Making guests experience immersive experiences as if they were locals is one of Insideat’s main objectives. In fact, modern curious travelers choose their destination driven by the desire to deeply understand the soul of the territory they’re going to visit. They want to eat like locals, cook like locals, walk like locals, shop like locals, explore the city and get lost in it like locals would. What better place than the food market to obtain this result? Let’s discover Insideat’s proposals for visiting the best Italian food markets.

Come to Rome to visit the most fascinating Italian food markets 

If you are a curious tourist, ready to be fascinated by the true soul of Italy, prepare to immerse yourself in a unique journey in the heart of Rome between history, culture, food and wine. In Rome every stone has a story to tell; every alley, every square and every courtyard tell stories and anecdotes that have hundreds of years of history behind them. What perhaps you don’t know is that you can find so much culture and so much authenticity even among the stalls of the small and large markets of the Italian capital. Yes, because Italian social life, like that of many countries in the Mediterranean area, has always taken place, for more than two thousand years now, in places of sociality between squares, avenues and markets. Economic exchange, as well as cultural exchange, took place in these places since the times of Augustus and Caesar. Goods from the Roman provinces, even thousands of kilometers away from Rome, were sold and exchanged at the market. This was how the Romans of the Urbe (i.e. those who lived right in the city of Rome) could learn about the habits and customs of the Romans in the provinces, from the south to the north of Italy, but also of Asia, Africa and northern Europe. Two thousand years later, the market is still one of the central points of Rome’s social and cultural life. Insideat takes this tradition very close to its heart and accompanies its guests on fascinating excursions to discover the best Italian food markets found in the capital.

Mercato Trionfale in Rome, the largest of the Italian food markets

The Mercato Trionfale in Rome is located in the Prati district, a few dozen meters from the Vatican Museums. Its charm also lies in its being located in an elegant neighborhood, full of architectural and historical wonders, universities and offices, and at the same time representing the quintessence of popular life in a big city. Every day tens of thousands of people from all over Rome wander among its 200 stalls. In this market you are sure to find what you are looking for, from cheap fruit and vegetables, to Italian food rarities; from local cured meats and cheeses, to great ingredients from other Italian regions; from the simple freshly baked Roman pizza, to the most delicious baked products including high quality breads, desserts and biscuits. Here you will find entire stalls dedicated to Italian wine, which can be purchased in bulk and at a good price, or bottled. Or you can buy fresh pasta, prepared every day by the pasta makers of some specialized stalls. Each stall is a discovery and you can also ask to taste something if you want.

A tour of the entire market could take you a long time. Going around more than 200 stalls in search of the tastiest foods can be a demanding activity, for this reason Insideat has decided to create a private experience, dedicated to those who want to treat themselves to a guided tour of the market and be on the safe side, visiting the stalls that offer the best products, so you can also taste them. By booking our Market tour & Italian cooking experience in Rome, you can visit the market together with our accompanying chefs and immediately after participate in one of Insideat’s cooking classes:

• Pizza Class;
• Pasta Class;
• Fettuccine and tiramisu class;
• Pasta, ravioli & tiramisu class.

The Testaccio Market, the great Italian ingredients in the temple of Roman street food 

The Testaccio Market has always been one of the most authentic in Rome. Its proximity to the slaughterhouse has always made it the point of reference for those who want to buy meat of all kinds, from the most noble cuts to the less noble ones. Bovine and sheep offal and innards have in fact always been a basic ingredient of peasant foods and popular Roman cuisine. Even today, many Romans respect and honor this tradition, purchasing liver, heart, lungs, tripe, tail and sweetbreads several times a week. A curiosity: do you know that the original recipe for the famous Roman supplì al telefono (rice balls with a stringy heart of mozzarella) requires that the ragù that seasons the rice be prepared with chicken innards? If you want to know this and other curiosities and if you want to taste the best of Roman street food, book the delicious street food tour of Testaccio with Insideat. Learn about the history behind these foods from our expert guides as you explore cultural monuments such as the Pyramid of Cestius, Monte Testaccio, the former Mattatotio (slaughterhouse) and the Lungotevere Testaccio. Immerse yourself in the authentic atmosphere of the neighborhood, mingling among the locals for a real taste of Rome. The Testaccio food tour proposed by Insideat offers a unique and engaging experience, taking you off the beaten track to discover the heart of Roman culture and cuisine.

Book now the Testaccio street food tour proposed by Insideat or the Market tour & Italian cooking experience in Rome to discover the Trionfale Market.

Discover more about Insideat experiences, cooking classes and food tours all over Italy in this article!

To consult the complete offer of experiences and excursions for families organized by Insideat in Rome, you can consult the catalog on the website https://www.insideat.eu/ and subscribe to the newsletter.

For personalized routes and events, you can receive more information by writing to: info@insideat.eu