Five Shapes of the Roman Aperitivo, Pilotta to Navona

The aperitivo is not one thing, and this walk takes it apart into five. First the cocktail, made properly at a bar where the mixing is the point and the ingredients are fresh. Then the fried food, at one of the small friggitorie Romans queue at: supplì straight out of the oil, rice and ragù and a centre of melted cheese. Then beer, from a Roman brewery making its own, which is a recent development in a wine city and worth tasting on its own terms. Then a norcineria, as Rome calls its cured-meat counters, for a board of local salumi and cheese with a glass of wine. And finally tiramisu, at the place that converted the city to it. Between the stops the route works through the streets around Piazza Navona and the Pantheon, with a guide who is a food person first. Groups are kept small. One thing to be aware of when planning your evening: the tour always runs in both English and Italian, so everything is said twice. Other languages on request.