A true Italian Dinner for Ciara Gold and family (Ristorante Su E Giù)

Our last night in Rome, my mom, son and I ventured out to find a small restaurant recommended to us by the hotel. We walked a few blocks but found it and entered the small, homey establishment. We had no idea what to expect. First of all, most of the locals work on a different time clock. They eat late and most restaurants don't even open until 7:00 PM or so. So, when we arrived, there was only one other customer. The place was full, though, by the time we left.

We were greeted by a very animated, young Italian man who made the experience so much more than just eating. His name was Daniel. The restaurant was Ristorante Su E Giù. From what we could gather, his father did the cooking and all I can say is "wow."

We giggled as we tried to make sense of the menu but we didn't need the menu. Daniel gave us an oral recitation with descriptions. We wanted to try it all by the time he finished. Italians serve a three or four course meal. You start with the appetizers and Daniel offered to bring us a sampler. The place consisted of a rice ball with tomato sauce wrapped around cheese and deep fried (my personal favorite), calamari (they fried the whole squid), fried sardines (which I actually liked), fried zucchini and some sort of sausage.

For the main meal, we all got something different so we could taste-test each others' food. I don't remember now what I ordered but it was divine. We also ordered the house wine. My mom loves wine so she actually bought two bottles to take with us. Since it was their house wine, though, they didn't have bottles so Daniel filled to empty water bottles with the wine. Every time we drank a bit of that wine when we settled into each hotel room for the night, we laughed. I think it took us three days to finish those two bottles.

For desert, we enjoyed Tiramisu. By the time we left, we were quite full but the moment was probably one of the best memories we'll have of our vacation. For one, it was a moment we shared between just the three of us and not the rest of the group. It was a special time to enjoy.