At ROSSO Restaurant and Grill a vegetarian will find a dish without meat or fish in every section of the menu: starters, pasta, pizza, wok dishes, salads, sides and a red lentil burger. Vegans have less choice and should mention it when booking, because the kitchen will tell you in the dining room what works as it is and where a dish can be adapted. The one thing to watch is anchovies, which here turn up on pizzas where many people would not expect them.
In January this happens a lot: after the holidays people go back to dinners with colleagues and friends, and there is nearly always someone at the table who does not eat meat, or has decided to eat less of it.
A steakhouse with a long menu
The grill is in the middle of the dining room, next to the open butcher’s counter where you choose the Prussian and Danish cuts. For a committed vegetarian it is not the most pleasant view of the evening, and it is fair to know that before booking.
Around the grill, though, the menu is long. We open in the morning for breakfast and the kitchen takes orders until midnight, so the menu has to suit very different people. The pasta is rolled in-house every morning, the pizza comes on three doughs, and there are wok dishes, salads and vegetable sides. A vegetarian does not have to settle for a side dish, and a mixed group does not have to change restaurant because of one person.
What a vegetarian can order
Among the starters there are the Chupa Chups, golden aubergine with a soft smoked provola centre, avocado sauce and lime zest. Then the classic focaccia, the bread basket, and buffalo mozzarella or burrata from Andria served on their own.
On the pasta side, cacio e pepe is made with tonnarelli rolled in-house, Pecorino Romano DOP and black pepper ground in the mill. There is also a pasta of the day, which changes: ask whether it is meat-free that day.
The most complete meat-free dish is the vegetable wok: bean sprouts, white cabbage, courgettes and carrots stir-fried with paprika and sesame seeds, finished with soy and teriyaki sauce. The veggie burger is a golden red lentil patty with lettuce, tomato and horseradish mayonnaise, in our own bun and served with chips.
The White Salad is vegetarian: rocket, white cabbage, Grana shavings, avocado, button mushrooms, sesame seeds and lemon. The sides are all vegetables or potatoes: grilled vegetables, Roman chicory sautéed or dressed with lemon, roast potatoes and chips. If it matters to you that the vegetables do not go on the same grill as the meat, ask before ordering.
Pizza is the easy part. Among the Tradizionali, the Margherita, the Bufalina, the Ortolana with vegetables and the Partenopea with red cherry tomatoes, yellow datterino tomatoes and buffalo mozzarella have no meat or fish. Each one comes on one of three doughs, Tonda Romana, Diversamente Napoletana or Super Fina, all left to rise for at least 72 hours. The full list, with ingredients, is on the pizza menu.
One detail for strict vegetarians: the rules for Pecorino Romano DOP require lamb rennet, so if you avoid cheese made with animal rennet, skip the cacio e pepe. For the other cheeses the menu does not say, so it is worth asking.
Where anchovies and fish hide
Some recipes here differ from the versions many people have in mind. Before you order:
- the Marinara has anchovy fillets, as well as tomato, Leccino olives, oregano and parsley;
- the Fiorita has courgette flowers, fior di latte and anchovies, like the fried courgette flower among the starters;
- the Regina has Cantabrian anchovies;
- the falafel is a vegetable fritter, but it comes with Caesar dressing, and its allergens include egg, milk and fish;
- the Nizzarda salad has tuna, and the Caesar has chicken.
If you would like one of these without the animal ingredient, ask whether it can be done.
If you are vegan
The choice is narrower. According to the menu, the pizza doughs contain gluten, soy and mustard, and no milk or egg is listed. The problem is the toppings: almost every pizza on the menu has cheese. The vegetable wok lists no milk, egg or fish among its allergens. The lentil burger, on the other hand, comes with mayonnaise, and egg is among its allergens.
So please tell us when you book, or as soon as you sit down: the kitchen will tell you what works as it is and where a dish can be adapted. If you write it in the booking, the dining room will know before you arrive.
Reading the allergen codes
Every dish on all our menus carries the EU allergen codes, with the key at the bottom of the page, in Italian and English. If you avoid animal products, look above all for 3 (egg), 4 (fish), 7 (milk), 2 (crustaceans) and 14 (molluscs).
A dish without these numbers can still contain meat, because meat is not an allergen and has no code, so always read the description too. Frozen products are marked with an asterisk.
Gluten and coeliac disease
We have dishes made without ingredients that contain gluten, and the kitchen handles them separately. But there is only one kitchen, and bread, pasta and pizza are made in it every day. We cannot rule out cross-contamination, so we cannot guarantee a dish suitable for coeliacs. If someone in your group is coeliac, tell us when you book and we will be straight with you about what we can do that evening. The full policy is in our FAQ.
Mixed tables and group dinners
Up to ten people, book the table from the booking page and note how many vegetarians and vegans there are. Above ten, write to us from the events page: the menu is put together with you, starting from the grill or the pizza, and the request can include what everyone needs.
For a mixed table the simplest combination is grill and pizza. The meat eaters share a fiorentina, the Florentine T-bone, which starts at about 800 grams and is meant for two, while the others have pizza or the wok. At the end the bill can be split across as many cards as you need. Dishes and allergens are on the dinner menu.
FAQ
Are there vegetarian dishes at ROSSO?
Yes, in every section of the menu: starters, pasta, pizza, wok, salads, sides and a red lentil burger. Watch out for anchovies on the Marinara, the Fiorita and the Regina.
What about vegans?
The choice is narrower. Tell us when you book or in the dining room: the kitchen will tell you what works and where a dish can be adapted.
Does the menu show allergens?
Yes. Every dish has the EU allergen codes, with the key at the bottom of each menu page, in English too.
Are there dishes for coeliacs?
There are dishes made without gluten-containing ingredients, but there is only one kitchen and we cannot guarantee dishes suitable for coeliacs. Tell us when you book.
For your next dinner, book a table online or call +39 342 189 9629, also on WhatsApp.
More practical questions, on hours, parking, dogs and accessibility, are in our FAQ.
