re: Best restaurants in Rome, Italy

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unlike in Paris and some other places in Europe, the restaurants we go to in Rome tend to be on the casual side and not the high end gourmet places

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If you're trying to get the lady to get Instagram impressions, I get going to tourist trap "fine" dining. I'd rather awesome friendly service and great *authentic* food than a Michelin star and foamed sea urchin. The pretension of "fancy" turns me off and is usually a cover for prices and not necessarily quality. I want to know where the locals go for special occasions, or on date nights, but that is probably just me.

There are always Bourdain suggestions. That's "The Layover" which is designed around about a 36 hour trip, which to me is more accessible than many of his longer, more involved episodes about particular cities and regions.

Also, if you check in at a high end hotel with a good concierge, they are typically great places to start. Please notice my qualifiers there; if you check into a business/commuter hotel, they won't give a damn, and will direct you to wherever they get kickbacks. If you are staying in something like a Marriott Autograph or Luxury Collection, they absolutely will direct you to awesome places.