Casual Italian at The Rome
Sept. 2, 2008
One of the new dining experiences in downtown Columbia is a casual Italian restaurant owned and operated by MU graduates. Owners Dan Colace and Cory Hodapp are aiming to cater not only to MU students but also to Columbia as a whole.
The Rome's authentic Italian food gets its roots from Colace's parents, who moved from Italy to Boston in 1955. Ten years later, they opened the first The Rome restaurant in Franklin, Mass. Colace and his four older brothers grew up eating traditional Italian cooking and taking great pride in their heritage. Colace later attended graduate school at MU and, through the wrestling team, met Cory Hodapp and Dean Montgomery, who are now The Rome's co-owner and general manager respectively.
The Rome now stands in what used to be pool hall Columbia Billiards. Colace says he felt it was the perfect location when he decided a year ago to open his own restaurant, a sister to the original in Franklin.
"Downtown Columbia, I wanted that style of dining," Colace says. "Sort of old school."
After they purchased the space, they completely gutted it except for a few original walls. Pool cues still hang on one wall as a memory of what this building used to be.
"They're like decoration," Colace says.
Walking in, jazzy Italian music plays in the background and a large TV sits over a bar in the lounge section. It's a wide space for a restaurant - expansive, but filled adequately with tables and booths. It has a fun, comfortable atmosphere with a touch of fine dining, making it a good place for a date. The Rome offers daily lunch and dinner specials, and a wide variety of foods. Not everything on the menu is strictly Italian either: They offer steak, burgers and sandwiches. Vegetarian meals are also served, including a menu of seafood, eggplant and potato dishes.
I tried the Eggplant Ala Roma over angel hair pasta, which consists of two layers of breaded eggplant with ham and two types of cheese in a mushroom and garlic marsala sauce. The portion was generous, and the marsala sauce was what definitely made the dish as good as it was. Colace says his favorite dish is the Chicken Romano, which is offered with ziti, angel hair pasta or roasted potatoes.
The price range varies from lunch to dinner, with $5 and $6 lunch specials every day, and dinner priced between $8 and $20 for a full meal. Drink specials are available in the lounge and bar area. Kids' meals are also offered, ranging from $4 to $7. Every dish is made to order.
"We make our chicken, veal, meatballs, sauces and more from scratch," Colace says. "We just want to provide a comfortable, casual place with fast service and homemade food."
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