A Florence Food Guide
What I miss (and don’t!) of Florentine cuisine. Plus my favorite Florentine eateries.
Florentine cuisine changes with the seasons and with social and cultural celebrations. This culinary rhythm used to fill me with anticipation as I eagerly awaited the next different and delicious thing to eat.
When I relocated to Oregon, I was struck with how food remained mostly unchanged throughout the year.
In Tuscany, the natural rhythms of the fields and the forests are mirrored in the food in bakeries and grocery stores. When September comes and the grapes are ripe for harvesting, I used to buy ( you can make it yourself, try this recipe :) ) schiacciata con l’uva, a slightly sweet grape flatbread. It’s made with leftover grapes from vineyards and every time I eat it my fingers (and shirt!) turn purple.
As November unfolds, and the olive harvest with it, all grocery shops have signs that say olio nuovo, new olive oil. It’s bright green and peppery, and makes me cough every time I eat it. The olio nuovo, so full of flavor, is often drizzled on slices of Tuscan bread.
Tuscan bread is something I certainly do not miss!
Tuscan bread is unsalted, so it has almost no flavor. Florentines are very proud of it, because, according to them, the neutral base makes it very versatile. It’s the perfect match with sweet jam or salty cured meats or cheeses.
As for me, I usually sprinkle it with salt, although Florentines might consider this sacrilegious!
There is a popular legend that traces the origin of unsalted bread to the rivalry between Pisa and Florence in the 11th century. The Pisans jacked up the taxes on the salt that arrived in the port. So the Florentines start making bread without salt!
While Florentine cuisine can be quite meat-centered there is a special attention for seasonal vegetables as well. I love to be in Florence in spring because I can eat artichokes and asparagus every day!
As someone who has never been fond of meat and who’s been a vegetarian for a decade, when eating outside I look for primi piatti or antipasti to find meatless options.
In the list below, I collected not only my favorite places to eat but also my friends’ suggestions for places to enjoy a meat-centered meal.
Low key Trattorie, less formal than restaurants.
Trattoria Sabatino, in the working class neighborhood of San Frediano is family-run and cheap, with a menu that changes every day. It’s simple and unpretentious. Now very popular among tourists because it was featured on Condé Nast Traveler. Open for lunch and dinner from Monday to Friday.
Bistrot Santa Rosa. Perfect for lunch and aperitivo. Very popular among Florentines, near the San Frediano gate. It’s a great place especially in spring and summer because of its outdoor space.
Trattoria Mario. An institution in the San Lorenzo neighborhood. Famous for Bistecca alla Fiorentina. They don’t accept reservations. Closed on Sundays
Trattoria Sostanza. Another Florentine institution. Their menu and place hasn’t changed in decades. Their famous dishes are chicken breast in butter sauce and their artichoke pie. Cash only, closed on Sunday.
Al Tranvai. In Piazza Tasso, this hole-in-the-wall restaurant serves really good old-fashioned dishes.
Trattoria la Casalinga. A family-run trattoria in Piazza Santo Spirito that serves traditional Florentine food. If you love meat and feel adventurous, try the liver with sage. Open for lunch and dinner from Monday to Saturday.
Mensa della Posta, via degli Anselmi, close to Piazza della Repubblica. This is not a restaurant or trattoria but as the name reveals, a post office canteen/cafeteria where food is served on plastic trays. Although it doesn’t have any special charm, it serves simple, good food at a very cheap price, especially considering the location only a few steps away from Piazza della Repubblica.
Street Food:
If you’re an adventurous meat-eater you should try Lampredotto, a typical Florentine dish made with the fourth and final stomach of the cattle, the abomasum. Boiled in a vegetable broth, it is served in a bread roll with a delicious salsa verde, a green sauce made with parsley, capers, anchovies, garlic and hard boiled eggs. Although I don’t eat Lampredotto, I could eat salsa verde with everything!
Tripperia Pollini, an historical food cart near Piazza Sant’Ambrogio where father and son work together.
Antico Vinaino. Serves really good panini, with cured meats, cheese and vegetables. It became really popular over the last years so expect huge lines!
Introvert-friendly eateries:
These eateries are oases of quiet in the middle of the Florentine bustle.
Brac, a contemporary art bookshop with a tiny restaurant and café. A quiet place to check books and have a lovely vegetarian meal.
Oblate Library. Once a monastery, now a public library with a beautiful cloister, it’s very close to the Dome. This public library has a cafeteria at the top floor with an amazing view of the Dome. It’s a quiet place for an aperitivo or a simple meal.
Amblé: a quirky bar and vintage furniture shop in a hidden square near Ponte Vecchio. They serve fresh sandwiches and salads, and it’s a great place to have a drink. The Spritz Amblé is a delicious variation of the traditional Spritz cocktail made with elderflower syrup. So good!
Gelato:
Although there are gelato shops everywhere, most of them are tourist traps.
These two are my go-to choices. They are family-run and source good quality, seasonal ingredients.
Gelateria della Passera: a tiny hole-in-the-wall that serves artisanal gelato made daily, with outstanding ingredients. The milk comes from a biodynamic farm in Tuscany. Cinzia, the owner, has been making amazing gelato for almost 20 years, but recently she reviews in international magazines, so expect huge lines. Cinzia sources only seasonal ingredients so don’t ask for a strawberry gelato in winter!
Carabé. Run by a Sicilian family, they make gelato, granite (a traditional Sicilian shaved ice treat), and cannoli. I highly recommend the almond granita and the pistachio gelato (you’ll thank me later…)
Restaurants (more upscale than Trattorie):
Trattoria Cammillo. Even though is called trattoria expect higher prices than in a trattoria. They serve delicious fried sage as ‘antipasto’ and their persimmon tiramisù in the fall is delicious.
Beppa Fioraia: In the lovely neighborhood of San Niccolò, it feels like being in the countryside, especially if you get a table in the garden. The food is traditional and really good.
Santo Bevitore. In the Santo Spirito neighborhood, this popular restaurant serves less traditional food made with a focus on good quality ingredients. My sister ate there a few days ago and she ordered their Risotto with wild asparagus (Ah spring!), fresh sheep pecorino, sour butter and egg yolk. Interesting, unexpected and delicious.
What a wonderful post. I've only been to Florence once but this is making me want to go back for the food alone... I also love the idea of changing what you eat with the seasons. A much better way of consuming!