THE ULTIMATE FOOD GUIDE TO FLORENCE, ITALY
This post has been a long time coming! Ever since I finished up my semester abroad living in Florence, Italy, I knew I wanted to share all my favorite and top eats, shopping, and travel tips. If you are heading to Florence soon, this post is absolutely for you!
It is not secret Italy is known for some amazing food, Florence specifically. Between paninis, pizza, pasta, steak and even brunch... Florence really has everything. Thankfully, there was not too much food you would miss (besides Chick-Fil-A).
For reference, I lived in the Santa Croce neighborhood of Florence and was about a 10-minute walk from the Duomo and 5 from Pitti Palace! The majority of these places were relatively near my area/close to the Duomo or river.
- Rooster Cafe: Super trendy and cute, they have unreal pancakes and their chicken and waffles is to die for! So so good and perfect to satisfy fried chicken cravings! Always has a long wait on the weekends, so be aware.
- La Vespe: Best brunch hands down!! So so delicious, real bacon (biiiiiig plus for me), good portion sizes and a lot of options! It is the most American like brunch you will find, but definitely still super European. My friends loved the King, their breakfast burrito, and I loved their classic breakfast. They also have great vegan options and fantastic coffee!
- Ditta Artignale: Probably my favorite place in Flo -- the absolute best coffee, but they also have such delicious food. My favorite coffee from them was the latte macchiato with oat milk, perfect flavor and I didn't even need any sweetener, their coffee is that good. You really cannot go wrong with anything there. They have breakfast and lunch -- the crust avocado was my fav!! Also, perfect for sitting and doing work all day.
- Green Street Bar: Bar at night, but iced coffee and bagel place during the day. My roommate would go there all the time for iced coffee! More traditional, they have regular flavors you can add. You can also get a traditional bagel with cream cheese or bacon, egg, and cheese!
- La Milkeria: Crepe heaven, but they also have fantastic waffles/pancakes and their own gelato. Really great lattes, another place with flavoring that is actually good! Not the best to sit and do work since it is small and their WIFI never worked for us.
- Any bakery/cafe: If you are okay with just pastries or simple cappuccinos! There is one on every corner. Since I am lactose intolerant I preferred going to actual coffee shops for more milk options!
- Oil Shoppe: They have SO MANY options! 50 something sandwiches, but you also can make your own combination. As well as build your own salad, house-made chips, and really good iced coffee. This place is right across from the Rooster Cafe. It was a personal favorite I found too late in the semester, but once I started going I could not stop! I really love all the customizations they offer.
- Pinos: A CLASSIC! Pino is the sweetest man ever, become friends with him. You will be greeted with a smile and love every time you walk in! Great classic panini combinations, not as much customization. They also have a lot of freshly made pasta and other baked foods you can take to go or sit and eat there!
- Panini Toscana: This place is right by the duomo, it is a small little place, but it is SIMPLE AND DELICIOUS. Right when you walk in, you can try meat and cheese for free (every time you go in might I add), you then pick which of those options you want on your panino, pick your bread and then pick from their small but tasty selection of toppings. A true experience and the location is convenient!
- Sandwichchic: A lot of people raved about this place! I had never personally been, it was far from my apartment/classes, but my roommate went all the time and loved it!
- Shake Cafe: I went here probably more than I needed to because it is a little pricier, but basically like a vegan/healthy cafe. They have great smoothies, coffee, and acai bowls, as well as build your own bowl/salad! Really great option when you are craving greens and fresh food.
- Tamarindo Juicery: Ugh this place. I love it so much, their juices and smoothies are so good. You also can buy fresh fruit, random healthy things, and ALMOND BUTTER. They have freshly made almond and peanut butter, which was a lifesaver. They have toasts, bowls, soups, etc. Such great and tasty healthy options, also a good amount of room to sit and do work!
- Pizza Napoli: Hands down the best pizza in Florence! Simple and delicious, the pesto was my favorite. The guys who work there are such fun and if you're a girl your pizza is always made in a heart, it is super cute and I am convinced makes it taste better. We all thought it was way better than Gusta Pizza!
- Yellow Bar: You can watch them make their fresh homemade pasta, they have a lot of whole wheat pasta which is excellent. Whichever fresh pasta with the spicy sauce was amazing! This is a great place to go with a group, but warning I got seafood once it made sick so just stick to the regular pasta lol.
- Osteria Santo Spirito: I could not get enough of this place!! Thankfully, my best friends lived right above it so we had an excuse to go a lot. They are known for their TRUFFLE GNOCCHI. To die for. But, you HAVE to try to beef stew, so so delicious it is unreal. Plus, free bread with the best olive tapenade I have ever had. The best part is you can get half portions of everything!! Make a reservation for sure.
- Aqua al 2: When you are tired of pasta and pizza and want to treat yourself, go here. Get the steak sampler. It is not really worth the price of getting something other than steak. I loved both the blueberry and balsamic, absolutely outstanding. Definitely pricey, and definitely make a reservation!!
- Dantes: Ah, this place. Food is average for sure, BUT there is unlimited wine, so it all balances out. Great place to pregame and have dinner with friends!!
- Trattoria Za Za's: They have the biggest menu ever, and everything is surprisingly good. This place is HUGE so it is great for groups! I loved anything wild boar or truffle or pesto from here! You really cannot go wrong.
- Da Que' Ganzi Trattoria Osteria: The best restaurant in Florence, no questions!! We stumbled in here because it was right by our apartment. MY LAST MEAL IN FLO! The lamb pasta is OUTSTANDING. The pumpkin soup is EVERYTHING. The pistachio creme brulee... just omg. Everything is amazing, the wine is amazing, the people are so nice. I cannot say enough about how great this place is!
- La Giostra: I wouldn't say its an absolute must, it is def expensive, but really delicious meal, go with your parents if they want somewhere boujee. Elton John ate here while we were abroad, it is popular for celebrities, but not an absolute must if you are only visiting Flo.
- Foody Farm: I was a huge fan of this place. It just has GOOD FOOD. It is all fresh, and super delicious. It reminds me of upscale bar food here in the US, yet it is all really affordable. Everything on the menu was delicious!
- La Carraria: We went here every single day, thankfully it was right by our apartment, the man is so nice who works there. But y'all this gelato is SO CHEAP and SO DELICIOUS. You can get gelato for a euro. You have to get the caramletto, and the pistachio creme flavors!!
- Eduardos: I have a soft spot for this place. They have really good healthier options, a lot of vegan/dairy-free options which I loved and such unique flavors. Their walnut and fig flavor is delicious! Plus, their homemade cones are EVERYTHING, so so good.
- Don Ninos: Right next to the duomo, so it is very pricey, but their cannoli gelato is unreal and so worth it. Absolutely delicious! Their cannolis are eh, and definitely not an everyday kind of gelato because it is like $6 lol.
- La Strega: On the other side of the river kind of hidden, but probably my favorite gelato in Flo. Their flavors are unique, bold, and I love it. I was obsessed with the spicy chocolate and Mexican cinnamon!! My roommate loved their Nutella one and it had Ferrero Rochers inside!
