Welcome to the Via Rosa Newsletter - so glad you’re here!
Here’s a taste of the newest content we’ve been sharing on our website lately - a fresh roundup of stories, updates, and inspiration we can’t wait for you to explore. Plus openings on tours for 2027!!
Via Rosa organizes small group tours that explore Italy’s rich and diverse food culture. Each journey is thoughtfully led by either Elizabeth or Sophie—the founders of Via Rosa—or by a carefully selected guest host from their trusted circle of food experts and friends.
While most of our tours are currently waitlist-only (they sell out fast!), a few spots are still available on a handful of our tours. As a subscriber to this newsletter, you’re among the first to hear about these limited openings for next spring:
The Culture of Food in Parma with Erin O’Brien March 7-13, 2027
The Culture of Food in Puglia & Matera with Zoë François March 14–20, 2027
The Culture of Food in Parma with Marissa Mullen April 18–24, 2027
The Culture of Food in Western Sicily with Jenny Rosenstrach, May 9-15, 2027
As Rome settles into its long, hot summer and the city begins to feel like one giant pizza oven, there is one thing we start thinking about almost daily: gelato.
During the warmer months, it’s not unusual for us to have gelato once a day. Sometimes twice. Whether it’s a mid-afternoon break, an after-dinner stroll through the neighborhood, or simply an excuse to cool down and end the day on a sweet note, gelato is woven into daily life here in a way that few other treats are.
Of course, not all gelato is created equal. While you’ll find a gelateria on almost every corner in Rome, many of the brightly colored displays aimed at tourists have little in common with the home-made gelato artigianale that Romans seek out. The towering mountains of pistachio, banana and bright blue “smurf” flavors may look impressive, but good gelato is usually much more understated.
With that in mind, we’ve rounded up some of our favorite places in Rome to enjoy the real thing.
Panzanella is one of those dishes I make on repeat every summer. It’s the perfect way to use up ripe tomatoes and stale bread, and somehow tastes even better after it’s had time to sit.
Years ago, an Umbrian chef introduced me to this version, which swaps the usual stale bread for crunchy friselle, the twice-baked bread rings you’ll find throughout southern Italy. They soak up all the tomato juices and olive oil while keeping their texture, creating a hearty, flavorful panzanella that’s perfect for making ahead. It’s quickly become one of my favorite takes on this classic summer dish, especially on those meltingly hot days when the last thing I want to do is turn on the stove.
When the summer gets into swing and the temperature rises to uncomfortable levels, these cold coffee drinks are here to save the day. If you’re used to drinking a giant iced coffee in the U.S., these beverages are a far cry from that. They’re all made using espresso, not drip coffee, so they’re strong and concentrated in flavor.
If you’re traveling in Italy this summer, branch out from the standard cappuccino or espresso and try these cold coffee drinks instead. We think they’re the perfect pick-me-up on a hot summer day.
Yes, we know you can find tomatoes in supermarkets all year long, but when summer rolls around and tomato season hits its peak, there’s simply nothing better. If you’re lucky enough to grow tomatoes in your own garden or have access to a farmer’s market with really good tomatoes, you know what we’re talking about.
Here in Italy, there may be no vegetable that feels more quintessentially Italian than the tomato. Even if tomatoes aren’t native to the region (they were brought over from the Americas in the 16th century), they’ve become an integral ingredient in Italian cuisine. Nowadays, there are more than 300 registered cultivars of tomatoes in Italy, including famed varieties like pomodoro di San Marzano, pomodoro del piennolo, and pomodoro di pachino.
In order to help you make the most of the season’s bounty, we rounded up six easy tomato recipes from our guest hosts that you’ll want to make on repeat all summer long.
You can find our full schedule of week-long food tours in Italy by clicking the button below:
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