After making our wishes with our coins at the beautiful Trevi Fountain, it was time for dinner. Not far from this large Baroque fountain was where La Locanda del Tempio was located.

Even though it was the evening time, we were able to sit comfortably outdoors due to the big outdoor heaters. There were a couple of small tables, but as there were a few of us dining, the waiters happily rearranged the tables to make one that accommodated us. We dined by candlelight! The staff at La Locanda del Tempio were jolly and gave us good service.

Toasted slices of bread flavoured with garlic and topped with fresh, juicy chopped tomatoes made up the starter of the Bruschetta. A few main dishes were ordered including pasta, pizza and vegetables.

The Fettucine ai Funghi was pasta with mushrooms. The ribbons of pasta were really fresh and this made for a simple but tasty dish. Cheese and spinach ravioli with fresh tomatoes was what the Ravioli Amalfi was. The pasta was a bit heavier and we were slightly disappointed with the portion size. It looked more like a starter than a main dish.

Two pizzas were sampled. The Ham and Mushroom pizza and the Diavola pizza both had great crispy bases. The toppings were more generous on the Ham and Mushroom pizza. The Diavola pizza was tomato, cheese and hot salami but it only had two slices of salami on it.

A dish that went down well was the Melanzane alla Parmigaina. The soft baked aubergine slices with the tomato sauce and cheese was really delicious and cooked to perfection.

Now onto the sweet endings of the meal! You can never go wrong with Tiramisu, as long as it is done well! This was the case here at La Locanda del Tempio! The tiramisu was fresh, creamy and had a good strong coffee flavour.

The Cannolo Siciliano was a wafer tube filled with ricotta cheese, chocolate drops and candied orange peel. It was nice enough but it would be too rich for one person. So we were glad that we had shared it.

La Locanda del Tempio does fresh, authentic, great tasting food. We were glad that our first meal in Rome was a success and it made us look forward to sampling more Italian delights on our trip.

La Locanda del Tempio, Via di Pietra 85, Rome

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