With the exception of a few sweltering days, Rome’s summer has been blissfully cool thus far. Nonetheless, as the mercury creeps up the thermometer, we find ourselves searching for cool and fruity things to eat and drink. Tutti frutti is in. Pizza and pasta are out.
Naturally, such cravings take us to Frullati Pascucci, a friendly 70-year-old bar (Via di Torre Argentina, 20) located just meters from the site where Julius Caesar was stabbed to death. Who could ask for a better location? Hailed as the “king of frullati,” the entrance of Pascucci is guarded by four industrial strength blenders in which the staff produce about about 100 different kinds of delicious and nutritious fruit frappes. (Of course, Romans also proclaim the health benefits of gelato, but we cling tenaciously to the belief that fruit-filled frullati are marginally better for us).)
On a hot day, droves of frullati aficionados wait patiently in line at the cash register, coins in hand (exact change, if possible!), ready to tell the trusty cashier whether they’re in the mood for “kiwi and strawberry,” “banana and blueberry,” or the famous “Amalfi.” Having paid and been given a receipt, customers move on to the stainless steel counter where barmen armed-with-the-patience-of-Job as well as world-class blending skills, scoop the requisite fruit, ice, and milk into blender pitchers and set the appliances whirling.
This is not a place to linger - most Romans are in and out in a matter of minutes. Nor is it a place of particular comfort - the only a few barstools along the wall. But, like so many of Rome’s delights, enjoying a frullato at Pascucci is a simple pleasure. The fun of watching your chosen treat spin in a humming blender is second only to the excitement of seeing your drink poured into a freshly rinsed glass and drawing the first sip up a straw.
