260459 Sun Sep 30 15:59:46 -0700 2001 9 26 International 0 1376410 Found a few posts extolling I Latini and one or two other places- plus indications that some Ciao Hounds were *going* to Florence...has anyone been recently, can you offer any recommendations (or warnings) about what not to/to miss? I'm there for three days - interesting in food mainly (of course!) but other things as well...have done the obvious. Sun Sep 30 15:59:46 -0700 2001 0 magnolia 1 1376411 Notwithstanding a latin screen name, my spelling of Italian is phonetic at best. The food at Villa San Michelle just outside town is excellent, if expensive. Parts of "Room with a View" were lensed there. Ennotecha Pinchiore is nice, eating out under vaulted arches. The view from the restaurant atop the Excelsior of a red disc sun slipping into the Arno is not to be missed. Bottega Veneta has a store accross the piazza from the hotel if you like leather. There used to be a place on the Ponte Vecchio or near it where very refreshing salads were served in gigantic brandy snifters--or fishbowls on pedestals. And, of course, there's the Duomo, David, the Uffizi. (sigh) Sun Sep 30 20:38:09 -0700 2001 1376410 0 michael (mea culpa) 2 1376412 Il Latini has been written up in absolutely every guide book. As a result it attracts a lot of English speaking diners who they try to seat together. (This can be a good or a bad situation depending on who you're matched with.) Also, when it opens at 7:30, depending on the night, there will already be a long line to get in. Overall it is a very good value with good food. Nothing exceptional but very good value. They will also assume that you know little about Tuscan wine but you'll be surprised if you ask for what they might have. Castello di Ama chianti was priced less here than other restaurants we were in. One of my favorite restaurants in all of Italy is the moderately priced di Vinus two blocks off the Arno on a side street not usually frequented by tourists. This has been open a little more than a year and on a recent Sunday night there was not an empty seat in the three hours we were in the restaurant. It is superb. The bisteca ala fiorentina is the best that I have ever had (better than Sabitino's or Taverna del Branzino generally regarded as Firenze's best). Simple dishes such as minestrone which is really a thickly chopped vegetable stew that actually mounds on a plate are surprisingly delicious. Flatbread from their wood fired oven is served when you sit down and the crust can rival New Haven's Wooster St. They speak English, are extremely friendly and will bring you small tastes of dishes they want to share when they see your enthusiasm. And it feels like Italy. I don't mean to knock Il Latini (even with the hams suspended from the ceiling) or even Cibreo but somehow I personally prefer a restaurant which attract more locals. di Vinus is incredible. By the way, if you have a car one of the best-if not the best-restaurants in all of Italy is about 90 minutes away. Gambero Rossi. It is absolutely worth the drive. Sun Sep 30 22:01:40 -0700 2001 1376411 0 Joe 2 1376765 Sadly, during our stay at the Excelsior, the rooftop restaurant was closed. I believe this was part of Starwood's cost costing measures (hotel management company). We had a fabulous dinner at Villa San Michele but sadly many other restaurants we wanted to go to were closed for Ferie Agosto. Wed Oct 24 16:20:41 -0700 2001 1376411 0 Alonif 3 1376766 Just another reason to go back. Wed Oct 24 17:31:56 -0700 2001 1376765 0 michael (mea culpa) 3 1376767 When I dined at Villa San Michelle, I observed a young Asian couple celebrating their honeymoon. They had a half bottle of wine with their meal (red, as I recall). At the conclusion of the meal, the husband pulled out what looked like a piece of clear plastic. He applied it to the label on the wine bottle and rubbed vigorously for a few moments. The label adhered to the plastic which he then mounted in a scrap book. This is the first and only occasion on which I have seen this feat. Wed Oct 24 18:23:04 -0700 2001 1376765 0 michael (mea culpa) 1 1376418 Magnolia, my parents, who adore food, lived in Florence for 9 months, and found very few restaurants that served inventive food. The mainstay in Florence seems to be very traditional Tuscan food -- ribollita, pasta, bistecca. One of their favorite places was Mamma Gina's, in the Oltrarno (on that street that runs parallel to the Arno, turn right from the ponte vecchio -- sorry for the incomplete directions). When I visited, I really enjoyed ribollita and porcini mushroom ravioli. As for tourist attractions, I like the shopping, so take an empty suitcase. The mercato San Lorenzo is fun for souvenirs (though there are places near the Duomo that do nicer paper products) and the Mercato centrale for those wonderful things that are cheap in Italy and nowhere else -- olive oil, parmiggiano, dried porcini mushrooms, prosciutto, cheeses with truffles, balsamic vinegar, etc. My parents even managed to snag a relatively inexpensive jar of black truffles for me. Mon Oct 01 11:23:23 -0700 2001 1376410 0 Caitlin Wheeler 1 1376419 Patricia Wells recommends Cibreo in town and Da Delfina outside. Mon Oct 01 11:24:05 -0700 2001 1376410 0 michael (mea culpa) 2 1376424 try Da Nerboni inside the Mercato Centrale. Amazing tripe with hot sauce and other true Tuscan dishes, with wine from their Chianti farm. Mon Oct 01 13:52:54 -0700 2001 1376419 0 Allan Evans 1 1376454 I just got back from venice, florence, rome & positano... In florence i would recommend 2 places: 1) i would second the recommendation for a dinner at Villa San Michelle - a taxi ride out of town, but worth it. Incredible views and incredible food. 2) we had a wonderful lunch at Osteria Santo Spirito in Piazza Santo Spirito. A really young fun restaurant with WONDERFUL food, some of it rather ordinary but delicious, some of it extremely inventive. Ciao...Have fun... -tg Wed Oct 03 14:38:59 -0700 2001 1376410 0 Tom G