Trattoria da Rocco in Florence's Mercato Sant'Ambrogio loggia runs the market-canteen lunch format, with a chalkboard daily two-course menu at €12 and a quartino of house red for €3.
Must order: The daily pasta, ribollita in winter, a quartino of house red.
Tip: Lunch only Mon-Sat 12:00 to 15:00. Cash only. Arrive at 12:30 to beat the second rush.
Address: Piazza Lorenzo Ghiberti, 50122 Firenze, Florence
Trippaio del Porcellino in Florence is the lampredotto cart at the Mercato Nuovo loggia next to the Porcellino bronze boar, with panini for €5.50, trippa-and-fagioli plate for €7 and a glass of red for €3.
Try: Lampredotto cart panino
Order: Lampredotto panino bagnato, trippa-and-fagioli plate, a glass of house red.
Tip: Open daily 09:00 to 19:00. Cash only; standing room around the cart.
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.
Try: Wine-bar panini
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.
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.
