Experience Frascati with Locals

I knew I would fall in love with Italy when I stayed in Frascati upon arriving on my first trip. You can read about my time in Frascati here. While Frascati makes an easy day trip from Rome with just a 30-minute train ride, I recommend that you stay there for at least one night. The town really comes alive after dark, and the sunset over the hills is spectacular.

Take a Cooking Class with Jo

This isn’t your “make bruschetta and homemade pasta with bolognese” class. I’m not knocking it, and if that’s what you want to learn to make, go for it! Those classes are plentiful in Rome and other popular tourist destinations. But, if you are a self-described foodie and want to experience true home cooking, you must do a cooking class with Jo. I get the sense that no two menus are ever the same. I don’t think her creativity would ever allow for that. Not to mention, Jo is the consummate host and an absolute blast!

Making seafood risotto under Jo’s tutelage

I ate so much food during our afternoon together that I was rendered useless. I’m not sure if the fried zucchini blossoms, meatballs, spaghetti with clams, or veal saltimbocca put me over the edge. Or maybe it was the poached peach with honey. You can read more about my time with Jo here. Trust me, though, reach out to her. Book a cooking experience (not class, experience!). Even if it’s just to escape Rome for the day, it will be time well spent.

Rent a Bike

The Castelli Romani region is gorgeous and can be explored by bike. I went to Ciclotech in Frascati on my second day in town to rent an e-bike. In my limited Italian and the manager’s limited English, we discussed my plan to go off-road. “It is not safe,” he warned. “You are alone. What if something bad happens to you?” The shop did not (and to my knowledge still does not) offer guided tours of the area. “I will call my friend. He can be your guide, and he speaks English.”

“Tell him it’s a pretty girl,” his coworker exclaimed in Italian as the manager waited for his friend to pick up on the other line.

Whether that was an incentive or not, I was lucky that Guilio was available! “One hour is okay?” the manager asked me. That worked! When I returned Guilio gave me a primer on the bike, checked my helmet, and we were on our way. We biked through the hills near Frascati on dirt trails and ancient Roman roads. We stopped to see the ruins of an ancient Roman bath and at the piazza in Monte Porzio Catone for the panoramic views before pedaling back to downtown Frascati.

Monte Porzio Catone

Even though I’m not sure if the shop officially offers tours at this time, I recommend reaching out to the team at Ciclotech for bike rentals, self-guided tours, or for a guide should Guilio or another team member be available.

BYO Eats to a Fraschetta

There are few places I won’t go for an authentic dining experience. Fraschette are wine cellars where, historically, visitors would bring their own food and imbibe local wine. Liz Boulter of The Guardian writes, “[F]rom at least medieval times winemakers would hang out a laurel branch (frasca) when their new wine was ready. Locals and passing farmers would flock to these cellars to carouse and quaff, taking their own snacks and nibbles to soak up the wine. And if those nibbles were salty and spicy – olives, salami and coppiette, the jerky-like strips of cured shin meat with lots of chili that we’ve brought – well, that just led to more jugs of wine, merry drinkers and happy owners.”

The evening after my bike ride, I was a merry drinker who met the happy owner of Cantina da Santino, aptly named Felice. His is a traditional fraschetta that does not serve food, so I brought porchetta from a local shop and enjoyed Felice’s generous pours of his family’s crisp white wine. Despite our language barrier, he was a gracious host who told me about his family’s vineyards in the area and that he is not sure if his sons will continue the tradition of running the fraschetta.

The proprietor of Cantina da Santino, Felice, which means “happy.” Don’t you believe that he lives up to his name?

I hope his worries are unfounded. He and his Cantina da Santino are a gem, and it would be a shame for Frascati to lose this piece of history. On that evening, I tried not to worry about how time could change things. I sipped his wine as the sun set, and, when I knew another glass would be a bad idea, I went for a passeggiata visiting my favorite little square in town and strolling along the promenade with the views of Rome in the distance.