita without a single complaint.

Finally, thank you to you, the reader. This is something like my fortieth book, but the third to be published under Parla Publishing, a project I founded to create books on food and culture outside the limits of traditional publishing. Your support made it possible for me to share Rome in my own way, on my own terms, with a book that was independently financed, published, and 100% made in Italy.