In April 2005, we braved a doorway hung with red beads in a rundown building to enjoy the most delicious lunch. Located in the Jewish neighborhood in Rome, Sora Margherita is known for its fried artichokes Carciofo alla Giudia, and every dish was absolutely delicious. For the last 20 years, we have often thought about this tiny restaurant, but did not have a chance to get back until last month. We spent the morning exploring the amazing Villa Farnesina, and met up with friends for lunch. It was so delicious that we decided on the spot to book another reservation for our last evening in Italy. Most excitedly, I got to meet the retired chef herself!

April 2005 menu cover

carciofo alla giudea

agnolotti al cacio e pepe

September 2025 dinner

Sora Margherita is a tiny restaurant on the north side of Piazza delle Cinque Scole, a few blocks north of Isola Tiberina / Tiber Island. If not for chance, we would never have discovered this homestyle restaurant, with photos and news articles on its walls, and an everchanging handwritten daily menu.

April 2005 lunch

We were a family of four traveling internationally for the first time back in April 2005. To get our 4.5 year old and 10 year old ready for unfamiliar sights and sounds, we had read children's books about the Coliseum and a highly recommended picture book by David Macaulay called Rome Antics.

At the airport, we noticed that the brand new May 2005 issue of Bon Appétit on the magazine stand was focused on Rome, Florence and Venice and picked it up to read on the airplane. 

A tiny paragraph squeezed on the top corner of one page mentioned that "paper-topped tables [at Sora Margherita] provide the setting for the best carciofi alla guidea (crispy fried artichokes) in town." 

Sora Margherita in 2005

As we made our way to Piazza dell Cinque Scole, we saw a rather run down building. The number 30 was next to an open doorway with the interior masked by strings of red beads hanging down. 

But we trusted the recommendation of Bon Appétit and pushed through the beads to enter a tiny, but clean room serving divine food.

April 2005 doorway to #30

We were asked to fill out a membership card, as the Health Department had deemed the establishment too small to be a restaurant. So we happily joined the Sora Margherita eating club. 

Sora Margherita membership card

Once seated, we were puzzling over the menu that was handwritten in Italian and looked around to see what others were eating. A table of American expats nearby recommended the agnolotti. So we ordered the fried artichokes and two orders of agnolotti, one in cacio e pepe (cheese and black pepper) and the other in sugo di carne (meat sauce).

Menu April 2005

The artichokes were amazing! We preferred them vastly to the Roman style artichoke we had earlier in our trip. The leaves are crispy like potato chips, and the heart was tender.  Both kids enjoyed this fun-to-eat and share appetizer. 

Fried artichokes 2005

My daughter was so excited when she saw the photo of her eating carciofo alla giudia that she exclaimed, "I want to go to Rome again and eat THAT... I'm eating a flower!"

Agnolotti represent a sort of boat-shaped pasta filled with beef. Apparently, this type of dumpling originated in the Piedmont region as a way to use up leftover meat. 

Agnolotti al sugo di carne

They were both good, but I preferred the cacio e pepe - look at how much pepper there is. 

Agnolotti al cacio e pepe

Finally for dessert, we ordered Pera ubbiaca cotu al forno al vino rosso or drunk pear in red wine sauce. This was so delicious, I do believe we licked our plates clean.

Sora Margherita in 2025

A fantastic outdoor lunch

On our return visit, we called for a lunch reservation. The younger generations of the family is now running the restaurant, and they spoke some English.

Sora Margherita entrance in 2025

The iconic red beads in the doorway are now gone, and it was a lot easier to find the restaurant. The name of the restaurant is visible on a new gold colored awning over the door, as well as on a large awning shading a new outdoor seating area. We checked in around noon, which is before they are listed as opening, and were expecting to wait until 12:30, but were seated earlier around 12:10.

Again, we ordered several carciofi alla giudia, which came out quickly. Our friends got the burrata con pomodorini and fettucine al pesto alla Genovese, my husband and I shared the agnolotti al cacio e pepe, followed by the pollo alla cacciatora. 

As we sat there, we watched the outdoor lunch area fill up with mostly older Italian women and a few couples. The two popular plates that were received with great excitement were the fettucine in its bright green, extremely aromatic pesto sauce and something that looked like a lasagne -- probably the melanzane alla parmigiana (eggplant parmesan).

Fettucine al pesto alla Genovese

The fried artichoke and agnolotti were delicious. Then we waited quite a bit for the chicken cacciatore to come. When it finally arrived, I have to admit, I was at first disappointed.

I was expecting onions, tomatoes, peppers - maybe mushrooms, but received a generous serving of plain looking chicken pieces sitting in a small pool of oil. My husband selected the wing and drumstick pieces and left the rest for me.

Pollo alla cacciatora - the best dish that we enjoyed in Rome

Once we bit into the chicken, we were both totally blown away by how delicious it was. Each piece was very tender and permeated with the most delicious flavor. This chicken did not need a colorful sauce because the flavors of the garlic, onions, lemon and other seasonings were cooked right into the meat.

We ate every last bit of meat off of the bones, and even soaked up a bit of the flavorful oil with some bread. The pollo alla cacciatora at Sora Margherita is one of my three favorite dishes enjoyed on this trip through Florence, Arezzo, the Tuscany countryside and Rome.

We were deciding between the Torta di Ricotta e Visciole and the Ricotta Nutella e Grand Marnier desserts, but finally elected the Torta as the wild sour cherries represent a more local flavor. Our friends got flan in chocolate sauce.

Flan with chocolate sauce

Meeting Lucia Ziroli

As we were waiting for dessert, I wandered into the restaurant headed for the restroom as I noticed a few splatters of balsamic vinegar on my white linen top. The young woman inside the restaurant told me not to put water on it. Instead she pulled open a drawer and sprinkled talc on my stains. I have to say this worked very well! 

As she was doing this, I spotted an older lady holding a pomeranian, who stopped to speak to the hostess briefly before exiting the restaurant. There was something about her that made me wonder if she was the chef from 20 years ago, who the waitress told me still came into the kitchen frequently.

So I asked the man Ivon if he spoke English, and he said just a little, not much. I found out that the lady is his mother, and she is indeed the person that would have made all of our food 20 years ago.

He offered to introduce me to her, so I could show her the photos of our family loving her food in the restaurant 20 years ago. One month of DuoLingo with its lesson on "mi piace molto mangiare il tuo cibo buono" came in handy, as I was able to convey to her how much I liked eating at her restaurant. 

A dinner worthy of our last night in Italy

For our last evening in Rome, we were offered a reservation time of 9:30 pm. 

The inside of the restaurant was much as we remembered it. Instead of just a few newspaper articles and photos, the walls are now packed with fan letters, photos, drawings and articles. I discovered several articles showing photos of Margherita Tomassini and Gianna Agostinetti cooking together. I wonder if they are sisters.

2025 - inside

We shared a liter of the house red wine, and tried a spectrum of additional dishes that included more pastas in cacio e pepe. Unfortunately, the pollo alla cacciatora was no longer on the menu as my husband had resolved to order this again.

Instead he tried the gnocchi al sugo di carne, which he absolutely raved about. It might even be better than his long term favorite gnocchi. I ordered the roast lamb chops, which were a tad tough.

Abbacchio alla scottadito

Meatballs had to be the star of the evening. Very large, and easy to share, they were unbelievably tender and flavorful, with a fantastic red sauce. This sauce was different in flavor from the gnocchi sauce, although both were delicious. I can see why so many reviews rave about the meatballs in red sauce.

Polpette al sugo

Surprisingly, my favorite dish of the night (after the meatball) was the sautéed chicory. Cicoria ripassata in padella translates roughly to twice-cooked chicory in a pan. A classic Roman dish, it consists of chicory that is first boiled or blanched until tender, then sautéed with olive oil, garlic and chili flakes.

Cicoria ripassata in padella

I found the dish to be pleasantly toothy -- neither mushy nor crisp -- but with a mouthfeel similar to "leather britches," a Southern preparation of preserved green beans. The chicory was pleasantly salted, with a bright, minimally bitter flavor and a hit of a spicy aftertaste.

For dessert, our waiter recommended the Ricotta e visciole pistachio, assuring us that this was even better than the similarly named dessert we had the day before. And he was right. The tart wild sour cherries shined against the creamy smooth ricotta.

Ricotta e visciole pistachio

Twenty and a half years is a long time to remember a small Roman restaurant fondly.  Hopefully, we won't have to wait as long before we can return again to dine at Sora Margherita

Addendum - May 2026

We were lucky to be able to return for another wonderful walk-in dinner after seeing the Colosseum, bringing a different set of close friends. The chicken cacciatore, meatballs and pasta were again superb! I also learned that the chef whose delicious food I fell in love with is Lucia Ziroli, who took over from Margherita in 2000. Her son Ivan and granddaughter are now running Sora Margherita.

Sora Margherita

Piazza delle Cinque Scole, 30

Roma, Italy

+39 06 687 4216

🐾 The only way to make a reservation is to either call their number, or stop by in person.

🐾 The fried artichoke comes one to an order, but are easily large enough to share. After picking off the crispy chips formed from the leaves, be sure to cut the stem in half, scrape off the choke (spiky part) and eat the heart.

🐾 The house red wine is tasty and inexpensive, being made from Sangiovese grapes.

🐾 For the most part, it looks like there is only one waitress or waiter covering the whole area. If you need/want olive oil or balsamic vinegar with your bread, salad or burrata, simply ask for it. Otherwise, just relax and enjoy the slower pace of meals in Italy. 

Also, in Italy they respect your right to linger at the table and converse after a meal. So when you are ready to go, simply ask for the check (il conto, per favore)

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE RESTAURANTS IN ROME?

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