Katie and Henry have  birthdays in August and today seemed the perfect opportunity to celebrate .  At the last minute Chris and his family were unable to join us and we missed them  but  a good time was had by all.  Henry is very happy with his new banjo and Katie got a McKenzie -Child’s cake plate and the proverbial   card!

For years, David refused  to enter a Buca di Beppo and I thought it was because of  the tasteless tacky plastic flowers.  Now he loves it  and looks forward to our family outings.  We are seated in the Pope room with a large lazy Susan in the center of the table with a bust of the current Pope Francis.  The food is  simple Italian cooked well if not imaginatively.  Maybe that is a good idea anyway as it is  hard to mess up simple Italian food.   The meal is served family style and the Lazy Susan comes in handy.

The decor is  pictures, many humorous plates, and anything that can be held on the wall, from the floor to ceiling.  Many tasteless tacky pictures are  of Rome and all of Italy.  The decorations in the bathrooms are naughty to say the least.  There is a fountain with a naked  cherub and fountain is filled with water from his penis.  This always gets  many giggles. The plastic flowers are still in boxes outside and inside, but somehow you get used to them.

We have decided Buca di Beppo  has  the tasteless tacky side of the Italian culture down to  to a science and  it is fun, good service, solid Italian cooking, fun  for the kids and I don’t have to cook.  Try it for a group or family celebration and ask ahead for the Pope table. It is very popular and usually only for groups of 11 or 12. After all our time in Rome we love the memories of seeing the pictures and enjoying the food!

Pope Francis in his place of honor.

Bring your appetite or bring the leftovers  home for later !