Mama's 80th Birthday - Florence - Recommendations

First and foremost consider that many apartment buildings in Florence city center do not have elevators, therefore keep that in mind if your 80 y.o. mother has issues climbing several flights of stairs and your apartment happens to be on the umpteen floor.

Now assuming all physical requirements are squared away, I can't think of too many places in Florence that tourists have not discovered, unless I send you away from the historical center, which may not be convenient for you.

Typical Florentine Restaurants for Florentines like me with income under FPL (Florentine Poverty Level).
In parenthesis the street/square name, don't remember the numbers, but streets are short:

Sabatino (Borgo San Frediano)
Nerbone (inside Mercato Centrale)
Zio Gigi (via Portinari)
Il Contadino (via Palazzuolo)< my favorite when I was at the University of Florence
Brindellone (Piazza Piattellina)
Il Fagioli (Corso Tintori)
La Casalinga (via de Michelozzi)
Sanfrediavino (via Pisana)
Mario (via Rosina)
A casa mia (S. Ambrogio)
Buongustai (via de Cerchi)
Toscano (via Guelfa)
Brac (via Vagellai)
Briganti (Piazza Giorgini)
Osteria Antica Mescita (via san niccolo')
Trattoria al Tranvai (piazza Tasso)
Circolo Aurora (piazza Tasso)
Benvenuto (via de Neri)
Trattoria Anita (via vinegia)

Last but not least: I'cche c'e' c'e' (via magalotti). Not as cheap as the above, but not expensive. I go there every time I'm in Florence, since I know Gino (the owner)

No idea if any of the above are in RS' book about Florence. I'll be darn if I need RS' book to visit my birthplace.

Kira:

There will be no shortage of art to see but I was thrilled to discover the Galleria d'Arte Moderna inside the Pitti Palace. This is not modern abstract art (not that there is anything wrong with that) but this is Tuscan art from 1784 to 1924. Wonderful collection. I enjoyed it so much.

I would like to add Birreria Centrale to Roberto's impressive list of restaurants. Very charming place, friendly staff, and very good food in my opinion. Make reservations.

I second Roberto's suggestion for Brindellone and Antica Meschita restaurants. There are tourists there (saw Helen Bonham Carter at Antica Meschita one day at lunch many years ago), but the food is good at both places. I also really enjoy going to Procacci for tiny delicious truffle panini with a glass of prosecco

http://www.procacci1885.it/

If you like science and math, you should make time to go the science museum close to the Uffizi - lovely stuff on Galileo.In fact, it was recently renamed after him.

http://www.museogalileo.it/en/index.html

I also like to visit the Brancacci Chapel at Santa Maria del Carmine church for the Massacio and Masolino frescoes.

I also love the fresco of the Magi in the Medici Palace chapel - to me it's a small chapel with a jewel of a fresco.

Also the music festival will be on in May. You can get tickets on line. It's the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. I went to a wonderful violin concert once. There are events in different venues around town.

Hope these suggestions are helpful.

My must sees for art on every visit to Floence are the convent of San Marco and the church of San Miniato al Monte. The Bargello also has a wonderful collection and is often overlooked.

For an artist in Florence in May, I found the Rose Garden on the west side of Piazzale Michelangelo splendid; the Iris Garden on the east side, gorgeous, limited hours for only 3 blooming weeks in May. And the city cemetery up behind San Miniato is fabulous. See all three and the church for a wonderful long afternoon with the bonus of city views, without the tourist crush at the Piazzale itself. Stay until sunset.
The area around Santa Croce is full of leatherwork shops. The Leather School has some very creative products, and you can book a very interesting tour through the workshop. The school is behind the church of Santa Croce, a destination for Giotto frescoes and marble tombs of the VIPs.

The village of Fiesole is a 15 minute bus ride into the hills above Florence. Again, great views, but also Roman theater and bath remains and an Etruscan Museum, small but excellent.

Best of all is just wandering the streets, looking in all directions. (I started collecting "street saints", photos of altars & reliefs on buildings everywhere for some not yet realized art projects). Bakeries & markets are stumbled upon, hardware stores have the most amazing wares. Raw pigments and drypoint tools are only some of the souvenirs you can get at Zecchi Art Supply on Via dello Studio. Oh, and, if your Mama likes fabrics, she will love Casa dei Tessuti on Via dei Pecori. Exquisite!

On my first visit to Florence in 1997, I "discovered" Trattoria da Tito on Via San Gallo when I walked past my "chiuso" restaurant selection & just kept walking. I love this place! It's now my tradition to have my first night's dinner here whenever I'm in Florence. I saw Rick blogged about it in 2011. A splurge place I love is Garga on Via del Moro. Crowded, with lots of laughter, and could be the best meals I've had anywhere in Italy. Reservations are a must.

I hope your mother enjoys her big birthday.

I second Sherry's suggestions, especially the museum of San Marco (on the same street as the Accademia). The friars' cells with frescoes by Fra Angelico are up a flight of stairs. Also be sure to visit Piazzale Michelangelo, magical when the sunset is good.

I second going to Leonardo's Leather School in Florence -- I got a nice purse there for a reasonable price and my husband got a wallet/belt. What's nice is that they don't charge you the tax, and if you don't file the paperwork before you go, you will get charged (vs. getting charged and then waiting for the refund).

I would also suggest the Medici Chapels -- they have this dark green and red marble inside that was so different and surprising to see. A co-worker said it was a "must."

We also went to I'cche c'e' c'e' and really enjoyed it, where we could see the owner cooking all of the orders himself. One of our favorite (nicer) dinners was at Trattoria Parione where I tried pici for the first time on our trip and was hooked. Other places we enjoyed to eat: La Cucina del Garza and Ristorante del Fagioli (the latter felt like one of the more authentic places we went to with a good mix of locals/tourist and have an amazing steak Florentine).

For gelato, my absolute favorite place in all of Italy was Gelateria La Carraia. They have a chocolate mousse flavor (that is my favorite dessert) that is so light and airy that I made my husband go back every.single.day.

Since Mama is an artist, I highly recommend taking her up to the Piazza Michelangelo for a sunset view of all of
Florence. Lots of local wedding parties take their wedding pictures up there because of the backdrop! There's an outdoor cafe, and a great place to have a drink while enjoying the magnificent sunset.