The restaurants worth a reservation in Florence, from neighbourhood bistros to the new classics.
The restaurants worth the trip in Florence. bistros, neo-classics, neighbourhood favourites, and the rooms locals book first.
Cibreo Trattoria in Florence's Sant'Ambrogio quarter is Fabio Picchi's no-pasta trattoria, the casual side of the Cibreo group. Located in Sant Ambrogio.
OrderPolpettine di pollo, pappa al pomodoro and the trippa alla fiorentina.
TipNo reservations and no pasta on the menu. Queue from 19:45 for the 20:00 first seating; lunch is the calmer service.
Trattoria Sostanza in Florence's Santa Maria Novella quarter has cooked the same bistecca and butter chicken on a coal grill since 1869. Priced at €€.
OrderThe bistecca alla fiorentina (1.2kg for two) and the pollo al burro butter chicken.
TipCash only; book three weeks ahead by phone. Two seatings at 19:30 and 21:30, no a la carte stragglers.
Trattoria Mario in Florence's San Lorenzo quarter has been the working lunch room next to Mercato Centrale since 1953. Kitchen leans florentine trattoria.
OrderRibollita, bistecca alla fiorentina by the etto, pappardelle al cinghiale in season.
TipQueue from 12:00 for the 12:30 opening. Closed Sunday and the whole of August. Cash only.
Il Santo Bevitore in Florence's Oltrarno quarter is Marco Bechi's modern Tuscan dining room, with a 600-bottle natural-wine cellar and a daily-changing.
OrderThe crudo di manzo, pici al ragu d'anatra and the coniglio in porchetta with seasonal contorni.
TipBook a fortnight ahead for the back garden in summer. The walk-in wine-bar room Il Santino next door is the no-booking annex.
Marco Stabile's Ora d'Aria in Florence's Centro Storico holds a Michelin star for a modern Tuscan kitchen that reads pappa al pomodoro and bistecca.
OrderThe signature pappa al pomodoro risotto and the seasonal pigeon course.
TipLunch tasting €60 vs €120 dinner. Ask for the chef's-counter seats when you book.
Locale Firenze in Florence's Centro Storico sits inside the 13th-century Palazzo delle Seggiole, the Concettini family's Michelin-starred kitchen with a bar.
OrderThe tortelli di rabarbaro signature pasta and the pigeon course from the tasting carte.
TipThe cocktail room downstairs is the cheaper entry point; pre-dinner aperitivo from 18:30.
I Quattro Leoni in Florence's Oltrarno is the Piazza della Passera trattoria with a summer terrace and the signature fiocchetti dumplings (pear, taleggio.
OrderFiocchetti pera, taleggio e asparagi, bistecca alla fiorentina, panna cotta.
TipBook a terrace table three weeks ahead for summer. Open daily 12:00-23:30; lunch is the calmer seating.
Simone Cipriani's Essenziale in Florence's San Frediano runs the open-kitchen tasting concept inside a former leather warehouse, with a lampredotto course.
OrderThe five-course tasting and the lampredotto reinterpreted dish if it is on the carte.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday; tasting menus only at dinner. Book three weeks ahead.
La Menagere in Florence's San Lorenzo is the all-day concept in a 19th-century housewares shop, with breakfast, brunch, lunch, aperitivo and dinner under one.
OrderThe weekend brunch, tagliatelle al tartufo and the aperitivo plate at 18:30.
TipOpen daily 07:00 to midnight. The flower-shop entrance is a draw; book the back dining room for dinner.
Giovanni Latini's Osteria di Giovanni in Florence's Santa Maria Novella sits opposite the family-original Latini room. Kitchen leans florentine, tuscan.
OrderBistecca alla fiorentina, pici cacio e pepe and Giovanni's pappa al pomodoro.
TipBook a fortnight ahead; the front room is the one to ask for. Open daily for dinner only.
Buca Lapi in Florence's Santa Maria Novella has cooked the bistecca alla fiorentina in the Palazzo Antinori cellar since 1880, a candlelit basement of long.
OrderThe bistecca alla fiorentina (1.2kg for two) cooked on the wood grill, and the tartufo pasta in season.
TipCash and card; book three weeks ahead. The cellar is hot in summer; ask for the front room.
Ristorante Cibreo in Florence is the formal flagship of Fabio Picchi's empire, with the yellow-pepper passato, cresta di gallo cockscomb and the eponymous.
OrderPassato di peperoni gialli, the cibreo offal stew and any cockscomb course.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday; lunch is one fixed tasting. The trattoria around the corner is the easier-priced entry.
Trattoria Cammillo in Florence's Oltrarno has been the Masiero family's white-tablecloth trattoria on Borgo San Jacopo since 1945, with crepes alla.
OrderCrepes alla fiorentina (spinach and bechamel), bistecca alla fiorentina, the curry risotto.
TipClosed Tuesday and Wednesday; book three weeks ahead. Cash only, dinner only.
Regina Bistecca in Florence's Centro Storico is the dedicated bistecca house behind the Duomo, with Chianina dry-aged in glass cabinets and a wood-fired.
OrderThe 1kg bistecca alla fiorentina for two and the Chianina tartare to start.
TipBook a window seat over Via Ricasoli a fortnight ahead. Closed Tuesday; lunch is the calmer service.
Gucci Osteria da Massimo Bottura in Florence's Piazza della Signoria is Karime Lopez's Michelin-starred kitchen above the Gucci Garden, with Bottura's Emilia.
OrderThe Emilia Burger (mortadella-and-zampone), the tortellini al Parmigiano and the seasonal tasting menu.
TipBook six weeks ahead. The €150 lunch tasting is the entry; the €220 dinner the full set.
Saporium in Florence is Ariel Hagen's Michelin-starred farm-to-table room sourced from the Borgo Santo Pietro estate, a tasting carte built off the kitchen.
OrderThe 8-course tasting menu; the wine pairing tilts toward the Borgo Santo Pietro estate wines.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday. The estate-wine pairing adds €110; book the chef's counter for kitchen view.
Santa Elisabetta in Florence's Hotel Brunelleschi holds two Michelin stars under Rocco De Santis, a 24-seat dining room inside a 6th-century Byzantine tower.
OrderThe pigeon and yuzu signature and the Mediterranean risotto from the tasting carte.
TipBook six weeks ahead. The 10-course tasting is €260; €170 for the shorter 7-course set.
io Osteria Personale in Florence's San Frediano is Nicolo Baretti's modern-Tuscan tasting room, with the choose-your-own four-or-five course format.
OrderThe choose-your-own four-course tasting and any tortelli or pigeon course on the carte.
TipClosed Sunday and Monday; dinner only. Build the tasting around the maitre's wine suggestions.
Trattoria da Burde in Florence's western edge has been the Gori family's working-quarter osteria since 1901, with the Friday-night dinner the only evening.
OrderThe Friday-night bistecca tasting if you can book; otherwise ribollita and trippa alla fiorentina at lunch.
TipLunch Mon-Sat; dinner Friday only. Book three weeks ahead for Friday; bus 35 from Santa Maria Novella.
Trattoria Za Za in Florence's Mercato Centrale square has run the family trattoria since 1977, with a covered Piazza del Mercato terrace and the full.
OrderThe full Tuscan tasting tray, then bistecca alla fiorentina and a tagliatelle al cinghiale.
TipOpen daily 11:00-23:00. Book the terrace three days ahead for summer; lunch is the easier service.
Coquinarius in Florence behind the Duomo has run as a wine-bar-and-trattoria hybrid since 1999, with a long Tuscan carte and a 200-bottle list focused.
OrderPici cacio e pepe, the salumi platter and a glass of Chianti Classico from the by-the-glass list.
TipOpen daily; book a fortnight ahead for the back vaulted room. The Brunello flight is worth the €25 add.
Borgo San Jacopo in Florence's Oltrarno is Claudio Mengoni's Michelin-starred kitchen inside Hotel Lungarno, with a 20-seat Arno-side terrace and a modern.
OrderThe 7-course tasting and any seasonal pigeon course; the Arno-side terrace seats six only.
TipClosed Tuesday. The terrace books out 6 weeks ahead for summer; €150 set or €220 with wine.
The wine family's Florence dining room on Piazza della Signoria: pasta made by the chefs each day, bread baked with the estates' Laudemio oil, over 150 wines.
OrderThe handmade pasta of the day, then a flight of three glasses from different Frescobaldi estates.
TipTables on the square look straight at Palazzo Vecchio. The kitchen runs midday to 23:00, with a lighter Al Fresco menu from 15:00 to 18:00.
Aroma Ristorante on Via Ghibellina is chef-owner Marco Romei's 30-seat fish restaurant: daily deliveries from the Tuscan coast, bread and pasta made in-house.
OrderThe day's fish from the coast; the menu changes with the catch, so ask what came in and take the house pasta.
TipClosed Monday and open until the last table leaves, so late dinners work. Book by phone; the current menu is posted on the restaurant's Facebook page.
BarBar occupies a former gravel works off Via Gioberti, three rooms and a palm-shaded garden, with a seasonal Tuscan menu, biodynamic wines and cocktails.
OrderAgnolotti al piccione (€20), then the stuffed guinea fowl or venison fillet; a cocktail in the garden after.
TipOpened in 2021; the garden fills first on warm evenings, so book by email. Tuesday is dinner only, Monday closed; tapas and a light lunch run beside the carte.
Borderline on Corso Italia, between the station and the river, is a Tuscan restaurant run by three brothers: bistecca, truffle pici and 30-day dry-aged Angus.
OrderPici cacio e pepe al tartufo nero, then bistecca alla fiorentina or the 30-day dry-aged Angus loin.
TipLunch and dinner Monday to Friday, dinner only Saturday, closed Sunday. Book through TheFork; the room is small and the design draws a local crowd.
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