Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Light Meals and Snacks in Florence
The traditional pavement café is not as much a part of
local life in Florence as in other Italian cities. However,
small, hole-in-the-wall bars can be found on most of
the city's streets. Here, you can have alcoholic and soft
drinks, as well as a range of tempting breakfast and
lunch-time snacks. Old-fashioned wine bars provide
alternative eating and drinking venues, and the city has
plenty of take-away establishments, especially near Santa
Maria Novella station, if you want to eat on the move.
Sitting down at a bar or café can be expensive, as
there is a charge for taking a table. If you only want a
quick snack, it may be cheaper to eat at the stand-up
counter. It is also worth noting that some cafés and
bars may close during August.
TAKE-AWAY FOOD
Traditional street food
includes tripe and
lampre-
dotto
(pig's intestines) sand-
wiches, sold from the stalls at
the Mercato Centrale
(see p88)
,
around the Mercato Nuovo
(see p112)
, as well as in the
Piazza dei Cimatori. The
Mercato Centrale is a great
place to buy picnic provisions
if you are planning a day's
excursion out of the city.
In the same areas there are
often vans selling
porchetta
,
crispy slices of suckling pig in
bread rolls. Small shops selling
pizza by weight or slice
(al
taglio)
are found all over the
city, especially around Santa
Maria Novella station.
As well as bread, bakeries
sell
schiacciata
, a focaccia
sold plain, with oil and salt,
or with herbs and spices. Bars
offer other take-away options
including
panini, tramezzini
and ice cream. Some
vinaii
,
notably in Via dei Cimatori
and Piazza dell'Olio, serve
crostini
and sandwiches to
eat out on the pavement.
Snack bars, such as
Gastronomia Vera
, selling
burgers, chips and flavoured
milk shakes, are becoming
increasingly popular.
BARS
WINE CELLARS
Locals generally use bars as
stop-offs for a coffee, quick
snack, an early morning
apéritif, to make a phone call
or to use the toilet
(il bagno)
.
Some bars may stay open
late, particularly during the
summer, but most are busiest
during the day. Most of them
have a stand-up counter
rather than tables.
Some bars also double as a
pastry shop
(pasticceria)
and
virtually all serve filled rolls
(panini)
or sandwiches
(tramezzini)
for lunch.
Breakfast is usually
un
caffè
(a short espresso) or
un cappuccino
(milky coffee)
with a plain jam or custard-
filled croissant
(una brioche
or un cornetto)
.
The cheapest way to buy
beer at a bar is from the keg
(una birra alla spina)
either
as a
piccola, media
or
grande
measure. Italian bottled beers
such as Peroni are also reason-
ably priced but foreign beers
are expensive. Other drinks
available are freshly squeezed
fruit juice
(una spremuta)
,
grappa and wine by the glass
(un bicchiere di vino)
.
Once you have chosen what
to eat or drink, you must first
pay at the cash desk
(la cassa)
,
and then take your receipt
(lo
scontrino)
to the bar, where
you will be served. A small
tip on the counter will usually
ensure quicker service.
There are numerous bars
dotted around Florence, and
many are convenient for the
sights. For example,
Il Caffè
is
opposite the Palazzo Pitti.
Though wine cellars of
the rustic style
(vinaii
or
fiaschetterie)
are a dying
breed, they are quickly being
replaced by modern, upscale
versions, where you can
sample from a wide range
of Tuscan and Italian wines,
accompanied by
antipasti
,
often featuring local salamis,
cheeses, and a variety of
crostini
and other light snacks.
CAFES
Four of Florence's handful
of old-world cafés stand
around the dour perimeter of
Piazza della Repubblica.
Gilli
,
renowned for its cocktails,
dates back to 1733. It has
two rear panelled rooms still
redolent of an earlier age.
Giubbe Rosse
, once the haunt
of the city's turn-of-the
century literati, also evokes
its former glory with dazzling
chandeliers. However, like the
neighbouring cafés, it is over-
priced and likely to be filled
with wealthy foreigners rather
than elegant Florentines.
Instead, locals head for the
Rivoire
, also expensive, but
with more genuine class and
a beautiful marble interior.
Bars which offer Manaresi,
a locally roasted coffee, are
usually worth a stop. This
coffee is considered by many
to be the best in Italy.
The young and fashionable
hang out at
Noir
, an elegant
bar/bistro along the river,
or at
Procacci
, justly renowned
for its delicious truffle
rolls
(tartufati)
.
ICE-CREAM PARLOURS
Florentines often round
off a meal or the evening
passeggiata
(walk) with an
ice cream
(gelato)
. No day in
the city is complete without
one visit to an ice-cream
parlour
(gelateria)
. You can
choose between a cone
(un
cono)
and a cup
(una coppa)
and pay by size, usually
starting at €1 and working up
in 50-cent stages to enormous
multi-scoop offerings at €5.
It's best to avoid bars
where the selection is limited
and the ice cream is made off
the premises. Make instead
for
Bar Vivoli Gelateria
(see
p71)
, thought by many to
make the best ice cream in
Italy, or to
Badiani
, famed for
its egg-rich
Buontalenti
.
Carabè
is well known for
its Sicilian ice granitas,
made with coffee or fruit.
