The popular Roman meal is organized into antipasto (appetizer), primo (pasta or soup, the hearty core of the meal), secondo accompanied by a contorno (meat or vegetable), then dolce or sweet breakfast depending on the time of day. In Anna Magnani's popular Rome, you don't eat to follow a trend but for conviviality: the table is noisy, generous, unpretentious, and the kitchen makes the best of little — the fifth quarter, market vegetables, sheep's cheese, and lard.

Two pillars of Roman cuisine: Pecorino Romano, a salty and full-flavored sheep's cheese grated over pasta, and guanciale (cured pork cheek) whose fragrant fat melts and binds the sauces. Together, they provide the umami and salt that define true *cucina romana*.