Where To Eat In Florence

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Our friend Eleonora has a few suggestions for great dining. Some are quite well known; others are local secrets. You're sure to enjoy yourselves at any of them.

• Trattoria Pallottino (Via Isole delle Stinche 1/r, tel.055-289-573; closed Monday). Near Santa Croce. This traditional wineshop has a friendly atmosphere, with wooden tables and straw placemats. Typical Florentine cuisine, including large portions of pasta, or assortments (assaggi) of cheese and salami. This is a popular place, so phone ahead and avoid rush hours, especially 1-2pm. About $15./person, if you drink the house wine, which is quite good.

• Enoteca Bar "Fuori Porta" (Via del Monte alle Croci 10/r, tel. 055-234-2483; closed Sunday. Open 9:30am-1am; no credit cards). Below Piazzale Michelangelo. Traditional Florentine snack bar, with crostini, assorted cheeses and salamis and preserved vegetables. A large selection of Italian wines by the glass or bottle. Very popular with the local theatre and art crowd, who especially like the outdoor seating in summer. About $7 for wine and a snack.

• Cibreino (Piazza Ghiberti 35, tel. 055-234-1100; closed Sunday and Monday). Near Santa Croce. Next door to the famed (and costly) Cibreo, this lively trattoria features large tables shared by all, and most of the same dishes as the Cibreo (at lower prices). Don't come here if you're longing for pasta. You'll find only delicious soups and casseroles (sformati) for the first course, and local specialties such as stuffed rabbit, veal and ricotta meatballs or stewed calamari for seconds. Save room for the chocolate cake. $20-25./person without wine.

• Vineria alle Murate (Via Ghibellina 52/r, tel. 055-240-618; closed Monday). Like the Cibreino, this elegant little candlelit restaurant is the less expensive sister of Alle Murate, next door. Very popular with the after-theatre crowd. You'll love the wine cellar, visible through the glass floor. Phone ahead. $20./person without wine.

• Al Lume di Candela (Via delle Terme 23/r, tel. 055-294-566; closed Monday lunch and Sunday). Near Via Tornabuoni. More expensive than the other restaurants on this list, this is a first-class splurge. Extremely elegant settings, unforgettable food and impeccable service justify $55./person.

• Ristorante-Pizzeria Edi House (Piazza Savonarola 6-10/r, tel. 055-588-886). Near Via Masaccio. This two-year old establishment is far more modern and stylish than most Florentine "pizzerie." Great salads, pastas and pizza. $15.-20./person for pizza, pasta and wine.

• Il Latini (Via dei Panchetti 6, tel. 055-210-916; closed Monday). Near the Duomo. Friendly atmosphere, rustic settings and, at lunch, a noisy local crowd. Great fried vegetables and antipastos. Phone ahead. $15.-20./person, with house wine.

Here are some more recommendations by reader Janet G.:

• Pane e Vino (Via San Niccolo 70r, phone 2476956)
  A small informal restaurant with an interesting menu that changes often. This may have been the best meal I had in Florence, especially a dish of lamb with eggplant puree. Since this used to be an enoteca, the wine list is also good. Friendly service. Price around 26 Euro per person.

• Osteria del Bricco (Via San Niccolo 8r, Phone 2345037)
  A small family-run place serving typical Tuscan food, with some non-traditional twists such as serving the crostini toppings separately in small bowls. Not necessarily worth a detour, but a good place to know about if you're in the area. Price around 21 Euro per person.

• Enoteca Fuori Porta (Via Monte alle Croci 10r, phone 2324483, www.fuoriporta.it)
  This wine bar is not exactly a secret, since it's already mentioned on the In Italy site and in most of the guide books, but I'd like to add my recommendation. This was the only place we went back to a second time during our 8 day stay in Florence. A very interesting list of wines by the glass in all price ranges, and a book-length list of wines by the bottle. We went for the wines by the glass on both our visits and had a mini wine tasting. The food specialty here is "crostoni" - large hunks of Tuscan bread topped with almost anything you can think of, plus melted cheese. (There are several pages of combinations to choose from.) The dishes we tried from the short list of daily specials were good, too - smoked swordfish carpaccio and fettucine with rabbit sauce being two standouts. Note that this enoteca is very popular with locals and tourists alike, and fills up rapidly after about 8:30 pm.

Here are some more recommendations by another In Italy Online reader:

• Il Paiolo - Via Corso (nr. Duomo)- wonderful small family owned restaurant - excellent food - only caution - when they're very busy they sometimes present the bill without itemizing it, which is not acceptable, otherwise it's a delightful place. We also received this review:
  

  Just wanted to inform your readers of a nasty experience with a restaurant in Florence that we read about on your site, Il Paiolo. Perhaps we hit it on a particularly bad night but I rather think this is the norm. A very pricey, overly salted (and I like the salt shaker), poor quality indifferently presented meal. The final bill, very hefty was not itemized and seemed to cause her much distress when asked to do so. We were not the only dissatisfied diners that evening. I would say the family pride has given way to tourist rip-off. What a shame.. it was our last night and we wanted a special evening. I have tried to contact them but their mailbox is too full. Perhaps with complaints????? I do hope this gets passed along to your readers.

• Birreria Centrale - Piazza Cimatori (nr. Doumo)- rustic ambience with big steins of beer and cute young waitresses exposing navels - menu ambitious, but the reality is they don't have most items. - service dismal - the manager/owner couldn't care less.

• Antico Fattore - Via Lambertesca (nr. Uffizi)- tourist trap - indifferent food - indifferent service.

• Mama Gina's - Via San Jocopo (Ultra Arno) Terrific restaurant - excellent pasta and other dishes - very good service and reasonable. Great place for a long lunch.

• Cibreo - Via A. Del Verrocchio. (Santa Croce) A very expensive restaurant that lends new meaning to the word pretentious - loud - noisy - bustling - The owners vision of Italian nouveau. He struts around like a peacock while the diners puzzle over the three courses of basically appetizers. If you're going to spend this much money go instead to either Villa San Michele in Fiesole or try La Baraonda on the Via Ghibellina # 67 for good and honest Tuscan dishes - both top choices along with Cantinetta Antinori (lunch only) Palazzo Antinori (Via Tounabuoni)

Let's talk gelato - Vivoli (Santa Croce) - brusque assembly line service - pay first - cups only - no cones - gelato, saccherine sweet - yuck! Go to Perche No (Why Not) wonderful gelato and friendly service (nr. Piazza Repubblica) off Via de Calzaiuoli on street to left before church of Orsanmichele on right.