Il Grappolo d'Oro In Frascati

17/03/2025: No tourists (so far) local recommendation. It's worth a visit for a great meal

13/03/2025: Historic venue in the Trastevere area. Since it was recommended to me, I booked with high expectations. I decide to take the first dish which they told me was spectacular: rigatoni amatriciana. Too bad I had to wait 40 minutes because the chef had gotten the wrong type of pasta, then evidently he went to the supermarket to buy it... an incomprehensible wait. Meanwhile the dining room staff tried to entertain me to hide their embarrassment. They ask me if I want some bread and I accept. The rigatoni finally arrived and were so al dente that the imprint of the teeth remained; they weren't al dente, they were just blanched. The amatriciana was loaded with oil. I try to recover my optimism with a dessert and I am tempted by the maitre's proposal: some eggnog cake and ice cream of the same flavour. The ice cream was the best thing but the combination cost €10. Total bill €43 divided as follows: Freshly seared rigatoni €18 water €0.75 €4 bread €3 a glass of wine €8 (good but it wasn't a Brunello di Montalcino) dessert €10. Everyone was nice and sociable but I expected that at least the bread (I'll start by saying that I only ate half a slice) would be discounted given the senseless delay. I give the food 2 stars because I took the average between the first course and the dessert. I can't recommend it because in my experience it is too expensive for the quality offered, but the ice cream shop is worth it. And after 10 hours and at least 10km on foot, the amatriciana is still far from being digested.