Well, we’re officially back home after **literally** the trip of a lifetime to Italy. I can’t even begin to describe how well we ate – it was 2 weeks full of the best meals I’ve ever had, back to back to back. We ate pasta every night and sampled the most amazing bread, cheese, prosciutto, pizza, and gelato during the day – all interspersed with lots of Italian wine, of course! It was beautiful, insanely delicious, and everything I could have ever wanted. And now I can’t wait to relive it all over again with you!
It was a very tough choice, but we decided our overall favorite food city was Florence – the truffles! The prosciutto! The quaint wine bars! OK, I’ll stop. But it really was something special – the opportunity to spend a few days strolling around this gorgeous city filled with so much art and history, eating amazing food, and drinking incredible (cheap!) wine all day was truly an experience I’ll never forget.
I have so many recommendations for where to eat in Florence I almost don’t know where to start. Florence is known for heartier Italian food – a lot of meats and cheeses, beautiful ragus, gigantic steaks called bisteccas, truffles, and seriously incredible wines from Tuscany. We didn’t have a bad meal there! Here are my favorite recommendations for any occasion in Florence:
- For the loveliest cozy dinner: Buca Dell’orafo
This super cute underground restaurant is located in a fairly touristy part of the city near the Ponte Sisto and all the museums, but as soon as you walk inside, the hustle and bustle totally fades away. We stumbled upon it after walking around in the rain all afternoon and totally fell in love with this place. The restaurant is cramped and tiny in a charming way, and we were elbow-to-elbow with an adorable older Italian couple who fortunately took a liking to us in the tight quarters. We shared an appetizer of anchovies and butter on toast (which I have learned is one of the most delicious things in the entire world), two absolutely amazing seasonal pastas, and a traditional Tuscan steak dish consisting of thinly shaved medium-rare beef topped with pecorino cheese and drizzled with olive oil that was absolutely incredible…and I unfortunately was too busy eating to take a picture of. SO SAD.
- For amazing local wine and the best crostini ever: Il Santino
Our friends Katie and Mike recommended this adorable wine bar on the other side of the river in Florence, and we loved it so much we went twice! The local white wine was so crisp and refreshing, and we had the most amazing crostini topped with pecorino and prosciutto and drizzled with a balsamic vinegar reduction. We also shared a sampler of their Italian meats and cheeses and it was the absolute perfect way to spend a cozy, drizzly afternoon.
Side note: another wine bar we loved was Le Volpi e L’uva but I didn’t get any good pictures there!
- For authentic Florentine food in a charming, fun environment: Osteria del Cinghiale Bianco
Another killer recommendation from our friends Avia and Joe, this restaurant is a little crazy and hectic but super fun and – most importantly – churns out some absolutely incredible traditional Tuscan food. We shared bruschetta and burrata with truffles to start (one of our favorite dishes of the entire trip) then moved on to wild boar ragu, which was also fantastic. For our entrée, we decided we had to try the traditional Florentine bistecca at least once, and I’m so glad we did it at Osteria del Cinghiale Bianco – it was one of the best steaks I’ve ever had, cooked perfectly medium-rare and topped with an insanely addicting crunch of sea salt. We shared a carafe of their house red and sat for hours just soaking it all in – it was one of our favorite nights of the trip!
- For the best gelato: Perché no!…
A Florentine classic, Perché no! has been around forever (since 1939!) and was just simply straightforward, delicious gelato. It was dangerously located on the way home to our Airbnb from pretty much everywhere so we had our fair share 🙂 highly recommend at least one trip here!
- For super creative craft cocktails and a speakeasy: Bitter Bar
Our friend Dave loved this place when he went to Florence so we were very excited to check it out – it didn’t disappoint! Bitter Bar is a speakeasy, so the entrance is hidden and you have to knock on the door for the bartender to come get you. We were there “early” for the Italians (around 10pm) so we basically had the place to ourselves, which was super fun as we were able to chat with the bartender a little. We were blown away by the crazy combos on the menu and loved our cocktails and the ambiance. I didn’t get any good pictures because it was super dark in there but if you’re looking for a great place to grab a nightcap, you have to check it out!
- For a truly unique Italian experience: LovexFood Italy
We found Lovexfood Italy through Airbnb Experiences (which I had never tried before and now will 100% check out anytime I’m traveling) and it was one of our favorite parts of our entire trip. We joined a small group of travelers from all over the world for a day at our Italian hosts’ house in Tuscany, learning how to cook homemade pasta the way their grandmothers did. It was a super leisurely day of cooking, laughing, drinking wine, and eating amazing food. The company was fantastic and Luca and Lorenzo, our hosts, were so welcoming and kind (and patient with all of us pasta newbies). We made homemade pasta dough and turned it into ricotta and parmesan stuffed ravioli and carbonara, and also made lavender panna cotta for dessert. I basically had to be rolled back to Florence but it was so worth it – the food, company, and incredible experience of getting to cook in this gorgeous Tuscan house was truly so special. Spending a day with LovexFood Italy is my #1 Florence recommendation :).
P.S. If you haven’t gotten sick of looking at pictures of pasta and prosciutto, I’ll be sharing my Rome recommendations next!!
Contact Info:
Buca dell’Orafo
Via dei Girolami, 28, 50122 Firenze FI, Italy
+39 055 213619
http://www.bucadellorafo.com/
Il Santino:
Via di Santo Spirito, 60/R, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy
+39 055 230 2820
http://ilsantobevitore.com/
Le volpi e l’uva:
Piazza dei Rossi, 1R, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy
+39 055 239 8132
https://www.levolpieluva.com/
Osteria del Cinghiale Bianco:
Borgo S. Jacopo, 43, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy
+39 055 215706
http://cinghialebianco.com/en
Perché no!…
Via dei Tavolini, 19r, 50122 Firenze FI, Italy
+39 055 239 8969
https://www.facebook.com/GelateriaPercheNo/
Bitter Bar:
Via di Mezzo, 28r, 50122 Firenze FI, Italy
+39 340 549 9258
LovexFood Italy:
Via Vecchia Pisana 22, Lastra a Signa (FI)
+39 348 606 9987
lovexfooditaly@gmail.com
