Before the Date…
*Queue romantic Italian accordian music*
You finally did it. You figured out how to do the Eat portion of your Eat, Pray, Love fantasy. A summer in Rome wandering the streets sipping wine between pasta and romantic interludes. Tonight is special as it’s your favorite night eating at your favorite family owned pasta joint after sipping and learning all the wines of Italy.
*Queue horn honking out your apartment window*
That dream may only be a dream but in reality for one night you can turn a little corner of LA into an old street in Rome.
So gather your Eat, Pray, Love travel buddy and head out to live the dream for just one night.
St0p #1: arrive @5:15pm
APERITIVO
on a sunny grotto
What to Know
This bar is well known as having phenomenal talent. Talk to the friendly bartenders for some creativity. To keep the Italian theme the negroni is great.
Happy hour is 2pm-7pm with $8 cocktails, $5 beers and $6 wines.
Pay attention to the sundown time as it may get cold when you’re planning to enjoy the front patio.
If you plan to sit inside there is a table in the back room with hidden drawers full of notes from dinners past. It’s a fun place to hang and re-live peoples comments of long ago.
St0p #2: 6:00pm
WINE TASTING
with a local paisan
What to Know
It may be a little confusing when you first walk in. Head straight to the counter to greet Lou and pay for your tastings. He will then send you to the table in the back.
The tastings are not always on certain days so the best thing to do is sign up for Lou’s newsletter. He sends emails the morning of every tasting.
Strike up a conversation with some of the other people tasting wine. A lot of folks involved in the wine industry hang here and are really interesting.
Lou gives you a 10% discount on bottles from the tasting. Pick one up for Stop #3.
St0p #3: 7:15pm
DINNER
from an authentic family
What to Know
This is a family operation run by couple Paulo and Carlotta. But the origins stretch all the way back to 27 years ago when Paulo’s sister opened the first La Pergoletta in Florianopolis, an island off the coast of Brazil.
The “help from my friends” comes from the fact that Lou (from Stop #2) helped Paulo curate the wine menu which wasn’t in existance until 2018.
If you want to bring a bottle from Lou’s or home its a $20/bottle fee.
What to order: Have a look above the counter. The pasta under “pasta fresca” is what you want to order. Then you combine it with a sauce. Try the etrusca and their massive meatball.
Bonus: Want to continue the party? Head across the street to Ye Rustic Inn for a quintessential dive bar evening.