The 10 Best Restaurants In Florence

Besides being the cradle of the Renaissance period, Florence has also been the birth place of some of the most fantastic food innovations, the kinds that will leave you wanting more. From bocconcini mozzarella to melt-in-your-mouth gelato, Florence has a wealth of dishes to try. Considering this is Italy, there’s a great trattoria on every corner, but we try to bring you the ten very best in town.

Enoteca Pinchiorri

In Florence, if Michelangelo is the artist whose masterpieces connoisseurs come to see, then Enoteca Pinchiorri is the restaurant that all foodies come to dine at. This three star Michelin restaurant is gastronomic experience at its best. In fact, its owner and chef Annie Féolde is the first woman from Italy to receive the coveted three stars. Everything, from it imposing façade and antique-filled decor to the gourmet cuisine can be described as nothing short of impressive. Their tasting menu is a lavish six to eight courses, which is best paired with a glass of fine wine. Giorgio Pinchiorri, the sommelier and co-owner, has a stock of 12,000 bottles of the to complement the cuisine.

Via Ghibellina 87, Florence, Italy, +39 055 242757

Il Teatro del Sale

Theater

This treasure of a place is the brainchild of Fabio Picchi and his actor wife Maria Cassi. One needs to pay the membership fee in order to enter the restaurant, which is housed inside an old theatre. Dinner is usually complemented by a live performance. The ambience is warm and chaotic, conversations and food fly about. The chef, just prior to serving, usually announces the dishes and guests queue up at the glass hatch. The menu varies everyday and features up to ten dishes, each one more delectable than the other. This trattoria is Italy at its most natural, sociable, theatrical and welcoming.

Il Latini

The world famous Italian hospitality finds its truest manifestation in this place. The Latini family has a loyal foreign and local clientele, who ensure that the place is always crowded. Forget ordering off a menu, your waiter probably knows better. The agnello fritto (fried lamb) and Florentine steak are the dishes that regulars tuck into with ardent devotion. The friendly waiters ensure that food and wine keeps magically appearing on your table but make sure you save some room for the limoncello, a sweet lemon liqueur, to complete your authentic Italian gastronomical experience.

Trattoria Nerone

A trip to Florence is incomplete without tasting a wood-fired pizza. This is exactly why one needs to head to Trattoria Nerone, which is considered to be one of the best pizzerias in Italy. The interior is eccentrically and the atmosphere is warm and lively. The pizzas are fresh out of the wood fire oven and made only with the choicest of ingredients. Although their menu features many other Tuscan dishes, it’s the pizzas that people come for. When the weather is pleasant, the outdoor area is abuzz with wine filled chatter. A must visit for those who want to taste pizza as it is intended to be.

Vivoli

Eating gelatos while sprawled out on the grass is one of the many reasons anyone would come to Italy. If you need some convincing then this gelateria, founded in 1930s by Rafaello Vivoli, will definitely change your mind. The recipe has been handed down the family and the biggest reason for their cult following is the freshness of the ingredients. All the gelatos are freshly made using locally sourced ingredients, without any flavouring or additives. The two flavours that locals swear by are the crema and riso, both delectable and creamy in their goodness. Mr Vivoli promises that eating his gelato will make you ‘spread your wings and touch the sky’, and it may well do so. Courtesy Ora d’Aria

Ora D’Aria

Restaurant, Wine Bar, Italian, Vegetarian, European

Ora D’Aria translates into hour of air, a reference to the time when prisoners spent their time exercising in the open air. This chic ristorante tucked away behind the Uffizi Gallery is indeed a breath of fresh air. Everything from its interiors to the food presentation is minimal, elegant and tasteful. The glass walled kitchen, through which one can watch the chefs fuss over your meal, ensures that the food is at the centre of the experience. The chef Marco Stabile has loyally stuck to his Tuscan roots, while experimenting and modernizing the cuisine. Starting from the bread basket, which features an assortment of freshly baked bread, still warm from the oven, to the selection of over 600 different kinds of wine, this restaurant will leave you wanting more.

Cantinetta Antinori

Restaurant, Italian

Wine lovers are completely spoilt for choice in Cantinetta Antinori. Located in the historic 15th century Antinori Mansion, the Antinori family have been providing Tuscany with some of the finest wine for 26 generations. This trattoria combines the finest wine with Tuscan cuisine. Despite the rustic appearance of the wooden tables in the restaurant, the standard of the cuisine and service is impeccable. The freshness of their ingredients, sourced directly from the Antinori farms, guarantees that the flavour is completely authentic. A visit to Cantinetta Antinori is not complete without sampling the gran prezzo, a Chianina beefsteak, fettunta or the Bistecca alla fiorentina.

Gusta Pizza

Pizzeria, Restaurant, Italian

A line outside a restaurant is always the best indication of a restaurant’s quality. In Gusta Pizza, the queue is usually a curious mix of locals, students and tourists who tread off the beaten track. The service is quick and, despite the winding queues, one usually gets a place fairly soon. Their speciality is the Pizza Napoletana, which boasts dough which is both soft and crispy. The ripe juiciness of the San Marzano tomatoes, coupled with the creaminess of the fresh mozzarella, ensures that every bite is a succulent piece of heaven. Priced modestly, this place ensures that every pizza-lover gets the Neapolitan flavour whilst in Florence.

Caffè Cibrèo

The staff at Cibrèo do not believe in having a standard menu card. They believe in devising their dishes according to the rhythms of the seasons and freshness of ingredients available. While September will see a rise in fig based dishes, November ensures that you have the freshest porcini mushrooms on your plate. The service is personalised and the waiters are real masters of words, enticing you with tantalising descriptions of the food, which leaves you salivating even before your dish arrives. Of course, once it does, one realises that words, however beautifully spoken, can do little justice to the real taste, which is bursting with flavour.

Via Andrea del Verrocchio 8, Florence, Italy, +39 055 234 1100

Libreria Brac

Restaurant, Italian, Mediterranean, Vegetarian, Vegan

Tucked behind a courtyard with very little signage, one can easily pass by this café-restaurant without realising it is a bibliophile’s dream come true. But once one does stumble upon it, this vegetarian restaurant will make sure you spend at least a couple of hours inside. The walls are lined with white shelves, which are stacked with art books and magazines. The food is freshly prepared with the freshest organic vegetables and is unbelievably light and refreshing. So after you’ve had your fill of art at the Uffizi, head over and have an unbelievably stimulating brunch, while sipping on Chianti and poring over books.

About the author

Ambika Rajgopal

Ambika Rajgopal, originally from New Delhi, currently resides in London. She has an MA in Contemporary Art Theory from Goldsmiths, University of London and an MSc in Art, Law and Business from Christie’s Education, London. Ambika has previously worked in the Indian and Islamic Department at Christie’s, South Kensington, London. In addition to this, she has written extensively on art. Alongside The Culture Trip, she has written for Saffronart Blog, Avenir and Art Radar. In 2015, Ambika, in collaboration with Delhi Art Gallery, wrote a monograph on the Bombay Progressive modernist - Krishen Khanna, which was published by the gallery. Ambika has previously worked in London, New Delhi and Frankfurt.