Mimì alla Ferrovia

A trattoria of 1943 next to the train

Mimì alla Ferrovia opened in 1943, in the middle of the war, on Via Alfonso d'Aragona, a few steps from the central station. It was founded by Ida and Emilio Giugliano, whom everyone called Mimì; he had a passion for horses and that is why the horseshoe is the house emblem. Today it is run by the third generation of the family, with the nephew Salvatore Giugliano in the kitchen. Totò, Eduardo De Filippo and Gianni Agnelli passed through its tables, and their photos cover the walls of the downstairs room.

The ground floor is informal, with tables close together and the noise of a Neapolitan dining room. Upstairs there is a more elegant and larger room, for 120 people, reserved for events.

The menu

It is traditional Neapolitan cooking, with the odd modern nod. Among the starters, peperoni 'mbuttunati (stuffed peppers), aubergine parmigiana, potato croquettes with friarielli, buffalo mozzarella with tomato and a tartare of local fish. For first courses, candele alla genovese, linguine with mussels and courgette flowers, spaghetti with clams, pasta of the day with fish or the pasta mista with potatoes, provola and guanciale, a Neapolitan home dish. For main courses, octopus, fried squid, fried cod with piennolo tomatoes, meatballs in ragù or grilled fillet. To finish, babà, pastiera, delizia al limone, chocolate caprese or limoncello sorbet.

The website does not publish prices or hours: call before you go, especially on a Sunday or public holiday.

How to book and get there

If you are one to three people, you do not book: you go and are seated in order of arrival, and if it is full you leave your name on the waiting list at the entrance. For four to ten people you book on the website or, at the last minute, by phone. Larger groups, by phone or email.

It is a few steps from Napoli Centrale station, so it fits well on the day of arrival or before catching the train back to Rome.