FIRENZE :: FOOD

BARS & CAFÉS

This trendy bar located in the beautiful Piazza del Carmine truly is the Dolce Vita. I highly recommend it for a sample of Florence's nightlife. It's a casual bar with a large outdoor patio which usually spills out into the piazza. Their aperitivo are especially popular with the complimetary pasta and salads.

A favourite with a lot of the locals for having great ice cream. Located in the Santa Croce area off the beaten path.

The supreme merit of Café Cabiria, other than its particularly delicious brew of the ubiquitous sangria, is its location. Set on the Piazza Santo Spirito, its customers spill out into the square on summer evenings and marvel at the church that towers over its end. Djs play from 9pm onwards.

This interesting place in the historic city centre has recently been renovated. Its main attraction is the extraordinary variety of coffee blends on offer here, which come from all over the world as well as the long leaf tea, which is also sold at the bar. This is a perfect place for an evening aperitif.

This chic café is in one of Florence's busiest neigbourhoods, Sant' Ambrogio. It serves up excellent cappuccino and cornetti in the morning and light salads and sandwiches at lunch. This caffè is run by the owners of the famous Cibreo restaurant which is located across the street.

As Nina says, there is always room for gelato. My favourite and in my opinion, the best gelato in Florence is found at Caffè delle Carrozze. Located near Ponte Vecchio, it may appear to look like a tourist 'gelato trap' but it's definitely the real thing. I recommend mousse al cioccolatto or their yogurt gelato.

If Roberto Cavalli's latest line of evening wear isn't enough to have you drooling, then the luscious hot chocolate made by the adjoining café will. Sit in their big fluffy stools and rest your feet for more shopping on Via Tornabuoni.

The Caffè "Giubbe Rosse" numbers among the most famous literary meeting places both in Italy and abroad. The famous magazines "La Voce", "Lacerba", "Solaria", and other more recent publications, owe something to this Caffè where poets, artists and intellectuals meet and counter. In the morning, enjoy a cappuccino on the patio and watch as Piazza della Republica fill up with professionals, cyclists, tourists and the like.

This is one of my favorite places to drop in and have a coffee, the coffee is superb and the guys behind the bar are true Baristas. Caffè Italiano also has aperitivos hour and Bartender Ig or Stefan are always willing to talk passionately about the latest soccer match.

This wine shop selling Castello Verrazzano's famous Chianti wine is a wine lover's must when visiting Florence.

This place is known for enjoying an aperitivo while sitting on the wall of the Arno. It's especially popular on Sunday nights when the Fiorentini return form a weekend at the beach. This casual bar allows you to bring your drinks and food out onto the street to people watch and see the sunset over the Arno. It also offers complimentary food when you order your aperitivo.

This little hole in the wall is run by two brothers, Michele and Armando, and it has become a Florentine institution over the years. Have a glass of Chianti in the narrow lane way, along with some of their home made crostinis. You're almost guaranteed to bump into someone you know.

Located in Piazza dei Cimatori, this is Florence's answer to the hot-dog stand. Roberto serves up porchetta and bollito paninis. Try one of these with his salsa verde sauce. To die for!