My Well Seasoned Life

Food and Travel

  • Home
  • Food
    • Appetizers
    • Entrees
    • Side dish
    • Soup
    • Desserts
  • Travel
    • Los Angeles
    • New York
    • Europe
  • Photos
    • Photos
    • Photo Challenge
  • Videos
    • Food
    • Travel
    • Favorites
  • Stories
  • Recipe Index

Gensola Trattoria, Rome: When in Rome, follow Katie Parla’s advice

April 23, 2013 by Judy Lyness Leave a Comment

http://www.osterialagensola.it/

1. Gensola ext-001Since we arrived Rome has been awash in wisteria.  One landmark we used to let us know the apartment wasn’t far was a wonderfully lush corner with the ubiquitous bloom.  What we didn’t know was that very landmark housed Gensola Trattoria, one of Katie Parla’s recommendations.  The restaurant is unassuming and approachable, the staff helpful and attentive, the food exceptional.  We kept to the Parla plan with a slight detour. Interior-001

Fried artichokes started us off.  Crispy chips of the outer leaves yield a sweet soft center.Good Choke-001Next tuna tartar.  The surprise of this dish was how the addition of the finely diced celery added a clean crunch to the tartar.  The horseradish cream made with a light sour cream/crème fraishe could have used a bit more horseradish for us, yet the entire plate satisfied.  Plus they gave us a ton of tuna.tuna-001Sadly, the sea bass ravioli sold out (a Parla recommendation), so we ordered the pasta special with prawns, asparagus and fresh tomatoes instead.  As our waitress, Federica explained it, the flavors are very fresh like spring. I am here to tell you that this dish was by far the best tasting pasta dish bar none.  Thin strands of egg pasta, sweet prawns, thin asparagus sliced to delicate orbs, yet the flavor that held the dish together was a rich, smoky pepper flavor.  Pasta-001This was difficult for us to figure out so we asked Federica what the flavor was she typed onto my I-Phone “black pepper”.  Mz. Riz and I asked, “a special black pepper?”  Fredrica brought over her associat, Angelo who explained that it was guanciale seasoned with black pepper.  The dish coalesced in my brain.  The soft bits of what I assumed were bacon were guanciale that released its fresh pepper flavor to dish.  Typing this makes my mouth water.New camera+wine=blurry picture.

New camera+wine=blurry picture.

We shared seared cod with tomatoes.  Simple, seared to crispy perfection surrounded by the reddest tomatoes that added sweetness to the briny cod.  A small vanilla gelato finished the meal and us.

Share this:

  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • Facebook

Like this:

Like Loading...
Yum

Filed Under: Europe, Travel Tagged With: cod, Gensola, guanciale, Katie Parla, pasta, sea food, Trastevere

Comments

  1. ShePaused4Thought says

    April 23, 2013 at 3:04 PM

    Oh my, it all looks so yummy! My mouth is watering just reading this.

    Reply
    • Judy at Two Broads Abroad says

      April 23, 2013 at 3:06 PM

      I wish I could cook this pasta. When we have the underground you must come.

      Reply
  2. Mama's Gotta Bake says

    April 23, 2013 at 8:40 PM

    Italy is a food lover’s paradise! It all looks so good. Enjoy!

    Reply
  3. Lentil Breakdown says

    April 23, 2013 at 10:59 PM

    Wow, the colors of that pasta dish and the tomatoes are psychedelic! Wow! When do you have time to do your post? When in Rome…blog.

    Reply
    • Judy at Two Broads Abroad says

      April 24, 2013 at 10:27 AM

      I wrote this one on the train from Rome to Naples. Please don’t expect much more than pictures from now on.

      Reply
  4. lazybill says

    April 25, 2013 at 8:36 AM

    I miss eating in Rome with all the courses. Really like the look of tuna tartar.

    Reply
    • Judy at Two Broads Abroad says

      April 26, 2013 at 12:22 AM

      The tuna was great. Thanks for stopping by.

      Reply

Leave a ReplyCancel reply

Categories

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 866 other subscribers
  • Facebook
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Top Posts & Pages

  • Egyptian Roasted Chicken
    Egyptian Roasted Chicken
  • Beef Shank Sandwiches
    Beef Shank Sandwiches
  • Spicy Collard Greens with Corn
    Spicy Collard Greens with Corn
  • Pepper and Fig Salsa on Endive Spears
    Pepper and Fig Salsa on Endive Spears
  • Lychee and Cherry Clafoutis
    Lychee and Cherry Clafoutis
  • Blueberry Cardamom Compote
    Blueberry Cardamom Compote
  • Cronuts: Deep Fried Croissants
    Cronuts: Deep Fried Croissants
  • Salmon Cakes
    Salmon Cakes
  • Florentine Cookies
    Florentine Cookies
  • Sicilian Christmas Cookies
    Sicilian Christmas Cookies

Menu

  • Contact
  • About
  • Video Production

About

I moonlight as a television producer, mostly of food/travel shows (go figure). I've owned my own bakery, worked in many places in NYC as both pastry chef and cuisine. Read More…

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Recent

  • Thoughts and Music While Driving to Savannah on I-40
  • Summer Corn Salad
  • Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breasts
  • Quick and Easy One Pot Artichoke, Black Olive, Tomato, Feta and Shrimp Combo With or Without Starch

Copyright © 2025 · Magazine Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

%d