Roman Holiday
Conor points out that restaurateurs in Rome go out of their way to overcharge tourists:
Any tourist here knows the sensation: that gnawing feeling that Italians do not pay $3 for a tiny cappuccino or $4 for an unordered basket of bread.
To no one’s surprise the suspicion often reflects reality, as restaurateurs will admit in candid moments. It might be an extra 30 cents for an espresso, or a $5 tithe tacked onto a bottle of wine. It may even mean the substitution of lower grade ingredients. But the practice of charging tourists more does exist and is committed daily, even hourly. If executed properly, the turista will be none the wiser.
This is a big part of why Rome ranks dead last on my list of favorite places to visit that I have, in fact, visited. If you go to eat anywhere within a reasonable walk of the sites – and I pretty much mean anywhere – you’re going to wind up paying exorbitant sums for pretty much gawdawful food. Some of the pizza you get is so bad as to make even a native New Jerseyan (who has grown up with plenty of great pizza) long for Domino’s.
That said – if you’re willing to stay or go a bit further afield, I don’t think the above concerns hold nearly as true. The restaurant we went to in the Trastevere section, for instance, was one of the all-around best meals we’ve ever had, despite taking us about an hour and a half to reach on foot and find, even from a hotel that was already off the beaten path a bit (we were staying on the Aventine). It was also about a half to a quarter of the final bill of what we paid even at a mediocre pizzeria across the river.
Also – though it’s a lot closer to the center of tourism, Giggetto next to the Old Jewish Synagogue is not only very reasonably priced, it’s also absolutely fantastic food.
If you are a local, you are probably poor and have a poor government (though universal health care) and thus cannot afford $3 for an espresso. If you are American, you probably are one of those types who vacations in Italy. $3! Don’t forget to tip!
It’s not unfairness, it’s justice.Report
Locals do some fleecing of tourists in any city. The hard part about Rome was the weak dollar a couple of years ago. Great gellato though.Report
No doubt. But for some reason, it seemed a lot harder to get to the areas where the locals don’t fleece the tourists in Rome. I suppose that’s maybe just because Rome is on the whole such a major tourist destination. Still, on that same trip we went to Vienna (one of the world’s more expensive cities) and Florence, and had nowhere near the sensation of getting fleeced. We found both places to be not only cheaper than central Rome, but also far more comfortable and easy to get good food.
I do have to agree with you on the gelato, though…addicting.Report
An honest question:
If I am willing to pay $3 for an espresso, why does it matter if the shop owner is willing to take only $1 from a local for one?
Note: I am not talking about the example given where the waiter was bringing out stuff to “try” and charging full price at the same time. The customers did not agree to that…
But as someone who, once upon a time, started every morning with a six-shooter, I wonder what the true problem is with buying an espresso for $3 when the buyer knows it’s $3 beforehand.Report
There’s no problem with it at all from a moral standpoint. It’s just that most people would presumably rather pay the same price and get the same quality as the locals if they had the chance to. That said, the practice of using lower-quality ingredients for tourists than for locals is borderline fraudulent.Report