Connecting the Troopers of Today with the Veterans of Yesterday.

Cafe Roma

I guess the Cafe Roma was the one thing all 3/2 ACR Amberg Vets have in common. simply everyone had to go there at one time or another. Some guys, at times, wanted to go somewhere away from all of the g i 's (wonder why?); but there certainly was nothing wrong with the roma.

I went there once with Dieter, the bartender at the Officers Club, we had a few beers. and by the time the pizza came I was hungry enough to eat the spare off a 114.

I still remember that pizza, it was still sizzling, and it was a product of the roma. They made the dough, cooked it in their own slate ovens.

Sometimes, when filled to the rafters with troopers, the place could get raucous, but most of the time I didn't really notice.

I would almost travel back to Amberg to go to the Roma, and if I was there, I would go to the pizzaria victoria, or whatever it is now - just to check it out.

Anybody got a special memory of the Roma, paternity suit, anything?

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Thomas Blaszkiewicz on October 13, 2010 at 7:13pm

If I remember a lot of Troopers lived in the complex where the Roma was. Now Victoria Pizzaria.Outside the side gate across from Kennedystrasse.

Permalink Reply by John G Boyd on October 14, 2010 at 10:25am

yeah alot of the married guyz who lived off post lived in the complex, + around the area were some cheap rentals where some troops shared a flat to have a place to get off post.
I don't think that I can remember much abour Pond Barracks and Amberg without including the cafe roma, although I actually did not go there often ...
Thanks for the reply

Permalink Reply by James F. Burgos on October 14, 2010 at 10:55am

John, I ( and my wife ) used to live just right up stairs. I believe that it was late Feb. 1968 that we rented an apartment on the 5th ( or 7th floor, I forget) and we ate at the Roma all of the time. We were both Californians and were used to eating Mexican food BUT the pizza at the Roma was HOT ! I forget the owners name but his daughter was named Patricia ( pah tritz ia ) and she was about 5 or 6 at the time. The family was from Napoli ( Naples ) and the food was very, very good. The Cafe has just opened up and at that time it was NOT a place that GI's favored. On Spring or Summer evenings we would go down and have a beer or a Brandy Flip on the patio and watch the " lifers " across the street. We rotated " back to the world " in July, 1969. Those were good days.

Permalink Reply by John G Boyd on October 14, 2010 at 5:14pm

When I got to amberg, it was like a few gi's went to the roma. But after a year or so, it seemed the roma became more and more popular, especially after payday and everything became right with the world.
In 1972, the year that I left, sometimes the place may be likely packed with gi's from Pond Barracks. I, myself, was there only a few times; the first time I was guest of a German national, and I thought it was more of a place that the locals preferred, since it did not appear to me that they catered to gi's specifically.
All I remember was, it was common knowledge that the family that ran the Cafe Roma were really from Italy, AND, everyone said the food was good there.
I can attest only to the later.
But, those were the days ...
Thanks for your kind observations and reply.

Permalink Reply by James F. Burgos on October 17, 2010 at 1:11pm

I know that the owners wife didn't speak any English, but I forget how I used to order food. I spoke poor Spanish and even worse German and it was the owner that always took our order. Did the owner speak any English ? Anyway , by saying " svie Weisse bitte " I always got the message across. Oh, all of the songs on the juke box were European, mostly current German hits.

Permalink Reply by Joseph P Weber on November 12, 2010 at 10:50am

My wife and I lived right upstairs from Roma. Moved there in 1985 when my first daughter was born. It was a great place. I locked myself out of my apartment once and the guy who ran Roma broke in for me. The beer store in the basement was great. I could leaver my empty rack outside my door and when I came home have a fresh one ready to go.

Permalink Reply by doris eichner on November 14, 2010 at 10:42pm

how could i ever forget the roma :)
my favorite was the lasagna, too bad most times i didn't have enough cash to have one LOL

Permalink Reply by Pete Fahrenkrug on November 16, 2010 at 6:18pm

Wonderful pizza. I can taste it now. My sister-in-law came over to visit us and she bacame friends with the younger girl there. I forget her name. This was around the late 80's. She kept in touch with her for quite awhile. Don't know if they still do. Where can I get one of those pizza's without going over??? I wish....

Permalink Reply by John G Boyd on November 17, 2010 at 4:02pm

You know, honestly I do not know if I ever had any pizza, bier, the entire service experience, in the US that I had at the
Cafe Roma. Maybe it was the fact that by the time the pizza arrived I was so hungry I hurt. Maybe it was a little bier, I honestly do not know.
But if I win the lottery, one of the places that I would go for sure, would be to Ambeerg, and back to the old Kasern to find what became of the Cafe Roma.
Some where here in all of the pages is a communication from someone who indicated it is still open, but run now by a different family. I am sure there are other differences, too, but I am ready for a sample right now ...

Permalink Reply by howard maxwell tritt on November 18, 2010 at 10:12pm

Going to the Roma was as natural as going to the motor pool. It was something I did almost everyday. They had food ? I just went to meet the girls!!

Permalink Reply by James Westover on November 20, 2010 at 12:08pm

The Roma was a good place to go on a Friday night before clubbing. Pizza's were great.
Geli was the waitress there. She provided great service and really liked all the guys.

Permalink Reply by Lee Adelman on November 22, 2010 at 12:30am

If I was not at Camp Reed or Graf - I was at the Roma : )
Sure do miss that place....