Eating is definitely one of life’s pleasures in Florence, as it is all over Italy. The food is fresh, seasonal and, above all, local. You’ll eat the best of Tuscan produce cooked to Tuscan recipes.

Mealtimes:

If you are heading for breakfast in a bar, most open for business around 7-7.30 AM. Restaurants normally open for lunch around 12.30 or 1 PM and stop serving at 3 PM; they close for the afternoon and reopen for dinner around 7.30–8 PM. All restaurants have one closing day a week, but many places open every day in summer.

Where to Eat:⠀

Trattorie are usually family-run places and are generally more basic than restaurants.
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Sometimes there is no written menu and the waiter will reel off the list of the day’s specials. They normally open for lunch and in the evening. Ristoranti are not always open for lunch. The food and surroundings are usually more refined than those of a trattoria. Both, however, add a cover charge, which includes bread, olive oil, tissues, ecc.
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Pizzerie specialize in pizzas, but often serve simple pasta dishes as well. Look out for forno al legno-pizzas cooked in a wood-fired oven. Osterie can either be old-fashioned places specializing in home-cooked food or extremely elegant, long-established resaurants.