Where to Eat in Florence, Including the Best Tiramisu

Find out where to get the best tiramisu in Florence. Plus, find out about where to eat other delicious food in the food-centric Italian city.

I’ve been to Florence numerous times, and it’s truly the place for the best food you will ever eat, including the best tiramisu in Florence and honestly the rest of the world, too.

When you think of Florence, perhaps you daydream about visiting the Ponte Vecchio and Santo Spirito. But the city’s magic is as much about the food as it is about the sites.

I’ve been to Florence twice over the last couple of decades. The second time I went was right after I passed my RD exam and became a dietitian! This northern Italy locale is by far one of my favorite European cities.

That’s probably because I love all things Italian cuisine, from fresh mushrooms to pasta dishes (hello, pappa al pomodoro!) to sparkling water to tiramisu. I also love how many of those Tuscan restaurants are family run.

To share my love of this Italian city, I’d like to tell you about the best tiramisu in Florence––and the best gelato and more!

I’m often asked for my top recommendations on how to travel through this amazing city.

Here are my top tips on Florence for foodies, including the best tiramisu. I’m including the best places to find good food in Florence, from the perspective of a plant-based registered dietitian nutritionist and foodie.

The best tiramisu

When you’re thinking about what to eat in Florence, you might be interested in tiramisu? If so, you can’t skip this tiramisu. It’s the absolute best tiramisu in Florence!

The tiramisu at Osteria del Cinghiale Bianco in my opinion is the best in Florence. The restaurant is one of the top restaurants in Florence. So have a full meal, a glass of wine, and save room for dessert.

What makes this tiramisu the absolute best in Florence? Well, it’s the perfect combination of creamy and sweet but not too sweet. It has all the right ingredients and the perfect texture and mouth feel.

The best pasta

If you’re looking for the best pasta in Florence, you have so many options. But there’s only one that’s truly the best.

So here it is: Spaghetti dell’Ubriacone, or drunken spaghetti, from Osteria de Benci. When it comes to what food to eat in Florence, this choice might come as a surprise. But it’s hands down the best pasta in Florence.

The spaghetti is soaked in red wine and garlic, and thus it turns a deep purple-red color. And it is oh-so delicious. Plus, the dining room has a traditional Tuscan ambiance and is so charming.

I haven’t tried making the dish myself yet, but the waiter told me the secret ingredients are bouillon (if trying this at home, I would use vegetable bouillon), garlic, olive oil, hot pepper, a red wine like Chianti, and a finishing touch of parsley.

The best pizza

Another thing I love to eat in Florence is the pizza.

Pizzerias are thankfully the best places for cheap eats in Florence, and almost any pizza shop serves traditional Italian pies. You can order it by the slice, and you can buy the tiniest slices so you can try many different flavor combos.

It’s one of the best cheap eats in Florence that’s also delicious. You’ll see little pizza shops sprinkled throughout the city center.

If you’re a vegetarian in Italy, you’ll likely be eating a good amount of pizza! This is as close to street food as I got in the city.

I’m not going to give you one place to go for pizza in Florence, because I really recommend that you try as many pizzerias as possible! This is how you’ll taste the best pizza in Florence, by having as many slices as possible.

The best gelato

And of course, we must discuss the best gelato in Florence!

All throughout Florence, you’ll see storefronts with heaping piles of often very brightly colored gelato. Skip those shops and head straight to one of my favorites!

I promise the gelato will be tastier and fresher. Gelato shops also happen to be some of the best cheap places to eat in Florence. 

Start with Vivoli, said to offer the world’s best gelato. I love this gelato shop so much that I visited it twice during my first trip to Florence.

You pay for the size serving that you’d like, then you take your receipt to the counter to choose your flavors. FYI that Vivoli closed on Monday, so plan accordingly.

If you live in or are visiting Orlando, you can visit what Vivoli calls “the younger sister” of the original Florence shop, at the Walt Disney Resort in Disney Spring. Lucky you!

The other gelato shop you must visit while in Florence is La Carraia. I didn’t know about this locale until my second time in Florence. Once I did, I made sure to visit a couple of times.

There are two locations. If you head to the one at Piazza Nazario Sauro, you’ll get a beautiful view of the city, including the Duomo. I was lucky enough to eat my gelato during sunset!

The best truffles

Now, I have to talk about one of my favorite topics: truffles. This might just be the best food to eat in Florence, so I’m going to tell you where to get the best truffles in Florence.

The key to finding really amazing truffles? Some of the best meals I ate in Florence came from asking local shopkeepers about their favorite eats.

This is how I came to know about Trattoria da Ginone and what I consider to be the best truffle pasta in Florence. It’s really one of the top Florence hidden gems.

I dined here with my friend Kristin, and we made all our choices based on the waiter’s recommendations. Simply put, it was an amazing dinner in Florence. We ate an incredible pasta with black truffle entree.

Instead of asking for a wine list, we took the waiter’s recommendation and paired the dish with a very reasonably priced Barolo (just about 5 euros a glass). If you drink Barolo back home, you know it can be very steeply priced.

The first time I visited Florence, a colleague told me to visit Osteria del Cinghiale Bianco. You’ll recall this restaurant from earlier in my list, where I talk about the best tiramisu in Florence.

I had no idea what was in store, but I’m so glad I followed this advice. This egg-and-white-truffle dish was one of the best meals I’ve ever had.

When you’re a vegetarian in Florence, eggs are a fantastic find because of the filling protein they offer. I definitely recommend pairing it with the house wine, served in adorable ceramic pitchers.

The best vegetarian food in Florence

Now, if you’re wondering how to eat like a vegetarian in Florence, one of the best things you can do is get your fill of vegetables and beans in Florence! It’s the ultimate in vegetarian Tuscan food.

And wow, you can really find amazing white bean dishes in Florence. Head to La Vecchia Bettola for lunch to get your fill.

I was in Florence during mushroom season, and so the first thing I ate at this adorable little restaurant was a porcini salad. When it comes to things to eat in Florence (and really all of Italy), go for the mushrooms!

I definitely recommend it if it’s on the menu during your visit! Porcini dishes are one of the tastiest things to in Florence.

And I couldn’t leave Florence without ordering Tuscan white beans, a northern Italy staple. They’re so simply seasoned and supply vegetarian protein. I finished my meal (and almost every other meal while in Florence!) with an espresso.

The best food markets

Let’s move on to my No. 1 favorite activity when visiting any European city, shopping at local food markets. So yup, we’re going to talk about the best food markets in Florence.

Mercato Centrale, the main food market in Florence, did not disappoint.

Previously known as Mercato di San Lorenzo, the market was revived in 2014 with food stalls that remind me of other international markets, such as Time Out Market Lisboa.

What to buy

I haven’t been to the market since its revival a few years ago, but I imagine you can still pick up bottles of wine, fresh fruit, and local cheeses.

The market is also a great place to pick up souvenirs to bring home, including truffle oil, truffle salt, and balsamic glaze.

Speaking of souvenirs, here’s my short list of foodie items that are definitely worth taking home, either purchased at a Firenze market or just a regular grocery store.

• Lavazza coffee: This coffee is made in Italy, and it’s a heck of a lot cheaper to buy it there!
• Illy coffee: Same goes for a canister of this brew, and it makes a beautiful gift.
• Truffle pasta: You can get this on Amazon, but it’s a whole lot cheaper if you stock up in Florence.
• Lemon pasta: If you’ve never had it, you must try it!
• Jarred Italian truffles: Need I say more?
• Bagged sundried tomatoes: These are simply delicious.
• Italian candy and cookies: You’ll find beautifully boxed items at the market and grocery store. Take some home to share with your coworkers!
• Marvis toothpaste: This Italian toothpaste is packaged so nicely and makes a wonderful gift.
• Nivea Creme: I love trying toiletries from other countries, and this cream was a find. It’s made in Germany but sold in Italy, too.

While you can eat at the Firenze market, I highly recommend buying picnic essentials and hiking your food picks up to Piazzale Michelangelo for a magnificent view of the city. This is one of the best places in Florence for a picnic.

The hike to Piazzale Michelangelo is filled with a lot of steps, but the view is so magnificent that it’s worth it!

In addition to purchasing food from markets, I also popped into neighborhood grocery stores and bodegas.

I often found plentiful amounts of fresh fruit, like figs and persimmons, that aren’t always available at home. I brought these back to my apartment rental to snack on!

Final thoughts

If you’re heading to Florence, tiramisu is in your near future. Now you know where to get the best tiramisu in Florence, as well as the best gelato, pizza, truffles, and more.

More European travel advice

If you enjoyed this post on the best tiramisu in Florence, you’ll also find these posts helpful:

• Essential Travel Items Checklist for a Europe Trip
• The Best Debit Cards for International Travel
• How to Travel Healthy & Eat Delicious Food

I’d love to hear from you! What do you think is the best food to eat in Florence, Italy? Let me know so I can add it to this list of the best tiramisu, pizza, gelato and more in Florence.