Since coming to Italy, I have heard from classmates and roommates about their disappointment in the lack of alfredo. After all, back home when anyone mentions Italian food fettuccine alfredo is among the first dishes to come to mind. Nonetheless, after a few weeks in Florence and dining at various restaurants, I accepted the fact that I would not be having my fettuccine alfredo this semester. Then came the Rome trip and the greatest surprise of my semester, alfredo! Turns out Rome is the birthplace of fettuccine alfredo, though it has been greatly westernized since then. We went to Il Vero Alfredo, a restaurant run by Alfredo III, to try the original recipe. A brief history on the creation of alfredo can be found on their website: http://www.ilveroalfredo.it/en/history/.

We arrived to Il Vero Alfredo at 7:15 (making it obvious that we were very hungry tourists) and were the first in line as it opened at 7:30. We were immediately greeted and asked about our reservation which sent immediate panic throughout the group. We needed to try this fettuccine alfredo. Luckily we came early enough that they were able to squeeze us in for dinner. As we walked to our table I noticed dozens, possibly hundreds, of framed photos along the wall. I took a closer look and saw the same man, Alfredo, in each picture along with a celebrity. Some famous visitors of Il Vero Alfredo include John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan, Frank Sinatra, George Bush, Elizabeth Taylor, Walt Disney and his family, and many more. At this moment I realized this place was the real deal.

The waiter gave us our menus and jokingly told us their specialty is the alfredo. The menu was reasonably priced for the most part, but the alfredo was about 7-10 euros more than the rest of the first plate dishes which was a bummer, but not too surprising. In the restaurant there a large set of doors servers exited from. There was a table near these doors in the center of the dining room where the waiter put on a sort of a show. With each order of alfredo the server would put the unmixed ingredients on the table and make a display of thoroughly mixing the few alfredo ingredients and the pasta. This seemed to be a way to try to prove the simplicity of the original recipe, and the authenticity of the dish. For those in a different area of the restaurant, they would carry it over and mix it in front of their table. The restaurant itself was very charming. Aside from the photos of their famous visitors there were friezes on the walls and live music playing in the background. The food, unsurprisingly, was incredible. The portion size was just right, and the sauce was made with excellent Parmesan. The alfredo was delicious and rich, but not too rich that it made me feel almost sick like alfredo in the United States often does. Overall, I had an excellent experience at Il Vero Alfredo and would recommend it to anyone heading to Rome!