There are many romantic restaurants in Rome and a handful of them offers both romance and a view; still I challenge you to find something comparable to Aroma.

Majestically set on the top floor of the distinguished Palazzo Manfredi, a gorgeous hotel with fourteen individually designed rooms, and with a location that is prime real estate to its best, the über exclusive 28-seat restaurant manages to reflect the essence of quintessential Rome with both its menu and the outdoor terrace offering the Colosseum as a very welcome companion of your meal.

To match the dreamy, cinematic beauty of the setting (it comes as no surprise that Woody Allen is amongst the many high profile aficionados frequenting Aroma), there’s the delectable cuisine of Chef Giuseppe Di Iorio, Roman born chef, with experience all over the world. Di Iorio has been at the helm of Aroma since its opening in 2010.

The very happy, balanced marriage of Italian traditional menu spiced up with Di Iorio’s inspired take on gastronomy, has earned the restaurant a Michelin star.

Visiting Aroma for a celebratory occasion, Yours Truly went all out with a 9 cours Tasting Menu – a veritable Grand Tour across Italian flavours made bolder thanks to Di Iorio’s intuition. Our journey went from the steamed monkfish with roman zucchini, pink grapefruit and pepper to the mouth watering lamb stuffed ravioli with roasted pepper sauce, ricotta cheese pepper and tarragon; and the perfectly cooked marinated cod in purple carrot, and finally to the fluffy and, I’d dare to say, sinful soufflé, accompanied by the superb wine pairing suggested by the sommelier. His knowledge and the impressive wine cellar made our meal even more memorable.

Not a  bit of our food experience was upstaged by the 1941-year-old neighbour; the view and gastronomy worked seamlessly. It’s good to know that right in the middle of the stunning, but hardly innovative Eternal City, there’s a lovely terrace that takes a bow to Rome’s past without being afraid of flying high.