Giggetto Al Portico d’Ottavia

In an attempt to avoid the packed tourist areas of Rome, we wandered down random alleyways until stumbling upon Giggetto 2, which seems to be a smaller version of the main Giggetto (which we discovered after our meal, when we went just around the corner).
It seemed a good place to eat, with only locals and simple atmosphere. The prices were reasonable considering this is Rome. The service was fine, short and to the point, perhaps made a little better by my at least attempting to converse in Italian.
We ordered three different kinds of pizza, but what arrived could well have been of the frozen store-​bought variety. The dough was barely cooked through, the sauce was warm at best, and the cheese was barely passable. For 10 euro a pizza, you’re better off going to the store and buying your own ingredients.

Could not have been better! The ossobucco simply feel of the marrow rich bone, very rich sauce with fresh peas. The only classic Jewish fried artichoke was crispy yet tender. Who would have thought eating leaves was possible and tasty. And the asparagus Bismarck blew my mind!
Service was slow and the place was packed, we got in early and had good seating. The only comment was the service was a bit slow.

Super Tipp unseres Hotels. Landestypischer Ambiente. Speisen von Euro 3,– bis ca. 25, – . Sehr saubere, einsehbare Küche. Den Empfehlungen des Obers könnten wir bedenkenlos folgen. Vorspeise (zucchini) und die Pasta (Spezialität des Chefs) sowie Ossobuco waren vorzüglich. Dazu ein gut temperierter Rose, excellence. Die Nachspeise, ein ausgebackener Kuchen, rundete mit einem Kaffee den Besuch ab.

OVERALL: An OK restaurant that seems to benefit greatly from tourists who will only visit once. It’s OK, but we probably won’t go back. (For the same amount, you could eat at Roberto e Loretta on Via Saturnia in San Giovanni.)
FOOD: The food was good/​homey. The osso bucco and coda (each € 15) are like pot roasts, but there’s more substance to the former than the latter. I expected the coda (tail) to have a lot of bone and fat – which it did – but there were only a couple of pieces, so there wasn’t much meat to it. The food was fine, but it’s over-​priced for what it is. (E.g., € 3 for 1 greasy stuffed zucchini flower.) FYI: the house white wine (they were out of red) seemed like a rather thin sauvignon blanc; also just OK. The tiramisu and panna cotta were, again, just OK.
AMBIANCE: Do not eat out in front as we did, with occasional wafts of gutter stench and sewage. Instead, eat on the back patio or inside.
SERVICE: The waitstaff stayed busy, but they seemed nice only to the Italians. If you’re a foreign tourist, expect curt indifference (borderline Parisian, and not in a good way).
LOCATION NOTE: The Unilocal map pin is deceptively placed (though I’ve submitted an edit). As the name implies, the restaurant is right next to Portico d’ Ottavia on Via Del Portico d’Ottavia. (The Unilocal map pin currently indicates that it’s on Via Sant’Angelo in Pescheria; that’s the back of the restaurant and you’ll have to walk the long way ’round to the front.)

Giggetto est l’un des meilleurs restos du quartier juif de Rome: on y déguste les meilleurs artichauts frits (LA spécialité locale) appelés «Carciofi alla giudia» mais aussi les suppli (boulette de riz au fromage et à la sauce tomate), les spaghetti «Cacio e peppe» ou encore des beignets de mozzarella… Bref un concentré des spécialités romaines. J’ai beaucoup apprécié ce repas (même si c’était pas très light), et puis le gars qui épluchait les artichauts à l’entrée avait une dextérité incroyable. il a été super sympa quand je lui ai demandé de le prendre en photo.

Artischocken und frittierte Zucchini als Spezialität, Essen sonst normal.

If only Unilocal had an option to provide negative stars… I went to Giggetto based on a recommendation from a popular food blogger based in Rome. Most of her suggestions have been great but Giggettos was a huge disappointment. I had the fried artichokes (lukewarm and dripping of brown grease… how is this a house specialty?), fried zucchini flowers which were fishy (anchovies stuffed in the flowers are fine by me but this was horrible… also € 3 /​piece), pasta amatriciana and the rigatoni gricia. Both pastas were extremely salty, I took one bite of each and didn’t take another. Service is average but I’m from NYC and generally used to the less friendly wait staff. Beware, don’t fall for the trap. Avoid like the plague.

It’s ok, not bad, pretty average and not too special.

April 2013. very poor service, the waiter ignored us as soon as he realized that we were tourist. food was average to below. dog in restaurant (which I’m not apposed to… but…) it was barking and defecating on the floor while we ate. the prices where high and they charged us a ton for bread and water. portions small and bland, primi piatte 18 euro.
overall a horrible dinning experience.
worst on trip.

Ok, my review is based on my experience in 2007. It was fantastic! Not only did the restaurant reserve a large portion of the patio for our wedding party they gave us great service. This is an authentic Italian restaurant especially for Rome. Great food, the croquette’s were amazing and the pasta homemade. All produce is brought in from the Tuscany region. If you have never had real Italian food or service, this place could come as a shock. But if you’re looking for a true roman experience sans gladiator actors, this is a great place.

sehr gute Hosteria im jüdischen Viertel, Spezialiät sind Artischocken, empfehelnswert ist die fritierte Variante sehr lecker

Le service est sympa, les artichauts frits savoureux mais le rapport qualite prix est mediocre
14 euros pour un plat de pates et haricots blancs a la tomate !!! A eviter
Le cadre est chaleureux

This place was strongly recommended by our hotel concierge, and it was packed with both tourists and locals. It’s on a quaint street and I wanted to like it, but it was just terrible. It was an hour and a half from when we sat down to when we got our first entrees. The outdoor patio is loud and smoky. The croquette appetizer is a single croquette — not exactly enough to hold you over for an hour and half. My wife liked the zucchini flowers, but they were a little fishy for my taste. (We actually stopped in a couple of nights later — slightly better service, and the zucchini flowers were still tasty to her). Our pasta entrees were both too salty. With so many restaurants in the area, I’d skip this one.

le patron Mon ami Claudio, toujours tres charmant vous accueilleras très chaleureusement, la vrai cousine italienne ancienne artichauts, dans tous le maniéré, poisson viande (agneaux, mouton) contourne un bon vin rouge
vous aller régalez!!!