Our main recommendation is to follow the well known saying: "When in Rome do as the Romans do." Have dinner at a trattoria, and walk around eating a gelato.
Except for the classic Italian dishes (spaghetti alla carbonara, bucatini all'amatriciana, etc.) you should try also some of the Roman cuisine (cucina romana).
We suggest 2-3 quick features that allow you to avoid sure tourist traps:
Menu is only in English.
Owners/waiters are standing outside, saying "hello" and inviting you to sit at their restaurant.
The menu offers spaghetti bolognese, spaghetti napoletana, fettucini alfredo, or variations of such nonsense (but check this old paper for the story of fettucini alfredo and some not up to date info).
Bring a Roman with you!
There are some good restaurants in random order close to the conference venue:
Trattoria Morgana: A very good typical Roman trattoria, with a large selection
Vecchia Roma: Also a good trattoria, slightly heavier
I buoni amici: A Sardinian restaurant, a good choice if you prefer seafood.
Trattoria Monti: A very good trattoria, more upscale.
A sample of other suggested restaurants:
Palazzo del Freddo (aka Fassi): Probably the oldest gelato in Rome.
Regoli: perfect for small sweets on the go. Try maritozzi!
Coffee shops (called bar in Italy) are available in every square. Italians usually drink coffee on foot at the bar. They have a huge number of ways of having their coffee, but the main types of coffee are:
Caffè (or caffè espresso): standard espresso, usually less quantity than in other countries
Caffè lungo: like caffè espresso, but slightly larger quantity, similar to the espresso outside Italy
Caffè macchiato (literally, spotted coffee): caffè espresso with a drop of milk
Cappuccino
Nice places for caffè close to the conference venue:
Ciamei, also good to buy coffee powder for moka to bring back home
PiazzaDante, also good for drinks and aperitivo
Panella, a very good bakery that also serves coffee
IMPORTANT: It is forbidden to have cappuccino after 1 pm. At most, you can ask for a caffè macchiato.
If you want to go for a drink, check the neighborhoods list. If you just want a drink close-ish to the conference venue we recommend:
Tipping is generally not required. Usually you will leave a couple of euros at dinner for small parties, more (5-10 EUR) for larger groups of people. For taxi you can round up the change.
If you want to do some sightseeing in Rome, get ready to walk a lot. You can find plenty of information online. We recommend to walk around the neighborhoods we show below. Some more ideas for sightseeing are the following, which are only a small sample of what you can see in Rome:
Colosseo
Roman forum (Foro Romano)
Piazza Navona
The Pantheon
Christian catacombs
Spanish steps (Piazza di Spagna)
Piazza del Popolo
Aventino hill
Trevi fountain (Fontana di Trevi)
Mouth of truth (Bocca della verità)
Park of Villa Borghese
Park of Caffarella and Appia Antica
MACRO (museum of contemporary art). There is the main one (via Nizza 138) and an annex (piazza Orazio Giustiniani 4)
National museum of Rome: a collection of 4 museums
Capitoline museum
Vatican museum
MAXXI: most famous by its building designed by Zaha Hadid.
Galleria Borghese: A small gallery inside the park of Villa Borghese, with several famous pieces. Appointment and reservation is required.
Villa Giulia: A large collection of Etruscan antiquities.
St. Peter's Basilica
Santa Maria Maggiore, close to the conference venue.
San Pietro in Vincoli, close to the conference venue. Mostly famous for Michelangelo's statue of Moses.
San Clemente, close to the conference venue. Make sure to visit the old church underground.
San Giovanni, close to the conference venue.
Santa Prassede, Santa Pudenziana and Santa Maria in Domnica, near the conference venue, are three very early Christian churches.
Chiesa del Gesù, look at the roof!
San Luigi dei Francesi, you can admire the triptic of Saint Matthew by Caravaggio.
Santa Maria del Popolo, still Caravaggio.
...
Rome is beatiful for strolling at the streets.
Old city center, close to Piazza Navona and Campo de' Fiori
Old city center area, close to Piazza di Spagna, Fontana di Trevi, and Piazza del Popolo
Trastevere
Jewish Ghetto
Trastevere
Campo de' Fiori
Monti
Colosseo
The following two areas are mostly frequented by students and tend to get busy rather late (after 11pm).
San Lorenzo
Pigneto
Rome is generally a safe city, and it is safe to walk around the conference area or the city center. Of course you should be more cautious if you walk late and you are alone, although even then it is safer than many other large cities.
However, you have to be very careful about pickpockets, as Rome is (rightly) notorious for petty theft. Be very careful of your belongings at all times and especially when visiting touristic areas and when traveling on the metro or the bus (#64 is infamous). Be alert if someone (no matter how old, elegant, etc. he/she looks) talks to you or distracts you (bumping into you accidentally, spilling something, etc.), as often the accomplice will perform the theft. Have your bag/purse in view in front of you, and prefer to have your wallet in your front pocket and covered with your hand.