Con l’arrivo dell’estate tornano le bevande rinfrescanti che ci rallegrano con i loro colori e sapori. Una bevanda tipica di Roma e del Lazio è la grattachecca, a base di ghiaccio e sciroppi, spesso con l’aggiunta di frutta fresca.

As summer temperatures finally begin to soar (in Italy!), we start looking for colourful refreshing drinks to sip on the beach or during a leisurely passeggiata. In Rome and in the Lazio region, Italians will turn to the typical grattachecca, a drink made of ice, syrup and sometimes also fresh fruit.

But beware: the grattachecca is not a granita! Granita is made by mixing and then freezing water, syrup or juice, sugar and sometimes pistachios. A grattachecca is obtained by scraping (grattando) a block of ice with a special scraper that collects the ice shavings in a sort of funnel. The shavings are then transferred into a glass (or less elegantly in a plastic cup) and only then are syrup and fruit added. The grattachecca should be first enjoyed with a spoon and then, when the ice starts to melt, it can be drank through a straw.

It seems that the grattachecca tradition dates back to the early Twentieth century when the first kiosks started selling them in central Rome. The oldest kiosk is Alla fonte d’oro on Lungotevere Raffaello Sanzio Sanzio, in business since 1913.

While waiting to savour a grattachecca romana in Rome, try this refreshing crossword puzzle..

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