You probably already know that Dan and I love a food tour. This post details the food tour that we took with Eating Europe in Florence. It was quite good, and we were successful in trying delicious food, getting a bit off the insanely crowded tourist path and ordering from a wine window!

STOP 1: PROSECCO IN PIAZZA SANTO SPIRITO

Our tour began right in Piazza Santo Spirito.  Piazza Santo Spirito is a well-known Florentine square in the Oltrarno neighborhood (i.e. just across the Arno from the main tourist sites). The piazza dates back to the 1200s and it is still a popular square for both locals and tourists. You’ll find a handicraft market on certain weekends and local children often play soccer in this square. The piazza is also ringed by restaurants, bars and cafes, making it an interesting stop in Florence. We started our tour with introductions and a glass of dry Italian Prosecco.

STOP 2: THE BEST BITE OF THE TOUR IN A WINE SHOP

The first proper stop on the tour was at a small wine, meat and cheese shop close to Piazza Santo Spirito called DiVin Boccone. DiVin Boccone carries various Italian wines from all over the country and hosts tastings in a basement wine cellar, in addition to selling a small selection of meat and cheese on the street level. The owner is also wonderful, and he ships by the case to the US.

Our group proceeded down seemingly ancient stone stairs to DiVin Boccone’s wine cellar, which is truly stunning. Each small group sat around wine barrels re-purposed as tables and began the tasting with more Italian Prosecco. We paired the Prosecco with dry Tuscan bread, Tuscan fennel salami (a favorite of mine!) and prosciutto. While this was all delicious, the second food pairing here was insane – a radicchio leaf filled with goat cheese carpaccio. I know this doesn’t sound like much, but it was SO GOOD; one of the best things I have had this year (and yes, i know that is a grand statement). We took too many pictures in the wine cellar before moving on to our next destination.

STOP 3: THE KING OF CHEESE

Our third stop was for cheese – one of my favorite things! We made our way to a small cheese shop called Formaggi E Salumi Sandro & Ivana.  Sandro & Ivana, in existence since 1959 (!), is home of the famous “King of Cheese”, or a gentleman named Marzio who is super knowledgable and passionate about cheese…and the Florence soccer team!  We sampled three cheeses here. The first was a Pecorino, or a sheep milk cheese popular in Tuscany. The second was an aged Pecorino, and the third was a Pecorino made with truffles. All were excellent, but truffle cheese is always my preference.

While Sandro & Ivana was primarily a cheese store for our visit, it does sell Tuscan meats and regional products. Certainly stop in if you are looking for Tuscan goods or cheese to take home (you can generally take cheese back to the USA as long as its pasteurized and vacuum-sealed).

STOP 4: THE FAMOUS FLORENTINE WINE WINDOWS.

Ah, the next step was was the one that both me and Dan’s Aunt were most excited for – a visit to Florence’s famous wine windows! If you have been living under a rock, “wine windows”, or “buchette del vino” in Italiano, are a Florentine invention of tiny windows enabling patrons to purchase wine from the inside shop without going inside or even seeing the vendor. These little windows were popular hundreds of years ago to enable winemakers to sell bottles of wine without having to open the shop and thereby, pay tax. They were also popular during the Florence pandemic of 1630 – 1633 for obvious reasons. These windows have had a recent resurgence (possibly due to COVID) and are currently super popular in Florence. There is even a wine window trail for those really into it, LOL>

We wine windowed at Babae, which is a sit down restaurant where one can eat a full meal, or simply stand in line and buy a glass of wine from the wine window. We opted for the later, joining the around the corner line to walk up to the window and order a glass of wine, LOL. The whole event was fun, but quite touristy. One fun fact of Babae is that this is the wine window Stanley Tucci visited in Searching for Italy. We paired our wine with a delicious bruschetta topped with fresh mozzarella cheese, Tuscan tomatoes, and a tiny bit of basil.

STOP 5: GNUDI AT TRATTORIA DA GINONE 1949

Post wine window, we walked next walked for a short while before stopping in sit-down restaurant, Trattoria Da Ginone 1949.  Trattoria Da Ginone 1949 began in 1929, albeit under a different name and ownership, and a restaurant has been operating out of this location since. Trattoria Da Ginone adopted its current name in 1949. The most recent version of this restaurant opened in 2022 when a Florentine man took over the space, preparing traditional Tuscan and Florentine food. 

We were welcomed to Trattoria Da Ginone with a glass of Tuscan red wine. We paired our wine with a traditional Tuscan dish called gnudi (yes, pronounced “nudy”), which we first had back in 2015 at Osteria Cantine Bernardini (sister restaurant to Osteria Miranda). Gnudi are a form of Tuscan gnocchi (for lack of a better description) consisting of filling only – here spinach and ricotta – rolled into balls, coated in light semolina flour and briefly boiled in water. One can only eat a few gnudi as they are quite filling. Ours were topped with a bit of Parmesan cheese. The chef prepared the gnudi right in front of us, and he even made a gluten free version for our gluten free traveler. Gundi were really great; a must try when in Tuscany!

STOP 6: MR. NEGRONI AND TUSCAN STEW

Our next stop was almost next door to Trattoria Da Ginone at a wine bar/restaurant called Fiaschetteria Fantappie.

We first tried a Negroni cocktail at Fiaschetteria Fantappie. A very young bartender, dubbed “Mr. Negroni”, whipped up Negronis for the entire group. Our guide claimed that the Negroni is a Florentine drink – not a Milanese drink – and provided some history on the cocktail. The Negorni, which is one of my favorite drinks, was excellent.

Once all of the Negronis were made, our group moved outside for more dinner! And this portion of dinner related exclusively to the famous Tuscan stews. The first stew that we tried was type of ribollita. Ribollita is a Tuscan stew made with day old bread and usually, vegetables. Its hearty and favored in the winter. This particular stew was light on vegetables but heavy on olive oil and tomato. I enjoyed it.

The second stew was a traditional meat stew made with Italian pork, called cinghiale, tomato, olive oil and black olives. It was very, very good! We paired both stews with a Super Tuscan red wine.

STOP 7: REAL GELATO

Our final stop was for gelato at La Sorbettiera. The owner of La Sorbettiera has been making gelato since he was 14, and has owned and operated La Sorbettiera since 2007. La Sorbettiera makes classic Italian gelato with “new and interesting flavors” per its website. On offer during our visit was the Ginger Custard and Chestnut Honey flavor and a Chai Tea Latte (cardamom, cinnamon, black pepper, cloves & ginger). We visited the Santo Spirito location, which now may be closed based on the internet. Never fear, there is another location in Piazza Torquato Tasso in the heart of Florence.

Everyone on our tour got to select two flavors from the silver tins holding the gelato. Nope, no mounds of brightly colored gelato here, which is the way it should be. Traditional Italian gelato is served from these types of silver canisters, not piled in a mound for everyone to see. Dan went somewhat traditional with dark Peruvian chocolate and pistachio, and I cannot even recall what I ordered. The gelato at La Sorbettiera was great; I went back again for another gelato the following day.

STEAL OUR TOUR

Eating Europe Florence Sunset Food and Wine Tour: This is the tour that we took at 119 euro per person and included everything mentioned.

DiVin Boccone: Via delle Caldaie, 20, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy. Open Monday – Saturday 10:00 – 20:00, Sunday 15:00 – 20:00.

Formaggi E Salumi Sandro & Ivana: Via dei Serragli, 39, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy. Open Monday – Saturday 8:30 – 13:00 & 16:00 – 19:30. Closed Sunday.

Babae: Via Santo Spirito, 21R, 50125 Firenze FI, Italy. Open Monday – Thursday 12:00 – 00:00, Saturday 10:00 – 02:00, Sunday 10:00 – 16:00. Expect a line for the wine window.

Trattoria Da Ginone 1949: Via dei Serragli, 35/R, 50124 Firenze FI, Italy. Open daily 12:00 – 15:00 & 19:00 – 23:00.

Fiaschetteria Fantappie: Via dei Serragli, 47, 50124 Firenze FI, Italy. Closed Sunday. Open Monday – Saturday 9:30 – 13:00 & 17:00 – 21:30.

Gelateria Artigianale La Sorbettiera: Piazza Torquato Tasso, 11r, 50124 Firenze FI, Italy.