Dinner at Dino and Tony’s in Rome….
*please note: I have a few affiliate links in this article. When you click on the link and book or purchase through the Affiliate company, I get a tiny little commission. Teeny tiny … like Tea-Cup Chihuahua tiny but I sure do appreciate your support! There is no extra cost for you! Affiliate links help to keep this blog up and running! I ONLY include links to products or services that I believe in.
I think this story is likely my favorite from this entire trip. I won’t ever forget my dining experience at this Hosteria and I encourage you all to go visit this place.
Picture it: Prati, Roma 2022
I had walked roughly 20 miles in two days and even after a rest at the penthouse, I really did not feel like venturing far. I had heard about a place called Dino and Tony’s before I came to Rome and as luck would have it, the restaurant was literally across the street! I could see it from the terrace! I waited for them to open (7:30) and was ready to get my grub on. Let me set the scene:
Outside there is one long table (made from several small tables, combined) and a few two tops near the curb. These are already taken of course, so I walked inside hoping I didn’t need a reservation. I am immediately and exuberantly greeted by Dino.
Dino: “CIAO!!”
Me: “ciao”
Dino: “Andreaaaa!!!!! (calling to his waitstaff)… followed by a bunch of Italian words strung together in rapid fire succession. Dino power-walks past me and smiles. Dino appears to be in his 60’s and he is at a pace at least 3/4ths faster than Andrea and all the other employees. Dino is a force of nature. I know this within 10 seconds of entering his threshold.
You can tell right away this is the type of place you eat what they suggest and selecting from the menu like a sissy would garner some shaking of heads. Andrea asks what I’d like and I order “pasta mista”, chef’s choice of 2 pastas. But, “small!”, I say, “please!”. Andrea says “not to worry, the plates are small”. HA! I sit watching the scene as Dino is racing around, part waiter, part air traffic controller. He is yelling at his staff (not in an angry way, it’s just how he communicates) while delivering plates of food to patrons and as he does so, he announces your dish in a sports announcer’s voice at volume 50.
This place is entertaining! My food has yet to arrive but I am thoroughly enjoying people watching. I watch other foreigners who are in shock at all of this yelling and activity. Some seem to find it off-putting but I think this is the most hilarious thing to see and hear, their exasperated expressions make it all the more so.
Dino clears tables like he is storming the beaches at Normandy while Andrea moves as though he’s just woken from a nap (in comparison). My first plate of pasta hits the table and it is delicious! I finish it which is a huge mistake because I am already full but I don’t want to disappoint Dino. I am happily chowing down, serenaded by a mixture of Dino’s tirade and Andrea’s muttering under his breath because he’s getting yelled at every 30 seconds (listen, if a 60+ year old guy moves faster than you…..).
I make it halfway through my second plate… when, BAM! A third plate of pasta is delivered. I am already full from the first plate! I gasp audibly and mutter “no! It’s too much!”. A local woman at the table next to me laughs and catches my eye as if to say “You idiot, you should not have eaten so much of the first two dishes”. She knows what us travelers do not: if you are dining with Dino and Tony, you are going to be fed well. You need to pace yourself!
I can only manage a few tasting bites of the third pasta dish. At this point… no. more. pasta. Please, I beg of you. Andrea asks if I would like to try a fried artichoke which sounds incredible but I still have Tiramisu that needs to happen so I decline his offer. I eat my dessert as I watch the inner workings of a small restaurant (a familiar knowing). Dino has now grabbed a cart because he has to deliver so many plates to diners outside and it’s reminiscent of a Nascar event. He snaps (!) the fresh green and white checkered table cloths as he prepares the tables for the next round of hungry patrons. He removes “reserved” signs from tables and grabs those tables to make a larger seating area for the latest group to arrive. He seems not too worried about the fact that those reservations now only exist in time and space, reliant upon the next guests to leave.
Dining here is like dining with your family at Thanksgiving. Too much good food, lots of noise and a genuine feeling of home. This is the epitome of a family run restaurant. I finally ask for my check (in Italy you need to ask for it. They don’t plop it on the table at the end of a meal as we do here in the States).
Dino comes over with his CALCULATOR and tallies up my bill, there is no point of sale machine in this joint, it is strictly old school and I think it’s incredibly charming. $18 euros which I find to be a tiny amount for the dinner and show I just had. If you’re wondering where Tony is… he’s in the kitchen. Dino is front of the house and Tony is in back. These two brothers started this restaurant and have been in business for a long time. I don’t think either of them will ever retire. It felt as though they loved it too much. Dino was more enthusiastic about his Hosteria (Osteria) than the Pope is about Sundays. The food is simple and classic Italiano. If you enjoy lively places and like to get in on the “party”, you should go. If you prefer a quiet, more intimate dining experience and prefer being a sissy (ordering from the menu), I suggest you go elsewhere. Eating here is more of an experience than a meal. What a blast! You can find them on Facebook and they are located in the Prati neighborhood.
p.s- After dinner I sat on the terrace and could hear Dino “conversating” from across the street. 🤣
