Luciano Cucina ItalianaRome

We went to Luciano driven by all those rankings that list it among the temples of authentic Roman carbonara. The verdict? Half convinced.

We started strong with an artichoke stuffed with meat—that one was genuinely good. Then came the main courses: mezza manica all'amatriciana and the carbonara. Look, between the two I'd pick the amatriciana. The carbonara had everything spot-on, really. The spaghettone cooked perfectly, the cream impeccable, the pepper balanced with just that acidic note that works. Except the guanciale... well. Large chunks, excellent quality, but not crispy enough and above all, too little. Way too little. At 18 euros a plate you can't cut corners like that.

But the tiramisu. Man, the tiramisu deserves its own trip. It arrives with a wafer suspended above a dark chocolate base, you break it and release the coffee cascading down. It's brilliant. The mix of cream, ladyfingers, coffee and chocolate really hits the mark.

Here's the thing: excellent restaurant, top-notch cooking, but at 41 euros per person you expect nothing short of perfection. Yet something falls short. The guanciale too sparse in the main dishes, prices a bit steep for what ends up on your plate. Let's say that for a five-star rating the quality-to-price ratio needs to be more honest.

Would we go back? For the tiramisu, definitely. For the carbonara... eh, Rome has better options for less.