Hello,
We are looking for restaurants near our hotel in Florence. We are staying at the NH Collection Firenze Porta Rossa. We hope to be able to find some good local Italian food nearby. Looking for casual dining. Recommendations would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks you in advance,
Larry
Well, I don't know what you consider "near" as much of Florence is within walking distance of itself, but one of my favorite restaurants I keep going back to is Ristorante la Spada, about 300m from your hotel? haha I like to refer to it as the meat restaurant, I assume "the sword" is actually meaning the thing that they roast all the meat on :) But my dad loved his plate of meat, and I loved my pici senesi pepe e pecorino dish (like cacio e pepe from Rome, but different pasta and maybe other differences?) so much that I came back two nights later and had it again. Then 4 years later I was determined to go back to eat it again and they didn't have it on the menu! So I asked them and they enthusiastically agreed to make it for me and it was just as delicious as it was before! Good news, its back on the menu now :)
It might be super touristy, but I know that it was hoppin at all times when we went, and I would probably always go again.
https://www.ristorantelaspada.it/en/index.php
And touristy of all touristy, I make a point to always visit Trattoria ZaZa, its off the central market area. I ALWAYS get the pappardelle all chingiale with the filetto di pepe verde to share with people (then the crema di mascarpone that comes with strawberries!). I ALWAYS make a reservation, and I might have barged in on the restaurant skipping a line of 20 people thinking that they didn't have reservations, but I actually have no idea....
But hey, if it tastes good, it doesn't matter if its touristy, right?
https://www.trattoriazaza.it/en/
Florence is very walkable, and one can get to just about anywhere from any hotel. So your location should not be a limiting factor.
Check out Giglio Rosso located at 35 via Panzani. Their web site is https://www.ristorantegigliorosso.com/en/about/.
A step up will be Olio & Convivium Gastronomia Restaurant. It's on the Pitti Palace side of the river on Via di Santo Spirito. Wonderful atmosphere, excellent food, and good wine. A bit pricy, so you might want to try it for lunch rather than dinner when reservations are usually needed. The web site is (or was) https://oliorestaurant.it/.
You should be able to check the menus for pricing and such on line.
Thanks very much. This is very helpful.
Mister Pizza - very solid, amazing location in the shadow of the duomo
My go-to in Florence is Ciro & Sons on via Giglio, near Santa Maria Novella. Not touristy. Their fettuccine alla Amalfitana was incredible. We've eaten there three times in two trips, at least once more next time!
