Foodies in Florence: Florence Food Tour

I know you think that all I did in Florence was eat, which I am not denying at all, but it was because we booked an amazing food tour of the city.  The best parts of our weekend trip were the tours that we did.  At first we were not sure if we should be doing tours both days, but our Florence Food Tour did not even feel like a tour.  Because let's be real... if we weren't on the tour we would still be eating all day anyways.  The food tour allowed us to experience the history and culture of the city as if we were locals.  We hit all the local spots and lived (and ate) like true Florentines do.

Our first stop was the ChiaroScuro coffee shop, where we learned about and sampled two different types of coffee.  Both were super strong, and took some getting used to.  Our frothy, foamy, milky lattes have nothing on these little espresso shots.  Woah, will this wake you up in the mornings.  The place was so cute and cozy that we tried to come back the next morning, but they were closed.  We have heard it is the best coffee in Italy, and can't wait to one day try more than what we sampled on the tour!

Our next stop was the Procacci Company, which is well known around Florence for their creations made with truffles.  We learned about truffles, where they come from, how they are used, and that they are considered one of the most historic delicatessens in the city.  We each got to enjoy a small truffle sandwich that was so phenomenal I could have eaten five.  I even left with a small bottle of truffle olive oil as a souvenir.

From the truffle shop we walked through the San Lorenzo Market to La Divina Enoteca, a small food and wine shop that has been around since 1895.  The shop started and was famous for being a fish shop where people could get fresh fish from beautiful marble tubs.  After being closed for about a decade, the shop was restored and now has a focus on wine, homemade pasta and cheeses.  We were lucky enough to have a wine and food tasting that consisted of two different cheeses, two different wines and two different meats (salami and prosciutto).

 

From La Divina Enoteco we went across the street to the San Lorenzo Food Market.  Once again I was blown away by the easy accessibility that the people have to such fresh foods.  We made three different stops inside the market.  Our first stop was at Nerbone, known for their traditional Florentine dishes.  We each got a plate of the freshest, most beautiful bruschetta I have ever had.  I am proud to say that I did not even enhance the colors in the photo below, that is how fresh the ingredients all were.  The bruschetta was probably the highlight of the food tour for me.  

Next stop was some salty bread from another little stall in the market.  Our tour guide passed the tray of bread around while explaining to us why most breads do not use any salt.  I can't tell all of their secrets, so you will have to go on the tour yourself to figure out why!

We then moved a few booths over to Marconcini Company, a family owned business that focuses on wine and olive oil.  This is the stall where we literally (and gracefully) stuffed our faces.  It was brutal fighting off market-goers who were trying to get in on our private tasting.  We started with bread and two types of olive oil, then had fresh strawberries and cheese with balsamic (so amazingly good), and finished it all off with biscotti and dessert wine.  I loved this because I have never had dessert wine, and it was even better than I expected.

 

The last stop was, of course, something Italian and sweet... gelato at Antika Gelateria Florentina!  Apparently you cannot go anywhere in Italy without getting gelato, and we learned this the hard way.  Our guide explained the tips and tricks to picking the best gelato, and took us to one of the best places in the city!  Cara clearly enjoyed her gelato...

Ciao!