the sluttiest rome bakery guide

part 1: roma sud

I am a slut for pastries. Who isn’t? There’s nothing like a flaky little treat fresh out of the oven. Then pair it with a cappuccino? And dip it???

Hold a b*tch back.

Yes, in Italy we dip. We are all about elevating our carbs with a good dunk in a morning cappuccino, or even wine (re: my newsletter, Christmas cookies go better with wine, not milk).

Naturally, pastry sluts have friends who are also pastry sluts who only trigger more temptation. So, when my girl Cristina suggested we do a pastry tour, my response was: This week, Wednesday, what are you doing?

The result: a glorious day of pastries that brought me to carbs I never knew before.

Listen, Rome is a big city with multiple kinds of bakeries. Still, a good viennoiserie or yeast-leavened pastry (like a croissant) can be found often at pasticcerie (pastry shops) and forni (bread bakeries). And sometimes even gelato shops….

So we knew this was only part 1 of this pastry tour.

Rome is home to epic old-school bakeries. It is also home to many hip pastry-loving peeps who are combining the art of French pastry making with the exceptional ingredients Rome and Italy have to offer. We’re talking sexy pain suisse filled with local cherries and luscious pastry cream.

Cuz we gotta be real: we have to thank the French for the pastry mastery we owe to the French. They’ve mastered butter and dough lamination in a way that has made us food hedonists so hooked that cholesterol and calories have become just mere propaganda.

So, rather than saying f— the French, we have to give our best merci. Because I don’t ever want to use the C words again in this newsletter.

For this first pastry tour, we focused on new age bakeries in the mostly Roma sud area (+ Monteverde). Know what that means? Sexy seasonal pastries, GREAT specialty coffee, and surprises.

First stop: