ROME: “Al Bric” – A bric-à-brac of random food.

Cheesy Wonderfulness!

Al Bric just off of Campo dei Fiori in Rome is an enoteca I have walked past for four years of my life longing to go in, lured perhaps by the fantabulous selection of ultra-mature oozy French cheeses, crumbly Italian “stagionati”, the dusty collection of prize vintage wines vying for position in the window from Pétrus and  Mouton Rothschild to some Amarone that would knock your socks and feet off… I had never actually set foot in the place though until this week when I finally convinced Francesco that spending €15 for a glass of wine was just plain intelligent.

Bartaruga Wine Bar – ROME

This is the kind of hip and quirky little bar you’d find anywhere from London, via Berlin to Reykjavik. It’s not quite pub, but not yet poncey wine bar, and has enough style behind it to merit an insert in a cool travel magazine. The only difference being that here, in the heart of one the world’s greatest wine producing countries, in a city that by rights should have quirky cool bars coming out of its ears, this one feels itself to be so unique and special it can serve you a mediocre quality, piddly sized glass of Montepulciano for 12 euros and keep a straight face. Oh and you have to ask to get a small bowl of soggy peanuts to go with it.