My wife and I live by our Rick Steves guides, so when staying near Pont Vecchio in Florence we looked up near-by restaurants and chose Trattoria Nella. What a disappointment. We tried the walnut ravioli, which was OK. Also ordered the lasagna which was incredibly dry, barely edible. The service is close to non-existent; after dropping off our food we didn't see any staff until it was time to get our check, so there was no opportunity to address this issue. Having just had great lasagna at two very good restaurants in Sienna this was very disappointing. The gentleman giving us our check (probably the owner) didn't really seem to care when we mentioned this problem. With so many great restaurants in Florence this is certainly a place to skip!
Posted by
Rick Steves' Europe
16893 posts
Thanks for reporting back. I don't find that establishment included in the new, 2015 guidebook editions.
Posted by
Massachusetts
715 posts
After traveling in Europe for decades there is one thing I can state for sure - everyones restaurant expectations and experience seems to be different. I am sorry you had a bad experience there. Mine has been just the opposite. I have eaten there several times and each one has been good to excellent. The caveat is that I am not super picky. I tend to eat after 8 PM, the crowds are almost always Italian, it is always a lively place, with joking between tables and the food excellent. The owner/or apparent manager stopped and talked with me at the end of the night and was quite pleasant. I do tend to stay away from dishes like walnut ravioli, or butternut squash ravioli and go for more traditional dishes though. Lasagna, and I love it fresh, in restaurants always seems to be something that can be prepared in batches, in advance, and warmed up when demanded, which is why I tend to stay away from something like that. Maybe I am wrong in my thinking.
Anyways, a shame you had a bad experience there as that place, small, on a back street, has so much promise.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Thanks for the above comments. My guide book was purchased for a prior trip; guess it's time to get a new one and glad to see this restaurant was dropped! We arrived at opening time (6:30 pm) so I'm guessing the comment about the lasagna being reheated from a prior day is pretty accurate, given what we were served.
Posted by
Toledo, Ohio, US
11613 posts
I haven't been to this restaurant, but Florence is the only city in Italy where I have walked out of a restaurant because the food was so bad. Twice.
There are hundreds of good-to-excellent restaurants in Florence, and I keep going back to my favorites, but I think major tourist destinations anywhere have a number of restaurants which depend on an endless stream of one-time visitors - who don't read online reviews.
Posted by
Chicago
1949 posts
Good to know. On our previous trip to Florence in 2010, we actually dined at Nella twice, it was very good & were possibly going to return there next month when visiting.
Posted by
1 posts
I just couldn't disagree with you more. I have been to Florence many times and I always make it a point to eat at Nella once or twice and never have I been disappointed. I make this point because I do not want readers to read your post and then scratch Trattoria Nella off the list.
It's a lovely little restaurant tucked away on a cobblestoned street, it's family-owned and the food has always been terrific when I've been there.
The owner and his friends who hang out often at night are friendly and interesting and his mama's tiramisu is to-die for.
Yes the service is slow, but it is Italy. Rarely is service expedited, nor should it be. The idea is to relax and savor the meal, the conversation, the wine.
Posted by
Chicago
1949 posts
Did not dine at Nella on this most recent trip in March, but did on consecutive nights in 2010. At that time it was charming, with highlights being the coniglio (rabbit) cacciatore and a perfect prosciutto & melon. Cannot vouch for it now.
Truth be told, after being in Florence for 9 days over two trips, I have found restaurant service & attitude to be not the best as a rule, dismissive at times, with the sole exception being Ciro & Sons on via Giglio, at which they were welcoming with stellar food. In fact, I will say that the farther south in Italy I traveled, even to Sicily, the better the service was.