Glass Hostaria

Better michelin experiences than this can easily be found in roma.
The food here is mostly good. But i had a bit of a sour experience. One of our orders — a charred mackerel — tasted a bit fishy, like it was either undercooked or not fresh or something. Which is not what i expect from a michelin star restaurant. When the chef came by to ask how things were, i gave her my honest opinion and said everything was delicious but the mackerel was not to our liking. Instead of asking how to make it better or offering a replacement she looked at us and said in a rather defensive tone «that is the taste of mackerel. If you dont like the taste, sorry». WTF??? Listen lady, i may not be a michelin star chef, but ive eaten enuf fancy pants food to know what fish is supposed to taste like. This would never happen at a $$$$ resto in los angeles for sure.
So in typical rude italian fashion, she put a sully into our otherwise lovely and expensive evening. For a better michelin star experience in rome, i suggest you go to pipero al rex.

I loved the food but the staff in the front of the house were rude and totally inattentive. After waiting for over 48 minutes for someone/​anyone to come back to our table I got up and walked to the kitchen door to ask of our check. We left angry with no dessert or coffee. It was supposed to be a celebration of out last evening in Rome and my Daughters birthday. Never go to that restaurant unless you want to be treated poorly.

Our second visit and still great. A little bit of a modern take on Italian cuisine. I prefer traditional but the food here is great, as well as the service. It has a deep wine list with maybe the fairest prices in rome.
Loved the Parmesan ravioli, beef tartare and lamb chops
The owner/​chef Cristina Bowman is ever present and a wonderful hostess
Located in center of trastevere on a pedestrian street

I had such a mixed feeling with the place.
We had their € 100 special modern menu at 21 on a Friday.
Good:
— food is delicious and very unique. The ingredients of each dish blend together beautifully to great taste experiences.
— the wine selection is enormous — much to great for me to comprehend. To an expert probably amazing.
— our head servant selected great wine for both my girlfriend and me.
— water was inexpensive for a high priced restaurant — € 3 for 1 ltr pellegrino.
Bad:
— Well. I’m not sure I felt the food was worth the price. It was delicious but maybe slightly to expensive.
— glasses of wine was a little in the high side as well. My red was € 15 and my girlfriends white € 12.
— The interior is crazy ugly. It’s like you travelled back to pre-​crisis times when you needed to buy ugly design to show you had money… From glass tables, semi-​glass chairs, ugly lamps etc… Plates are even worse — our desert came in an UFO plate — no kidding…
— the place is generally to pretentious — they try too hard… Refer to my furniture comment above for example. But the waiters was the worst. Okay — high class restaurant = well dressed and «stiff» waiters. But that doesn’t mix with being unable to explain properly what the food is, sweating like a pig, running around confused and generally being unattentive and slow in serving your guests.
Summary:
If you can afford it go to try the unique style of food and great wine.
However, the reviews give it more credit than we experienced on our particular visit.

Wo der Stern herkommt ist mir ein Rätsel. Vorspeisen und Zwischengänge waren guter Durchschnitt. Der Hauptgang war saumäßig. Umgang mit Kritik: Fehlanzeige. Und als wir zum Abschluss einen Espresso trinken wollten, mussten wir uns einen Vortrag anhören, dass der Küchenchef die Kaffeearomen nicht im Restaurant haben will und deshalb nur vor der Tür Kaffee serviert würde. — Die haben einen echten Knall.
Positiv: sehr engagierte Servicekräfte.

Without a doubt the BEST restaurant I have ever been to and look at how many reviews I have. The food and wine was out of this world and came to 227 for two people with cocktails and a bottle of wine. The standout dish was the two serves of duck and the foils gras ravioli. The started of beef tartare and carpaccio was also superb. Service was amazing. My only regret was that the cheese platter for 20 euro was not worth the money.

Let me start by saying that I am absolutely in love with this place. There’s no doubt about it — get the tasting menu (the 8 course one) even if it’s a little pricier than the pre-​fixe one. The tasting menu is 100 euros and the pre-​fixe is 80 euros, so it just depends if you wanna splurge or not. Although the course items for the tasting menu may change by the time you get there vs. when I post this. But I’m sure either way, it’ll be delicious.
The atmosphere is very modern, but there are some rustic looking art pieces on the wall, making for a perfect balance. Most of the tables are meant for two, so it wasn’t a surprise when the entire place were filled with couples. Definitely make a reservation, cause I saw some people get turned away as walk-​ins around 21:00 (9:00). I suggest making a reservation for 19:30 (7:30), it gives you time to settle in, admire the atmosphere and ask the sommelier or waiter any questions. I made it for 19:30 (7:30) and finished around 22:30 (10:30).
First Course — assortment of tiny appetizers such as savory pastries, bread with truffle butter (YUM), fish paste with fish eggs on a shrimp cracker, tuna tartare in a black cone (can’t remember the flavor on the cone), granola cracker with a small ball of more tuna tartare topped with caviar.
Second Course — Ebi (Shrimp) topped with herbs in a subtle sweet liquid
Third Course — Hamachi (sliced very thinly) and marinated in a very light soy miso dressing on top of seaweed salad, garnished with caviar.
Fourth Course — Spinach or Kale Gnocchi with a sauce I can’t quite remember. This was VERY salty and I couldn’t finish it. Informing the manager, (he asked why I didn’t finish it, and he had profusely apologized for it)
Fifth Course — Lobster Ravioli topped with more caviar and white truffle shavings (courtesy of the manager to make up for the over-​salted gnocchi, which was very smart and generous of him)
Sixth Course — Foie Gras with a pinch of rock salt accompanied with sweet bread.
Seventh Course — Limoncello Shaved Ice topped with Cinnamon and Meringue.
Eighth Course — Lavendar Semifreddo.
I can’t give much comment on any of the food because it was all SO DELICIOUS. It was a culinary experience from the moment I stepped into the restaurant to when I left. The staff is stellar, timing is flawless with serving. They pick up your plates within a minute, serving your next dish no more than give minutes later, giving you time to talk about the dish and they’re so attentive with anything you may need.
They have an in-​house sommelier, which is a nice touch. I came with my boyfriend for our anniversary, and we both like different types of wine. I like white wines with a hint of sweetness, but not dry. People who know wine, you already know that’s already a difficult balance. My boyfriend likes earthy and robust red wines. I had to make a business call as he was trying to help go back and forth between the sommelier and what he thought I would like. Our sommelier had miraculously figured the perfect wine for each of us on her first try. I wanted to take her back to New York with me, I swear. And if there are any wine lovers like me who are difficult (a little sweet but not dry component), you’ll love German Rieslings. It’s not as citrusy and as floral as most French ones. There are also wines that pair perfectly with each course if you choose to splurge more. She also wrote down the names, year, and general information about both of our wines before we left. Although I may have lost that piece of paper… Oops. But it’s the thought that counts!
After that, take a stroll around Trastevere, cause that’s when the area picks up — the bar scene, night life, boutiques are still open (some), pastry shops, and just taking a stroll is nice after your meal.

We made a reservation here far in advance for 8:30 after we learned the chef had spent some time cooking in SF. We also wanted to do some exploring in Trastevere. We were really excited and chose this place as our fancy meal in Rome. With a Michelin star comes expectations and I can say that any expectations we had were far succeeded. This was one of the best and most interesting meals of my life. I loved the modern atmosphere in the restaurant, something very different for Italy and something we were looking for. The cozy, homey feel can get monotonous after cruising Tuscany and Florence for a week.
We started with a glass of Prosecco with the amuse bouche. For starters we had the octopus and beef tartare. Both were probably the best I’ve ever had. The tastes were so fresh and tasty. The octopus was the most tender I’ve tried and the fresh herbs made it so fresh tasting. Absolutely amazing! For the pasta course we shared the foie gras ravioli. This just sounds amazing and it did not disappoint. The only bad thing I can say is that we only ordered 1 to share. It just melted in your mouth. Mmmmmm. For entrée we ordered the rack of lamb and lobster salad. Not a surprise but both were hits. The rack of lamb was cooked perfectly and was a surprisingly large portion. I certainly was not complaining. By this time we were stuffed but had to try dessert. The passion fruit cream with popcorn ice-​cream was light and a good end to the meal. The sommelier was nice enough to help us out with wine for each course and did a great job pairing local wines.
Our evening at Glass Hostaria was one I will remember. It was one of my favorite dining experiences I’ve had, and mostly because of the food. The service and atmosphere were great but the food was the standout. We will certainly make a point to come back when we next visit Rome.

Where to begin…
After a lovely stroll through the vibrant Trastevere you turn the corner in a tiny piazza and find Glass Hostaria.
Our evening could not have been better. We were the first diners at 1930 (of course!) but the restaurant was pleasantly busy by 2200.
Chef Christina Bowerman surprised us with not one but two table visits. AND she had the time to really hear our ideas about food/​cooking (and she shared hers with us!) We were not unique as we saw her check in with many diners.
The amuse was amazing. We had a different pasta dish each for our primi course (after a great appetizer (tuna tartar with a «kimchi mango» I think)). A ravioli course was another surprise from the kitchen, followed by more amazing pasta and meat for the second course.
Service was polite, friendly, attentive… without being annoying as it can be in some top restaurants.
In the end, we floated out of Glass with our stomachs, heads, and hearts full. :)
Don’t miss it.

Si vous cherchez un resto chic à Rome, il y a surement mieux. La cuisine du chef n’est pas mauvaise mais sur deux plats nous avons été déçus par rapport au prix. L’un était très très gras, et l’autre tout juste bon, mais surement pas à la hauteur d’un tel établissement. Les desserts n’ont pas rattrapé le coup. Dommage.

Food was great, but I’ve had better service in a crowded Irish Pub. Neglectful at best, and certainly not on par with a Michelin rated restaurant. Simply disappointing. Not worth the effort.

I came here on my last night in Rome and it was amazing. As a disclaimer, this isn’t your traditional Italian restaurant. I was looking to try something more modern and Glass Hostaria didn’t disappoint. It is sort of like Italian food with some French influence in preparation, and portion sizes/​presentation similar to any fine dining restaurant. However, they did a great job bringing out the flavors in Italian food and highlighting the freshness of the ingredients.
I had the 7 course tasting menu (smaller of the two) and it was divine. Started with an amuse bouche consisting of a fresh clam in either lettuce or pea sauce. They did a great job bringing out the flavor and freshness of the vegetable. I especially enjoyed the beef tartare, which was cooked just perfectly. It was uniquely Italian given the liberal use of really high quality olive oil in the flavoring. Also had a delicious amatriciana ravioli — tasty traditional flavors but not so big a portion that you can’t eat the rest of your meal.
The service was friendly and attentive and I got by perfectly with English. If you’re visiting Rome and looking to try something new, check this place out. The neighborhood of Trastevere is also a delightful place to walk around after dinner.

Amazing final meal in Rome. The chef came out and chatted with us about the menu and was a total sweetheart! Our meal was memorable and worth every penny. Save room for the dessert after the dessert.

Last night in Rome and we decided to find a close by Michlian starred resturant. Glass hosteria was the closest and they had an opening at the right time. What a surprise, very trendy dacor, friendly staff (took a couple of tries to find an english speaker, not a touristy place but more for locals on a big night out), great service (except near the end it got slower and slower as more people left). We had the tasting menu and I don’t regret it at all. The chef did some very innovative things and had solid hits with every one, the scallops in coconut milk and the braised short ribs were both home runs. Dessert was petit fours, which were good but I would have loked to see her innovation turned towards this course. A bit expensive but I found it to be well worth the money. Great neighborhood as well.

Very inventive restaurant, in a charming neighborhood, terrific service, and of course great coffee.