Café Friends

While wandering around Rome in the scorching midday heat, we decided we needed a cool, refreshing pick-​me-​up, preferably in a respectable, air conditioned establishment. Café Friends appeared to us, and we grabbed the opportunity by the lapels.
First off, it seems that Café Friends is the café/​bar area in the front, better for a quick drink or snack. Osteria Pizzeria Margherita in the back is a restaurant more suited for full-​blown meals. The employees were friendly and helpful and were willing to let us order from the Margherita menu even if we were sitting in Café Friends. I was mainly interested in the beer list – the chalkboard listed a slew of special beers that seemed extra refreshing for the summer heat. Unfortunately, they were out of many types of beers (must be a popular place), but I enjoyed what we had, and they gave us some complementary nuts, chips, and corn nuts to munch on, too! For the record, their usual beers are Chiara, Chiara Doppio Malto, Bock Rossa, and Turcher Weizen. (No review for the food since we didn’t order any.)
In addition to the friendly service, the restaurant is impeccably clean. Protip for the restroom: the switch to turn on the sink is on the floor (step on it). Great place to take your time and take a break.

Bar area is fantastic and the service team was very friendly. Great place to have a pre dinner drink.

Sat inside (visited in July of 2012) for a travel event. Great setup, excellent location, great hors d’eourvers.

Not that good. Sat outside; service came by very irregularly. Each round they would present our check (unsolicited), we would pay, and feel like we were supposed to leave rather than stay and enjoy our drinks. Also, the waitress switched red wines on me from a nice Italian to an awful merlot.
A shame, too, because they have a nice seating area inside with large windows and a decent set of 5 tables outside that allow for great people-​watching in the piazza. Too bad.

The food was quite good. A bit cold, but a good taste. The service, however, was horrible. The waiter was very unfriendly. They forgot our cutlery. We had to wait quite a while before they brought the bill… There was wifi, but they didn’t accept credit cards.

Employees here look miserable. When you give a barista your receipt, they barely look at you. I understand that service isn’t as important in Italian culture as it is in others, but when café FRIENDS is outright unfriendly… no thanks. Food is at best 2 stars. If you’re a tourist, try somewhere more authentic and pleasant. If you want to drop in for an espresso, don’t expect much.

Yikes was this place BAD. I ended up here on my way to Freni e Frez… (however it’s spelled). It looked atmospheric, the food looked decent, and it had the same happy hour «special» as Freni — 8 Euros for a drink and the food buffet. Unfortunately, everything I thought was wrong. The music was horrendous. I don’t remember what it was playing, but it was something equally as unappealing as the Titanic theme song. The food was practically inedible; cold, disgusting, and a bit ambiguous as to what everything was. Thinking about it makes me cringe with regret. And the price of just a drink was the same price as a drink + food, which was a bit unfair to my friends who weren’t hungry. Overall, an unpleasant experience, especially given how awesome Freni e F. ended up being.

Tolles italienisches Restaurant in Trastevere…
Es ist direkt am Platz, deswegen sind wir darauf aufmerksam geworden und bietet WLan.
Als wir reinkamen wollten wir nur ein Käffchen aber dann sah ich den Salat der Nachbarin: D und bekam hunger…
Das Ambiente erinnert einem an Einstein oder Oktober und ich glaube auch, das es eine Kette ist!
Die Kellnerin war super nett und total hilfsbereit!! Durch das leicht gebrochene englisch kam sie einem noch sympatischer vor!
Wir bestellten uns 2 Capuccino, 3 Softgetränkte und ein Mittagsteller. und das witzige war, dass wir ein Mittagsteller teilen wollten…
und sie brachte 2 Portionen und wir dachten uns, née, sie hat uns bestimmt falsch verstanden. das fleisch war lecker und es gab dazu Reis und Kartoffeln. sooo lecker, wie es heißt, weiß ich aber nicht!
Aber als wir die Rechnung bekamen, sahen wir, dass sie so lieb war und uns eine portion auf 2 teller brachte!!! Ds war super lieb!
Ein Stern bekommen sie aber nur, weil die getränkte wie Kaffee oder Capuccino teuerer sind, als in der Umgebung! (Unterschied von 50 Cent)
Aber für Cocktails und zum Mittagessen super empfehlenswert!