When I moved to Florence five years ago, I was on a mission to try as many trattorias, market stalls, cafes and restaurants as I could. Among lots of good meals, a few great qualities stand out: Small menus, a simple and genuine concept, outstanding seasonal ingredients and a sense of generosity. Read on to discover some of my favourite spots.
How to avoid tourist traps in Florence
For such a compact city, there’s a lot on offer in Florence. The problem is in telling which pappardelle with wild boar ragu or salami-stuffed schiacciata sandwich will really make your heart sing, and which is just TikTok fodder? It’s a guessing game, but there are a few clues you can follow. Pasta served from a giant wheel of parmesan? Not a thing. A certain sandwich shop with a queue along the street? Not worth the hype. Touts on the street yelling out with the promise of prosecco on the house? You guessed it. Meander away from the main piazzas to seek out those charming family-run hidden gems, or get a head start by heading straight to the places below.
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Phoebe Hunt is a writer based in Florence. At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by local writers who know their cities inside out. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines.