Best restaurants and what to eat
Italy
Florence is the culinary heart of Tuscany, known for its robust peasant-rooted cooking, excellent olive oil, legumes, wild herbs, and simple preparations that let the ingredients speak. The city’s specialties range from iconic grilled meats and hearty bread-based dishes to delicate pastries and historic sweets, all paired naturally with Tuscan wines.
Peppery, vivid, and intensely green when young, this Tuscan extra-virgin olive oil is central to Florentine cooking. It is prized for drizzling over grilled meats, soups, beans, and toasted bread, where its grassy bitterness and clean finish add depth and freshness.
This classic saltless bread has a mild, wheaty flavor and a hearty crumb that makes it ideal for Tuscan soups and sauces. Its understated character reflects the region’s tradition of pairing bread with strongly seasoned foods, olive oil, and savory toppings.
A soft, lightly sweet Florentine flat cake or bread, fragrant with citrus and often dusted with powdered sugar. Traditionally associated with carnival, it is tender, airy, and delicately perfumed rather than rich or heavy.
A simple but beloved preparation of toasted bread rubbed with garlic and finished with new olive oil and salt. The appeal lies in its crisp texture, garlic aroma, and the vivid, fruity bitterness of the oil on warm bread.
A deeply nourishing Tuscan bread-and-vegetable soup built around cavolo nero, beans, and stale bread. Thick, earthy, and satisfying, it tastes even better reheated, when the flavors meld into a rich, rustic stew-like bowl.
This tomato-and-bread soup is silky, fragrant with basil, and anchored by good olive oil. Its texture is spoon-soft and comforting, balancing sweet tomatoes, savory bread, and the peppery finish of Tuscan oil.
The iconic Tuscan red closely associated with Florence, traditionally based on Sangiovese and marked by bright cherry fruit, earthy tannin, and savory acidity. It is typically served with grilled meats, roast poultry, and rustic Tuscan fare.
A more geographically specific and often more structured expression of Chianti from the historic hills between Florence and Siena. It tends to show red fruit, violets, spice, and firm tannins, making it a classic match for bistecca and rich sauces.
A crisp, mineral white wine from Tuscany with floral notes, citrus, and a gently bitter finish. Around Florence it is enjoyed chilled with antipasti, fish, and lighter vegetable dishes.
A traditional Tuscan dessert wine made from partially dried grapes, offering amber color, honeyed sweetness, dried fruit, and nutty depth. It is famously served with cantucci for dipping, creating one of the region’s most classic pairings.
A supple, fruit-forward Tuscan red made mainly from Sangiovese, with ripe cherry notes and soft tannins. Though from farther south in Tuscany, it is a familiar regional wine in Florence and pairs well with cured meats and stews.
A broad category of Tuscan wines that often includes expressive Sangiovese blends and innovative styles. In Florence, these wines are valued for their balance of fruit, spice, and earthy character alongside the local cuisine.
The definitive Florentine dish: a massive, bone-in steak grilled over embers and served very rare. Its appeal lies in the pure flavor of excellent beef, a charred crust, and a simple seasoning of salt and olive oil.
A dense Tuscan soup of beans, cabbage, vegetables, and bread, slowly reheated until thick and comforting. It is rustic, nourishing, and deeply flavorful, with olive oil adding a peppery finish.
A classic bread-and-tomato dish that becomes velvety and fragrant through slow cooking and basil. It is humble, bright, and satisfying, especially when finished with excellent olive oil.
Florence’s signature street sandwich, built around tender stewed tripe tucked into bread and sauced with salsa verde or chili. It is intensely savory, pleasantly chewy, and one of the city’s most iconic everyday meals.
Slow-cooked tripe in tomato sauce with aromatics and sometimes Parmesan, resulting in a tender and richly savory dish. It is a model of Florentine cucina povera elevated by careful cooking.
Small toasted breads topped with a silky chicken liver spread, capers, anchovy, and wine. They are rich, bracing, and quintessentially Tuscan as an antipasto.