A Guide to Dining Through Your First Days in Florence

Upon arriving in Florence, Italy, the wanderlust traveler, eager to explore new surroundings in a city rich with history and activity, thinks of only one thing: food. Cobblestone streets weave through the cosmopolitan city where ristorantes, trattorias, osterias, pizzerias and “mamma mia’s!” decorate every few feet. The options for quality cuisine are endless, and at times, daunting. This guide is designed for the curious visitor seeking tried and true, quality cuisine as they navigate their first few days in Florence.

Learning the Lingo

Before tackling the Florence cuisine scene, it is helpful to know what the different restaurant terms mean. The most common three terms you will see sprinkled along the streets are ristorante, trattoria and osteria.

A ristorante is what one would assume based on its English sounding counterpart: a restaurant. Ristorantes are typically an establishment that is the most formal of the three where guests sit down to eat and can enjoy multi-course options.

Next, a trattoria is a slightly less formal version of a ristorante. These tend to be a bit smaller, dishes may be a bit simpler and often they are family-owned.

Finally, an osteria is a restaurant that typically has a short menu, focusing on regional dishes and wines. These also are often family-run and have limited seating. Now that you know the basic Italian restaurant formats, it’s time to dive into the delicious places that await each growling belly in Florence.

Florence’s Top Tier

Trattoria Zá Zá

It is unusual to find a Florence cuisine recommendation guide that doesn’t include Trattoria Zá Zá. This huge establishment, located in the central market of San Lorenzo, specializes in Tuscan dishes with menus for truffle, seafood, dozens of pasta dishes and more.

The restaurant dates to 1977 when Stefano Bondi, then 19, opened Zá Zá as a small restaurant, working as restaurant manager alongside his mother who helped with recipes. Today, the restaurant is still owned by Bondi and has greatly expanded in size and attention.

Aside from a spacious and decorative interior, Zá Zá also has multiple outdoor seating areas, enclosed with glass windows and decorated with hanging plants and warm lights. This offers a great opportunity to take in the scenery of the bustling Central Market of San Lorenzo while enjoying a meal.

Angela, pictured here, shows the wine she and her coworkers and fellow roommates compete to sell. This wine, Insoglio, is a product of the Campo di Sasso estate in Bibbona and is a pleasant red.

The staff is also passionate about the restaurant and find fun in their work. One waitress, Angela (last name undisclosed), shared what makes Zá Zá special to her.

Angela lives with five roommates, all of whom work at Zá Zá, and they have chosen a favorite wine that the restaurant sells, even creating a game revolving around it.

“It’s like a match between the five of us,” she said, “The more wine we sell, the more we win.”

The hype for Trattoria Zá Zá is well deserved and worth planning a visit. Be sure to make a reservation, because it is unlikely to beat the line for dinner seats otherwise.

The above images show four of Zá Zá's original pasta dishes.

Image 1: This dish is the spaghetti "alla carbonara" with truffle. This dish is creamy and savory, but not fit for those with a timid palette.

Image 2: This dish is the fettuccini pasta bolognese style, a classic dish made with a beef sauce.

Image 3: The truffle style ravioli is a must try for truffle connoisseurs. The dish is a creamy and cheesy treat.

Image 4: The gnocchi is one of Trattoria Zá Zá's most popular dishes, this one finished with a tomato and basil sauce.

Ristorante Del Fagioli

This restaurant is a Tuscan gem found in the Santa Croce area. Situated directly next to the front entrance is an open kitchen where delectable, fresh pasta and the ristorante’s famed Florentine steak is prepared. Beyond the front door, the atmosphere inside is intimate and warm, decorated with art made from wine bottle wrapping. With a family style atmosphere, incredible dishes and a friendly, knowledgeable staff, this restaurant is an exemplary Tuscan Firenze restaurant.

Del Fagioli is also found on the Michelin Guide, further suggesting the ristorante’s quality. The restaurant does not always take card, so come prepared to pay with cash on hand and be sure to make a reservation ahead of time.

The gnocchi is made fresh, in house and offered with tomato basil sauce, as pictured above, or pesto made with basil.

When It’s Time for Lunch

All’Antico Vinaio

Possibly the most popular sandwich in Florence, as well as on TikTok, All’Antico Vinaio is worth stopping by to see what the fuss is all about. This sandwich shop offers a wide variety of fresh Italian meats, vegetables and spreads, presenting a strong variety of sandwich options. Each sandwich is hugged by fresh focaccia bread and wrapped in paper, ready to take with you out onto the streets. The staff loves to crack jokes, while still efficiently ushering through an always busy crowd at lunchtime.

This panini is one of the restaurant's "historical" orders known as the "summer." The sandwich is made of schiacciata with raw ham, fiordilatte mozzarella, tomato and basil.

Pino’s

For sandwich lovers looking to find something a little more local, Pino’s at Salumeria Verdi is the place. At Pino’s, opened in 1965, you can find delectable stuffed flatbread sandwiches, chosen from the menu or create a sandwich of your own design all at an affordable price.

Pictured here is the owner himself, Pino, who can be found making paninis and cracking jokes alongside his family in the shop. Pino is a great person to ask for sandwich recommendations because he is a true expert in the field.

The restaurant is owned and operated by Pino and his family, all of whom are energetic and humorous to interact while ordering at the counter inside. Though there is frequently a lunch line, it moves quickly, and seating is provided inside.

This is a great alternative to the exceedingly popular All’Antico Vinaio, or another sandwich spot to love in addition. With a variety of side dishes and hand-selected wines, chosen almost weekly from local regions by Pino and his wife, this lunch spot is a Florence staple.

When You Just Need Something Different

Shake Café

Shake Café is the perfect place for when you are craving a refreshing, healthy meal and change of pace. This café offers a different approach to cuisine than most traditional Italian restaurants. On the menu, juices, smoothies, cocktails, toast, snacks and brunch dishes all made with fresh produce are offered.

Image captions from left to right:

The "shake café specialty avo toast" pictued here is made with smashed avocado, a poached egg, feta cheese, chimichurri and dukkah, a mix of crushed nuts.
Shake Café specializes in fresh juices which provide a variety of health benefits such as immunity boosts, skin brightening vitamins and more.
The interior of Shake Café on Via Camilla Cavour, pictured here, is spacious and bright, decorated with lush green plants and also offers a large outdoor porch for dining.
Pictured here is the mixed brunch plate, reminiscent of a classic American breakfast. The pancakes are also delightfully airy and light.

Additionally, the restaurant does not only have one location, but four. The biggest of these, located on Via Camilla Cavour, has a beautiful, bright atmosphere decorated with lush green plants and décor, with outdoor seating also available. The restaurant seeks to be a place where customers can take a break in the busy day, even offering areas to sit and do personal work. When looking for a change in pace and food in the Firenze scene, Shake Café is the place.

Santo Falafel

If you are a fan of Mediterranean cuisine and vegan options, Santo Falafel specializes in both. Santo Falafel offers an entirely vegan menu of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern cuisine, including falafel, hummus, freshly made pitas and more.

“We make everything fresh every day, and everything is vegan which is really awesome,” said employee Cristina Benvissuto. The staff is passionate about the benefits of vegan, plant based eating and the fresh flavors appeal to vegans and non-vegans alike. The restaurant, which is aesthetically decorated with weathered wood and green plants, is a take-away restaurant with limited seating.

Benvissuto, pictured here, works the cash register and is extremely knowledgable about vegan eating and the restaurant's daily prep to make fresh dishes. Behind her, customers can watch fresh pita being tossed and made in the kitchen.

Rooster Cafe

Craving a traditional American breakfast? Visit Rooster Café on Via Sant’Egidio. This spacious restaurant, decorated with stylish lighting and décor, specializes in American breakfast and cocktails. The menu includes omelets, bagels, pancakes and even burgers, in addition to full cocktail and caffe menus.

This is the place to visit for a hearty and creative breakfast, a change from the typical Italian morning pastry. Additionally, the spot is open for many hours of the day, which can be found for each day specifically on the website, and brunch is served into the afternoon.

There are not many places in Florence to find a hearty, rich brunch like Rooster's. Additionally, the cafe is very work-friendly, and encourages laptop users to bring a coffee mug to receive free coffee to sip while you work.

The Cherry on Top

Before closing out this guide, it is essential to give a bit of information about the city’s greatest delicacy: gelato. One Florence fun fact is that gelato is widely credited to have been invented in this very city by Bernardo Buontalenti in the 16th century. Gelato can be found on just about every street in Florence and there is a plethora of great options.

However, not every place has the real deal. A pro tip by avid Italian cuisine connoisseurs to avoid gelato scammers is to steer clear of the mountains of brightly colored gelato. One of the staple elements of true gelato is that it is less whipped than regular ice cream which results in the dense, pronounced flavor. Additionally, look for “artigianale” which means artisanal. This suggests that the gelato was made fresh in shop without artificial flavors or preservatives. With these tips in mind, there are plenty of places to find high quality gelato and choose your own favorite.

This image shows what the real deal, Florence gelato should look like. This image was taken at Gelateria de' Medici, a personal favorite that has rotating flavors and serves small yet satisfying portions.

May this guide serve as merely a starting point to your Florence cuisine experience, because in a place with as much culture and passion about food as this, it is hard to go wrong.