Santarosa Bistrot in Florence's San Frediano sits inside the Arno-side park on Lungarno di Santa Rosa, an all-day cafe with a garden terrace, breakfast, lunch and aperitivo until 23:30.
Must order: Cappuccino in the garden, the daily focaccia plate, an aperitivo spritz at sunset.
Tip: Open daily 08:00 to 23:30. The park-side garden seats 80; closed when it rains.
Address: Lungarno di Santa Rosa, 50124 Firenze, Florence
Caffe Gilli in Florence's Piazza della Repubblica is the city's oldest cafe, opened in 1733, with the same marble counter and the original Belle Epoque painted ceiling intact.
Signature drink: Espresso at the marble counter
Order: Espresso at the counter (€1.50) and a cantuccino dipped in Vin Santo.
Tip: Counter pricing is half of table service. Open daily 07:30 to midnight; the terrace seats 60.
Rivoire in Florence has poured the city's benchmark hot chocolate at the Piazza della Signoria corner since 1872, with a chocolate-making lab in the back and the original wooden counter intact.
Signature drink: Hot chocolate
Order: The dense hot chocolate (€7), the cioccolato fondente in winter, and any sfoglia pastry from the case.
Tip: Counter pricing is half of table; the piazza terrace is worth the €15 minimum for the Palazzo Vecchio view.
Ditta Artigianale in Florence's Via dei Neri is Francesco Sanapo's flagship roastery and cafe, with single-origin filter coffees, espresso and the country's first dedicated barista school since 2013.
Signature drink: Single-origin filter coffee
Order: A V60 filter from the rotating origins board, plus a brunch plate on weekends.
Tip: Open daily 08:00 to 22:00. The roasted-bean retail counter ships internationally.
La Menagere in Florence's San Lorenzo is the all-day concept inside a 19th-century housewares shop, with breakfast, brunch, lunch, aperitivo and live jazz nightly under one roof.
Signature drink: All-day espresso and aperitivo
Order: The morning brioche and cappuccino, then aperitivo from 18:30.
Tip: Open daily 07:00 to midnight. Live jazz Wed-Sun from 21:30.
Caffe Cibreo in Florence's Sant'Ambrogio quarter is the all-day cafe-and-bar of the Cibreo group, with a walnut counter, daily-baked Cibreo pastries and the lunchtime small-plates carte.
Signature drink: Espresso and Cibreo pastries
Order: Espresso at the counter, the daily Cibreo pastry, the lunchtime small-plates board.
Tip: Closed Sunday and Monday. The walnut bar seats 12; arrive at 08:00 for a stool.
Caffe Paszkowski in Florence's Piazza della Repubblica is the 1846 Polish-founded cafe that became the haunt of the early-20th-century literary set, with a piazza-side terrace and live piano nightly.
Signature drink: Espresso and panna cotta
Order: Espresso at the bar, panna cotta in the dining room, an aperitivo Negroni on the terrace.
Tip: Open daily 07:00 to midnight. The terrace seats 80; live piano from 19:30 nightly.
