Something strange and wonderful happens in Florence in August. Many restaurants empty out, laminated menus lose their appeal, and those who remain in the city — Florentines, workers, the occasional curious traveller who knows what they are doing — rediscover the real places. The ones with no photos on the walls, no QR codes on the table, no one asking if this is your first time in the city.
This is the Florence that tourists rarely see. Here is where we eat when Florence is ours.
The Florentine breakfast: a counter, a coffee, three minutes
Florentines do not have elaborate breakfasts. No granola, no avocado toast, no one bringing you a menu with various options. There is a counter, a cornetto — strictly plain or filled with cream — and a coffee consumed standing up in three minutes before heading to work.
The secret is to look for neighbourhood bars far from the main squares. The ones frequented by workers and office employees early in the morning, where coffee still costs less than two euros and the barista knows your name after three days. They are hard to find on Google Maps and very easy to find on foot: just move two streets away from the tourist area and follow the sound of espresso cups. A couple of suggestions: Bar Pasticceria Nencioni on Via Pietrapiana or Bar Ricordi on Via de’ Servi.
For a slower and more considered breakfast in a different setting, Revoir in Piazza della Signoria is an address that delivers: excellent pastries, an elegant atmosphere, and one of the most beautiful squares in the world as a backdrop. It is not the neighbourhood worker’s breakfast, but it is one of those Florentine experiences worth having at least once.
And if you simply cannot do without an international-style brunch breakfast, Bar I Magnifici is right next door to Palazzo della Nave. You can even order takeaway and enjoy a beautiful breakfast with a view of the Duomo from our stunning courtyard.
Lunch: quick, good and without ceremony
The best Florentine trattorias for lunch are recognisable by one clear sign: a chalkboard outside with three or four dishes of the day, written by hand with whatever was at the market that morning. The menu changes every day, seats run out by one o’clock, and booking is not always possible. You go, you wait if needed, you eat well.
Three addresses that Florentines have been going to for decades: Da Sabatino, Alla Vecchia Bettola, Da Ruggero. None of the three needs advertising. They survive on merit.
For a quick and authentic lunch, the city’s markets are an excellent alternative. The Mercato Centrale is the best known, but the Mercato di Sant’Ambrogio is the one Florentines prefer: less touristy, more lived-in, with food stalls and roast shops turning out daily specials at honest prices. It is one of the places where Florence shows its most genuine everyday self.
And then there is the filled schiacciata — which is not a sit-down lunch but a walking lunch, and in that sense is perfectly Florentine. The city’s bakeries prepare filled schiacciate that are worth as much as a first and second course combined: seasonal ingredients, crisp bread, no compromise on quality. Semel and Sforno are two of the best addresses for schiacciate made to order, with whatever the season offers.
Sunday lunch: the most sacred ritual
August or not, on Sundays Florentines eat with family or friends, and they take their time. It is not a meal, it is a ritual. Tables outside fill with groups, children run around the chairs, wine is ordered by the bottle rather than the glass, and conversations stretch into the afternoon without anyone checking the time.
Borgo Antico in Piazza Santo Spirito and the Antica Mescita in San Niccolò are two of the right addresses for experiencing this tradition from the inside. Both frequented by locals from the neighbourhood, both with that informal and authentic quality that is becoming increasingly rare in the historic centre.
Dinner: Oltrarno and San Frediano hold their ground
When it comes to dinner, the neighbourhoods that hold up best against the August heat — and the tourist pressure — are Oltrarno and San Frediano. Trattorias where prices are still reasonable, wine bars where you drink standing on the pavement, pizzerias open late with tables spilling out onto the cobblestones.
For dinner, some concrete addresses. Trattoria del Carmine is one of those places you return to — simple setting, serious Tuscan cooking, a mixed clientele of locals and travellers who know where to go. Il Guscio is the right address for those who prefer fish, with a market-driven menu that changes according to availability. Marina di Santo Spirito is another solid option for fish — elegant and refined, perfect for a special occasion. Another hidden gem is Piazza della Passera, well worth a stop for an aperitivo or a good gelato.
For pizza, Gustapizza is a reference point: carefully made dough, quality ingredients, a queue outside that usually moves quickly. It is the kind of place Florentines bring friends when they want to make a good impression without spending too much.
One rule only
Good food in Florence finds you when you stop looking for it and start walking without a destination. Move away from the main squares, follow the sound of conversation drifting out of an open doorway, walk into places with no sign in English outside. It usually works.
At the reception of Palazzo della Nave we keep an updated list of our favourite addresses for every moment of the day — breakfast, lunch, aperitivo, dinner — with a few personal notes on what to order and when to go. Ask for it at check-in: it is one of the services our guests appreciate most.
