Pierluigi
Pierluigi's tagliatella di calamaro is raw squid cut thin as pasta, laid on an amatriciana gazpacho under a leaf of crisp guanciale.
Why go
Umberto Pierluigi, from Borbona near Rieti, opened a small osteria on Piazza de' Ricci in 1938, in a Renaissance palazzo. Roberto Lisi took it over in 1980 and turned it into a fish restaurant. His son Lorenzo has run it since 2010, adding an American-style cocktail bar and a new dining room while the cellar grew from 300 bottles to 14,000 from Italy and France (Gambero Rosso, 2025). It became the fish trattoria loved by deputies, senators and members of the government (Gambero Rosso, 2025). In 2014 Puntarella Rossa passed on the Corriere della Sera's report that Barack Obama had booked a table for twelve, after John Kerry, Joe Biden and Quentin Tarantino. Mark Zuckerberg brought Priscilla Chan on their honeymoon in 2012 (Puntarella Rossa, 2014). Daria Reina, co-founder of the Rome boutique Chez Dede, is a regular (The Relisher, 2024). Fabrizio Gagliardi, from Caserta, has cooked here since 2022. About 80 percent of his menu comes from the sea (Forbes Italia, 2025). We want our guests to recognize, in the dishes we serve, the extensive research we do in terms of raw ingredients and the clean flavors,
he told Reporter Gourmet (Reporter Gourmet, 2025).
Paolo Manfredi of Gambero Rosso came for a family birthday in 2025 and found not only a very beautiful place: it is a restaurant of solid, elegant, creative cooking without needless flourishes.
On the squid tagliatella he wrote: I love the Bari-style squid tagliatella, but here the grain of the raw, thin-cut fish is incredibly like real pasta and sits perfectly on the fragrant gazpacho, while a leaf of crisp guanciale brings back the best of Rome.
It vied for his dish of the night with the linguina aglio, olio, finocchiella e 'nduja di tonno (garlic, oil, wild fennel and tuna 'nduja), a concentrate of the Mediterranean.
He rated the ricciola (amberjack) tartare on a melon, cucumber and almond gazpacho excellent (Gambero Rosso, 2025).
Bobby Flay posted about a meal here on Instagram. Mina Elwell of Islands, writing up his favorite places in Rome, took from the post that guests choose their fish at a fresh seafood bar before it is prepared and served inside or on the terrace (Islands, 2024). Book the terrace. Saku Tuominen, who runs the World of Mouth app, calls it one of the nicest terraces in Rome,
and Puntarella Rossa found the room loses much of its charm in the rain without the tables on the piazza (2014).
Expect a big bill. Manfredi put it plainly: The prices? High, absolutely high, with big markups above all on wine, but fully justified by the level and the completeness of the experience
(Gambero Rosso, 2025). Tuominen is less forgiving: It can be a bit touristy especially during the summer (with high-profile clients ranging from Obamas to Zuckerbergs) and is both expensive & overpriced.
He still found the food fresh, simple & well made,
and wrote that especially during the winter, the inside rooms have a stylish 50s feel
(World of Mouth).
Order this / avoid
- Order: the tagliatella di calamaro, for Paolo Manfredi (Gambero Rosso, 2025).1
- Order: the linguina with wild fennel and tuna 'nduja, Manfredi's other dish of the night (2025).1
- Order: the ricciola tartare on melon, cucumber and almond gazpacho, excellent for Manfredi (2025).1
- Order: the passion-fruit cheesecake with coconut and mango ice cream, the dessert that won over Manfredi (2025).1
What locals & experts say
- Puntarella Rossa (2014):
That Pierluigi is good is beyond question. So is the fact that the prices often go sky-high.
6 - Lorenzo Lisi, the owner, to Reporter Gourmet (2025):
I didn't change the imprint left by my father, which was based on customer care and a warm welcome.
5
Good to know
- Booking: call 06 686 8717 and ask for the terrace.
- Timing: lunch and dinner. No closing day is published.
- Wine: 14,000 bottles by Gambero Rosso's count (2025); over 1,500 labels by the restaurant's.
- Where: Piazza de' Ricci 144, Regola, with tables out on the piazza.
Verdict
should-visit — Go for the raw squid cut like pasta and a table out on Piazza de' Ricci, at the fish restaurant Rome's politicians and visiting stars have used for decades. Expect a high bill with the steepest markup on the wine, which Gambero Rosso's critic thought fair and World of Mouth's Saku Tuominen did not.