Local Eats in Florence

by Cynthia Graber

 

I'm starting off with a photo of the Duomo, instead of food, because this is what I first felt about Florence. Beautiful, lots of very famous sites - but where was the amazing food? I mean, this is Tuscany, right? Land of olive oil, cheese, fresh produce, wild game. Why did nearly every street corner showcase mediocre, if not downright horrible, offerings? 

Tourists, that's why. Hoards of them, flocking from all over the world, tired, hungry, and willing to eat just about anything. I'd done some research, so I knew of good restaurants for dinner - mostly in the not-so-touristy areas. But I was surprised and dismayed by the food I saw. I mean, look at those anaemic tomatoes. And this wasn't just a visual assessment - I tried some. It was bad. 

Then, after about 24 hours, the food gods finally started to smile on me. I'd spent an entire Sunday walking all around the city, visiting tourist sites. I was art-ed out, and wiped. But I followed my guidebook for a little stroll around Oltrarno, on the other side of the river, slightly less touristy. And I came upon a flea market - for Tuscans, not tourists. WIth a few local food stands.

(I hope you'll forgive me, but I was so ravenous and tired that I didn't take any pictures.) First, a grandma and grandpa were slowly making these crepe-like concoctions, which you could buy either with or without ricotta. I later found out they're made of chestnut flour. I of course chose the one with ricotta. The ricotta was rich and earthy, the crepe sweet. Finally. Real local food.

Next door there was a gorgeous table of varieties of cheese from the region. Nothing was labeled. I managed to ask if I could buy a small wedge to snack on, and she had command of enough English to point out sheep or cow. I asked for sheep, and the one with pepper on the rind. So good! It was a type of peccorino, probably on the younger side. I could practically taste the sheep grazing.

The next morning, the food gods really smiled on me.

I was wandering through the local food market, enjoying the produce, oils and vinegars, animal parts, cheeses. Then at a table in a food products store, I heard an American explaining how olive oil is made in Tuscany, and pouring out tastings on bread. I lingered to eavesdrop, then butted in and asked if it's a tour. She nodded and handed me her card. Taste Florence. 

The next morning, I joined  a four-hour walking tour of Florence's food. What a tour! It was one of the best things I did in Florence. Toni, the tour-guide and company owner, has lived in Florence for about ten years. She revels in Tuscan food, the tastes and the history. She started this company two years ago, and she's looking at expanding to Venice and Rome. 

 

We started the tour at a 100-yr-old bakery, pictured above, and tasted a treat just offered on Fat Tuesday (the day in question). Then we moved next door to a 101-yr-old pastry shop. We learned about the food and the traditions, and when to buy the freshest offerings. 

Then, despite the relatively early hour, we headed across the street to Casa del Vino. The owner inherited the shop from his father and literally grew up there. Toni said he has a labyrinth of aging bottles underground. We tasted a prosecco, one of the best I've had, and then onto chianti and another Italian red. These were accompanied by snacks, because he also makes some of the best crostini and sandwiches in town. Yum.

Then - to the food market. We started with steaming bowls of boiled meat and sides of cannelini beans rich with olive oil. We wandered around the butcher shops, examining all the parts of the animal available, learning how to choose a fresh rooster, and laughing at the particularly lewd celebrations of the flesh at one butcher shop.

That sign reads (and this is a basic translation): Eat boiled meat, it makes for good sex. His business card is hysterical, but I can't describe it on a family-friendly site. 

Then onto tastings. We parked ourselves at a table near the Conti family store and spent probably well over an hour there. Did you know that what we call balsamic vinegar in the US really isn't balsamic? Neither did I! We tasted a slew of different ages of balsamic, then two different olive oils, then a number of toppings for cheese on pieces of different ages of peccorino. The truffle honey was so earthy sweet, so out of this world, that I shamelessly scraped at the amber remains on the (shared) plate. I mean, at about $40 for a standard honey-sized bottle, it was nearly priceless. 

I tried to restrain myself in his shop, I really did. It was challenging. I did buy some of his family's olive oil, cloudy and unfiltered, which is difficult to find in the US.

 

The store, Conti, now has a warehouse in the US. Delicious.

Finally, dessert. We headed over to Vestri, a chocolate shop that owns their own cacao farm in the Dominican Republic. We tasted a bunch of truffles, I particularly loved the hazlenutty gianduja and the praline with flakes of pink peppercorns. 

They also make gelato. Now, Toni is quite particular about gelato. It can't have any fillers, no artificial flavors or colors. She said to avoid the places you see around town with mounds of gelato spilling out of the containers - none of them make it fresh. (I added that you should avoid any place that sells bright green pistachio.) So we tasted Vestri's superb offerings. I had the original flavor, the original gelato, created hundreds of years ago for Catherine de Medici. Among others.

What a day. What food. Before this tour, I truly enjoyed Florence, but with so many tourists milling about, and so much unappealing food on every corner, I didn't feel particularly connected to the city. After this tour, however, I finally felt as if I had an insight into local food, and by extension into the local culture. I felt as if a curtain had been lifted, or as if I'd stepped through a door into the community. That afternoon, when I went back to the wine shop and joined the Italian men there for a snack, the owner smiled at me and said hello. 

I did buy a tiny jar of that truffle honey. Maybe, if you're really nice, I'll even give you a taste.

Comments

[Naomi]

YUM! Those sandwiches are making me salivate.... beautiful pics!

[Denette Clara]

Taste Florence is a gem! I've taken her tours on my last two trips to Florence! Nice pace, lots of knowledge, food, wine, and fun! Can't wait live without the olive oils - bring three bottles home in my suitcase. Forget the miniture Davids!! LOL

[Cynthia Graber]

Denette - I'm glad to hear it! I'm still enjoying the olive oil I bought, and not looking forward to the day it runs out...
-Cynthia