The supplì is Rome's most underrated contribution to world cuisine. A fist-sized ball of risotto with tomato ragù, with a heart of mozzarella, coated in breadcrumbs, deep-fried until the outside cracks and the inside is molten. When you break it open, the mozzarella stretches into a string — the filo del telefono (telephone wire). The length of the string is the quality test. No string: the mozzarella was wrong. Short string: decent but not great. Long string that doesn't break: you've found the one. €1.50-3 each. Eaten standing, before pizza, as a snack, or as a complete meal (3 supplì = lunch). Full food tour →
Plan my supplì crawl →#1 Supplizio (Via dei Banchi Vecchi 143, near Campo de' Fiori). Gourmet supplì elevated to art form. Classic (ragù + mozzarella, €3), cacio e pepe (€4 — pecorino and pepper inside, genius), carbonara (with guanciale, €4). The filo is pornographic. The supplì that made food critics take fried rice balls seriously.
#2 I Supplì (Via di San Francesco a Ripa 137, Trastevere, since 1979). The OG. Classic supplì al telefono, €1.50. The recipe hasn't changed in 45+ years because perfection doesn't need updating. The crust is thinner than Supplizio's — more crunch, less bread. The purist's choice.
#3 Testaccio Market stalls (various vendors inside Mercato Testaccio). Multiple suppliers compete — quality is universally high. Mordi e Vai (stall 15) does supplì alongside their famous sandwiches. €1.50. Eaten standing in the market. The most Roman supplì context.
#4 Pizzeria Da Remo (Piazza Santa Maria Liberatrice 44, Testaccio). Order supplì as appetizer before pizza tonda. They arrive within 2 minutes, hot, cracking. €1.50 each. The supplì-then-pizza sequence is a Roman sacrament.
#5 Trapizzino (Via Giovanni Branca 88, Testaccio). Stefano Callegari invented the trapizzino (pizza pocket) but his supplì are equally perfect. Classic + seasonal specials. €2-3. The inventor's version.
#6-10: Antico Forno Roscioli (Via dei Chiavari 34 — supplì alongside the famous pizza bianca, €2) · Forno Campo de' Fiori (Piazza Campo de' Fiori 22 — midnight supplì with the pizza, €2) · Panella (Via Merulana 54 — upscale bakery version, €2.50) · Pizzeria ai Marmi (Viale di Trastevere 53 — at "l'obitorio," supplì before the famously thin pizza, €1.50) · 00100 Pizza (Via Giovanni Branca 88 — modern supplì with seasonal fillings, €2.50).
Supplì cacio e pepe (Supplizio) — pecorino and pepper filling. Supplì carbonara (Supplizio, Trapizzino) — with guanciale inside. Supplì amatriciana (various) — with tomato and guanciale. Supplì al ragù nero (seasonal) — with squid ink rice. Each variant proves that the supplì format is infinitely expandable while remaining perfectly Roman.