Roberto Marchetti, the owner of the popular Al Bric, had to break down 500-year-old walls to create a space for his newest restaurant, Al Ciabot. He built a glass-enclosed winter garden--complete with trickling fountain--and installed a dream kitchen for preparing modern Roman cuisine with a few throwbacks (such as bucatini cacio e pepe--pasta with Pecorino Romano and coarse pepper). The kitchen is outfitted with a bread oven, so he can bake his own pane casareccia, Rome's great bread, and a state-of-the-art ice cream machine. The gelaterie of Rome are famous for flavors ranging from lemon to gianduja, but where else can you find Gorgonzola ice cream to accompany a warm pear strudel? Marchetti's wife, Barbara, an artist, took control of the restaurant design--from the logo to the ashtrays. She made the banquettes particularly comfortable by covering them with leather and hung homespun lamps (lots of them) crafted out of wine bottles from the ceiling in one of the rooms. Her charger plates are especially fun: hefty, ceramic plates that she painted herself in lively modern designs (Al Ciabot, 129a131 Via dei Banchi Vecchi, 011-39-06-68-80-95-95; Al Bric, 51 Via del Pellegrino, 011-39-06-687-95-33).
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