Parioli, north of Villa Borghese
By-the-glass pours from a 1,000-bottle list
Cured meats, pasta, seasonal plates
Our Take on Enoteca Bulzoni
Enoteca Bulzoni sits at Viale dei Parioli 36, north of Villa Borghese, and it has held that corner since 1929, when Emidio Bulzoni opened it as a shop selling bulk wine, vinegar and oil to the families of the quarter. Three generations on, it is one of Rome's most respected wine addresses, a point Time Out and Turismo Roma both make when they send readers to Parioli.
The shop turned proper enoteca in 1972, when the by-the-glass service began, and the current owners, Alessandro and Riccardo, spent two decades building the artisan list the bar is known for now. Scatti di Gusto, reviewing the 2017 relaunch, credited the brothers with keeping the soul of an old grocery while turning it into a place you eat as well as drink.
The list runs past 1,000 bottles and is sorted into three benches the staff will talk you through. Modern Wine covers the current Italian and natural producers. Wines as They Were leans on classic estates and older vintages. Extreme Wines is the orange, skin-contact and low-intervention end. Ask for a glass from whichever shelf matches your mood and the counter will steer you well.
Since the 2017 relaunch a small kitchen runs through lunch and dinner, and the dish writers keep flagging is the pappardelle alle frattaglie, the offal pasta Scatti di Gusto singled out. Cured meats, cheeses and a short rotating menu fill the rest, built to drink with rather than to upstage the glass in front of you.
This is a neighbourhood enoteca first, a destination second, which is the appeal. Come for an unhurried lunch with a serious glass, or an early evening before dinner in the quarter. For where it lands among the city's wine rooms, see our Rome wine bars guide, the best wine bars worldwide list, and the wider wine bars index.
The Move at Enoteca Bulzoni
The Word on Parioli
- Time Out files Bulzoni under the Rome wine bars worth crossing town for, with the depth of the list as the headline draw.
- Turismo Roma frames it as an enoteca con cucina, the wine shop that learned to feed you, and points to the kitchen added in 2017.
- The repeated note across reviews is service. Tell the counter what you like and the family will pour something better than you would have picked.
Read the Room
- A serious glass with lunch away from the centre's crowds
- A pre-dinner stop before eating in Parioli
- Skip it if you want a loud, late cocktail scene, this is a wine room
When To Visit Enoteca Bulzoni
Lunch is the quiet move, when the kitchen is on and the counter has time to talk you through the three benches. Early evening fills with the quarter's regulars stopping in before dinner.
Parioli runs residential and calm, so Bulzoni rarely turns into a crush. A weekday is unhurried. Booking is worth it if you want a table for the pasta rather than a perch at the counter.
Inside Enoteca Bulzoni
