Sometimes you just need some good, hearty Italian food. When this urge hits me in Santa Monica, I head to Trastevere on the Third Street Promenade.

This Italian restaurant in a huge brick building on the corner of 3rd and Santa Monica Blvd. is a Promenade staple. With a cute outdoor patio for people-watching and an extensive interior, it’s one of those places you know you can always get in for a good meal even when the area is overrun with tourists.

I have come here for pizza and wine dinner dates, but my favorite is lunch, so I can sit on the patio and enjoy the weather.

Recently, I met a friend for lunch. I was starving, so I devoured so much of the free appetizer they bring along to everyone, fresh sourdough and olive bread with a black olive and olive oil spread for dipping. So I was already pretty full, and then this monstrosity came out?

I had ordered the caprese sandwich, featuring fresh mozzarella, sliced tomato, basil pesto and their famed black olive spread. It also came with either a Caesar salad or Minestrone soup. What I didn’t expect was TWO sandwiches!

There was so much food, I was able to have lunch for two days (and honestly, if I’d focused on the bread appetizer and the salad, I could have made it three meals). The black olive spread is really what brings me coming back to Trastevere. I hate olives, yet something about this spread makes me want to put it on anything and everything.

Trastevere also has good pizza (albeit thin crust pizza, buyer beware if you’re a crust lover like me), salads, soup, pasta, meat and fish. But I mean, just order anything you can put black olive spread on.

Disclosure: This post is not associated with Trastevere in any way. I received no compensation for this post.