Casa del Vino in Florence's San Lorenzo has been the 1898 wine bar behind Mercato Centrale, with panini at €5 a piece, a 200-strong by-the-glass list at €3 per glass and a standing counter format.
Must order: Panino with finocchiona, lardo crostino, a glass of Chianti Classico.
Tip: Closed Sunday; standing only. €3 glasses; €5 panini. The shelf outside the door holds your glass.
Address: Via dell'Ariento 16r, 50123 Firenze, Florence
Mercato Centrale Firenze's first-floor food hall houses 18 artisan counters under one roof, from pasta to pizza, lampredotto and bistecca, with most plates between €8 and €15 and an espresso for €1.20.
Try: Food-hall pasta, lampredotto, pizza
Order: Lampredotto from Lorenzo Nigro's counter, the daily fresh pasta from il Tartufo, an espresso.
Tip: Open daily until midnight. Counter format; €15 lunch with a glass of wine.
Da Nerbone in Florence's Mercato Centrale ground floor pours the lampredotto panino for €5.50 since 1872, bread dipped in the cooking broth, with tripe stuffed in and salsa verde and chilli oil from the bottles.
Try: Lampredotto panino
Order: Panino al lampredotto bagnato with salsa verde and salsa piccante.
Tip: Cash only; closed Sunday. Queue from 11:30. The plate of bollito-and-broth runs €8.
Trattoria La Casalinga in Florence's Oltrarno off Piazza Santo Spirito has been the family-run home-cooking room since 1963, with the four pillars of cucina povera at €10 a primo and the secondi at €12.
Try: Florentine cucina povera lunch
Order: Ribollita, pappa al pomodoro, trippa alla fiorentina.
Tip: Closed Sunday; cash only. Lunch is calmer; dinner books up a week ahead.
Mercato Centrale Firenze's first-floor food hall houses 18 artisan counters under one roof, from pasta to pizza, lampredotto and bistecca, with most plates between €8 and €15 and an espresso for €1.20.
Try: Food-hall pasta, lampredotto, pizza
Order: Lampredotto from Lorenzo Nigro's counter, the daily fresh pasta from il Tartufo, an espresso.
Tip: Open daily until midnight. Counter format; €15 lunch with a glass of wine.
Forno Pugi in Florence has been the neighbourhood forno since 1925, with three shops baking pizza al taglio, schiacciata, focaccia and the Florentine pastries daily, with portions at €4 to €8 each.
Try: Schiacciata and pizza al taglio
Order: Pizza al taglio (the chocolate-cream schiacciata fiorentina in Carnevale), focaccia stuffed.
Tip: Counter only; cash and card. Viale De Amicis original is the largest; smaller shops on Via San Gallo.
All'Antico Vinaio in Florence's Via dei Neri is the schiacciata-counter chain with four shops on the same street, with the 30cm stuffed flatbread for €8 across the carte, the queue running daily from 12:00.
Try: Schiacciata sandwich
Order: La Favolosa schiacciata (porchetta, pecorino, artichoke cream).
Tip: Four shops on Via dei Neri; the 65r is the original. Eat on the steps of Santa Croce.
Da Nerbone in Florence's Mercato Centrale ground floor pours the lampredotto panino for €5.50 since 1872, bread dipped in the cooking broth, with tripe stuffed in and salsa verde and chilli oil from the bottles.
Try: Lampredotto panino
Order: Panino al lampredotto bagnato with salsa verde and salsa piccante.
Tip: Cash only; closed Sunday. Queue from 11:30. The plate of bollito-and-broth runs €8.
I Due Fratellini in Florence's Via dei Cimatori has run the mini-panino counter since 1875, a hole-in-the-wall format with 28 panini varieties at €4 each, and a glass of house Chianti for €4.
Try: Mini panini
Order: Wild-boar salami panino, the soppressata-and-pecorino, a glass of house Chianti.
Tip: Cash only; standing on the kerb. Closed Sunday. Shelves outside hold your wine glass.
