Image by Sabrina Favoriti

This is a historical market that has its origins in the early 1970′s. It is located near a wonderful Church: The Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano. I like coming here because of the variety of things that you can find and great deals on clothes that are made with good quality material. If you are in the market for some leather jackets at a reasonable price here is the place to go and remember to negotiate a little for a better price!

Here you can buy fishing equipment, clothes from all seasons all for really low prices.

To reach the Mercatino you can take the Metro A and get off at S.Giovanni.

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Mercatino di Via Sannio | Shopping | Belt € 5.00
Via Sannio | City center
Mon – Fri 08:00 – 13:00, Sat 08:00 – 18:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

This is a great place for bargain shopping.

You can stay here as long or little as you want, depending on how much you like shopping in markets.

Here you can find anything from children shoes to shirts, jeans and bags and to fruits!

A lot of the items are real name brands for really low prices, sometimes as low as € 1.00 per item.

I like starting the day here around 08:00, when it is still not packed with people and do some shopping and catching up with friends.

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Olimpico | Shopping | Shirt € 1.00
Piazza Gentile da Fabriano | Parioli & Flaminio
Fri 08:00 – 13:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

Furla is one of my favorite brand/designers and since we have some stores in Rome, I do go window shopping at times. My favorite store is the one located at Piazza di Spagna.

I go there and look at the purses, wallets and key chains, and then once I make my decision on what I would like, I save a bit of money and so I have an excuse to go back and buy the item. Mainly I love their bags and am so excited about their new collections for this summer… it is so bright!

When I went to visit some of my friends in the States I got them key chains from here since they make a great gift (and doubles as souvenir) – cute and elegant!

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Furla | Shopping | Pink leather purse (m) € 122.50
Piazza di Spagna, 22 | City center | +390669200363
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 20:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

Il Papiro is a neat bookstore next to my house in the north area of Rome. I like to come here because they have a vast selection from the new bestsellers to any genre you can find.

I am an avid and fast reader so I like to come and check out the books and I always find something such as thrillers, mystery and real life stories, plus I like the feel I get when I enter the store it has a nice feel to it and very relaxed with bar stools in front of the registrar and in the back a nice little corner for children.

I also was able to buy different books for my ninety four old grandma who loves to read mystery novels and was also satisfied with the readings! The owners, which are brothers, are very friendly and helpful too if you cannot find what you are looking for they will go out of their way to get it.

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Il Papiro | Art & culture, Shopping | Mystery Novel Book € 9.40
Via Cassia 901/G | Cassia & Montemario | +390630316424
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 13:00 & 16:00 – 20:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

Talco is one of my favorite stores in my neighborhood, I like it because I can walk there from my house but also because it is a small boutique and you tend to get more of a unique and good service which is different from the big and crowded stores of the downtown area of the city, as you can talk to the retail associate and make small talk as you decide what to buy or just to window shop.

The stores prices have a wide range but sometimes they do have nice discounts, last year I bought one of my favorite items in my wardrobe and it is a black vinyl raincoat with a hood and big pockets that I used a lot and still do during those rainy days and it still looks new. For summer I usually buy some of their tops which are classic and trendy at the same time and look great when going out.

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Talco | Shopping | Raincoat € 100
Via di Grottarossa 181 B | Cassia & Montemario | +390633264662
Mon – Sat 10:00 – 13:00 & 16:00 – 20:00

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Image by Annalaura D'Errico

The New York Times once offered it as the ‘best money saving tip’ for Rome when visiting the Eternal City on a budget. But I think you should visit the Esquilino market (better known as the Piazza Vittorio market) not only for its cheap groceries, but also to witness Rome’s slow progression into a multicultural city, catering to the diverse needs of immigrants.

The market used to be one of Rome’s most important and traditional markets. It was located outdoors at the center of Piazza Vittorio and used to be run mostly by Italian –or rather Roman- vendors. As the Esquilino district evolved into a largely immigrant neighborhood, (it is now seen as Rome’s Chinatown), the market was moved indoors in a former milk plant just east of the piazza, and its vendors, as well as its shoppers, are now almost exclusively immigrants.

The Esquilino market is an interesting place to visit to immerse yourself in an exotic atmosphere. Here, you will be able to puzzle at the odd shapes of some vegetables; you will be overpowered by the bright colors and strong smells of spices; you will be frazzled by the din of a multitude of different languages.

Mostly, after having purchased 26 different types of rice and an equally high number of different spices, you will have had a different experience of the ever-evolving Eternal City.

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Mercato di Piazza Vittorio | Art & culture, Shopping
Via Principe Amedeo | City center
Mon – Sat 07:00 – 14:00

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Image by Annalaura D'Errico

Freshly made tortellini, ravioli, fettuccine, gnocchi, lasagne, cannelloni, and crepes. This is what you can find at Renzo e Lucia’s, a fresh pasta shop in the San Paolo-Garbatella area.

There are lots of fresh pasta shops around Rome but what makes Renzo e Lucia so special is that their pasta is really, truly damn goood!! Additionally, it is also a rather good value for the money.

Quality foods are not hard to come by in Italy but sometimes they might as well be sold in a jeweler’s store. At Renzo e Lucia, instead, quality meets good value. This is so evident that people from all over Rome come to shop here.

At Christmas time, when everybody needs to buy their cappelletti for the first course of the traditional Christmas meal (cappelletti in brodo), you can see a crowd outside the shop: people religiously holding onto their queue-number and patiently waiting their turn to be served.

A friend I know buys large quantities of tortellini every time she is in my neighborhood. She then stores them in her freezer until she is ready to use them. “Tortellini in brodo make such comfort food and it’s great to have the best kind at hand throughout the winter” she once told me. So, if you also want your comfort food at hand, Renzo & Lucia is a great place to stock up on it.

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Renzo e Lucia Pasta all’Uovo | Shopping | 1 kg fresh tortellini € 11.00
Via Giustiniano Imperatore 288 | Testaccio & Ostiense | +39065414572
Tue – Wed & Fri – Sat 08:00 – 13:00 & 16:00 – 19:30, Thu 08:00 – 13:00

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rome

Image by Annalaura D'Errico

Every woman knows how important it is to wear a comfortable bra. Wear the wrong one and, by the end of the day, you will know the true meaning of torture.

Many women, however, also don’t want to trade-off style and aesthetics for comfort. Bras are the quintessential garment to feel feminine. It is pleasant when you wear something appealing and stylish. And what better place to find stylish, fashionable underwear than in Rome?

For both these reasons, comfort AND style, you should visit Riccardo’s lingerie store. Who is Riccardo? Riccardo is a 37-year-old guy who is truly an expert in lingerie. Why? He’s been immersed in bras and underwear since he was a teenager. His mom, Jole, owned a little lingerie store and, as is typical here in Italy, kids help out in the family business. One may have thought that gender would have been an obstacle but this has not been the case. Riccardo’s competence has grown over the years and, now, he runs his mom’s small, cluttered, unpretentious shop and gives his aficionado customers all sorts of advice.

After listening to his customer’s needs, he recommends the models he thinks are most appropriate for one’s size, shape and tastes. Needless to say, narrowing down the choice in the end will be difficult simply because his suggestions will have been so right on target. To renew your lingerie, for a great shopping experience and to dismiss old gender stereotypes, go shopping at Riccardo’s.

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Jole Shop | Shopping | A bra € 30
Via Emanuele Filiberto 227 | City center | +390670492626
Mon – Sat 09:30 – 13:30 & 16:00 – 20:00

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Image by Sabrina Favoriti

La Botteguccia di Gilla used to be called something else but now it’s new and improved with new management and owners. If you love quality jewelry like me this is the store to go to, all their items are 925 silver plus you get to see different gems from amber to pearl to coral in very interesting arrangements from simple to more creative.

You can either buy for yourself or as great classy gifts to bring back. The store is very tiny but it is definitely worth it, make sure to check out their own production section as you will find great innovative pieces.

The service is very friendly and you are always greeted with a smile and most of the sales girls are multi lingual. I have to admit that I actually come here more now with the new team than I did before and always leave with a bag in hand!

Via Sistina, were La Botteguccia di Gilla is located, is a street filled with shops and a theatre, so it is conveniently located in the heart of Rome and reachable either by METRO A-Barberini stop via the Spanish Steps. At the middle of the street you, at Via Sistina 22, can find a tiny jewelry store called Cotton Club. It’s right in front of the Sistina Theatre.

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La Botteguccia di Gilla | Shopping | Earings € 38.00
Via Sistina 22 | City center | +39064870698
Winter Mon – Sat 10:00 – 20:00 | Summer 10:00 – 20:00 daily

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Image by Eleonora Baldwin

The acronym stands for Strategic Business Unit, but the name is misleading. We’re talking about one of the city’s most stylish jeans shops, the one where Roman VIPs and stars go to for their vintage low cut Japanese denims. Overseas, the luxury SBU brand is sold at Jones and The Library in London, Fred Segal in Los Angeles, and Beans in Tokyo, to mention a few.

The Rome flagship store is just around the corner from busy Piazza Navona, and specializes in denims, but also designs a sophisticated range of casual clothing, sportswear and tailored leather collection, shoes and very posh fashion accessories, like the 100% cashmere balaclava. I love their crisp white cotton T-shirts, stylish motorcycle jackets and canvas plimsoles.

The old wooden counters, stacked drawer chests, and cast iron columns of this former 1800s draper’s workshop provide the perfect, understated setting for the Perfetti brothers Cristiano and Patrizio’s range of classic and ink-dyed jeans. The pair I bought was a superb indigo stretch denim, which looks perfectly worn and feels oh so soft and supple, and a men’s leather combat boot, which–if properly treated–keeps my feet chic and dry in all weather conditions.

Besides the large street-front rooms, one for the men’s collection–with a suspended racing scull hanging from the ceiling–and the women’s collection room, there is a photography studio and a small hidden backyard, which is perfect for a relaxing moment between shopping sprees.

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SBU | Relaxing, Shopping
Via di San Pantaleo 69 | City center | +390668802547
Mon – Fri 10:00 – 13:00 & 15:30 – 19:30, Sat 10:00 – 19:30

Copyrights Spotted by Locals Rome