Bar Giolitti
In 2018 the food blog Storie Gastronomiche found Bar Giolitti's zabaione gelato closer to a very cold cream than to a gelato.
Why go
This Giolitti is the bar at Via Amerigo Vespucci 35 in Testaccio, a different business from the famous Giolitti gelateria near Montecitorio and the Pantheon. Alexandra Turney of Spotted by Locals says there is a connection, since they're both run by branches of the same family
(Spotted by Locals, 2026). Daria Reina, the founder of Chez Dede, puts it first among her coffee stops: I'm talking about the one on Via Amerigo Vespucci. It's special as it feels like stepping into the 1970s.
She orders an espresso al vetro (espresso in a small glass) and I add a spoonful of zabaione (an eggnog-like cream) to sweeten it
(The Relisher, 2024).
Turney calls it laidback, unpretentious and very Roman,
a bar of laminate table tops, old wooden chairs and crazy paving floor.
Turney says that décor is one reason the TV series Romanzo Criminale, set in the 1970s, filmed here. Most of the customers are locals, with the occasional food-tour group drifting in for gelato (Turney, 2026). The 2018 blog lists the plain sign, rustic chairs, makeshift tables and patchy service
as everything that sends the gastro-snobs running, luckily
(Storie Gastronomiche, 2018).
Order the zabaione. Turney lists zabaione (a flavor based on the dessert of egg, sugar and sweet wine) beside chocolate and stracciatella among the classic gelato flavors here, with no need to queue!
The 2018 blog praised its natural taste
and found the whipped cream served with it just as good, for freshness and lightness.
The semifreddo allo zabaione that Valentina's local friends raved about was as incredible as they promised.
She writes that it is still handcrafted on-site using an antique machine
(Valentina's Travel Guide, 2024).
Turney also comes for an aperitivo at a table outside, with the Aventine Hill at the end of the street. Her Aperol Spritz arrives "with olives, crisps and nuts on a silver tray" (Spotted by Locals, 2026).
Order this / avoid
- Order: the zabaione gelato, for the Storie Gastronomiche blog (2018).3
- Order: the semifreddo allo zabaione, for Valentina (Valentina's Travel Guide, 2024).4
- Drink: an Aperol Spritz at an outside table, for Alexandra Turney (Spotted by Locals, 2026).2
Good to know
- Timing: open Monday to Saturday and shut Sunday (Spotted by Locals, 2026).
- Price: a coffee at the bar was 0.90 euros in June 2026 (Spotted by Locals).2
- Phone: 06 574 6006.
- Where: Via Amerigo Vespucci 35, Testaccio.
Verdict
could-visit — Stop at this Testaccio bar for zabaione, as a scoop of gelato, a semifreddo or a spoonful in your espresso. A coffee costs under a euro, and it shuts on Sunday.