#YellowtraceTravels // Florence, Italy.

Earlier this year, just before heading to Milan Design Week, Team Yellowtrace took a cheeky little trip to Florence. Ahhhhh… the glorious Tuscan capital. So charming, beautiful and completely overrun with tourists to the point that it almost made me gag. But who am I to say so, when I was a tourist myself? True dat. Jokes aside, I remember visiting Florence for the first time during our big European honeymoon trip seven years ago. Something about the city instantly captured my heart, and judging by the amount of Touristico Fantasticos, it has done the same for millions of others.

With this in mind, there’s definitely no shortage of travel tips for Italy’s wildly popular Tuscan capital. With countless tourist offerings pumping through the historic town, it’s easy to end up eating an ordinary slice of pizza near the steps of the majestic Duomo. Not that there’s anything wrong with that – says she who may have done just that while nursing a jet-lag. However, we all know you can do much better than that. Here are some of our favourite places to try.

Related Post: #YellowtraceTravels: Gucci Museum Florence.
See other #YELLOWTRACETRAVELS posts.

Prosacci
Via Tornabuoni, 64/r, 50123 Florence, Italy
Located on prestigious Via de Tornabuoni, Procacci is a fantastic place for apertivo with a huge variety of great wines on offer. The bar is also renowned for it’s specialties made with truffles.

Trattoria Sostanza
Via Porcellana, 25/r, 50123 Florence, Italy
Top-notch cozy trattoria has a friendly atmosphere, serving unpretentious food to those who like their Bistecca Fiorentina very large and very rare. Along with many other fine Tuscan classics, they have two signature dishes: the Tortino di Carciofi (artichoke tart) and the Pollo al Burro (chicken with butter). The chicken is in-sane in the membrane. Do it. By the way, you will need s reservation no matter what day of the week.

Luisa Via Roma
Via Roma, 19/21r, 50123 Florence, Italy
Considered to be Florence’s most cutting edge boutique, Luisa Via Roma is a must visit for everyone with a passion for fashion. The store showcases a carefully curated edit of the latest Italian and international designers, with a focus on up and coming talent. The cooky feature of the store are touch screen monitors located throughout on which you can have a browse and get clothes delivered straight to the fitting room. Husband may or may not have bought a pair of kick-arse Nike kicks there. I dunno, maybe ask him.

Gucci Museum
Palazzo della Mercanzia, Piazza della Signoria 10, 50123 Florence, Italy
Situated in the heart of Florence, the museum is a homage to the city where Gucci’s story began. A separate post about Gucci Museum to follow.

Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy
Via della Scala, 16, 50123 Florence, Italy
Set within a spectacular heritage building, Santa Maria Novella Pharmacy has been producing fragrances, cosmetic, extracts, wax products and more since 1612 . The pharmacy also has a museum, of which you can take a guided tour.

Vivoli
Via Isole delle Stinche, 7r (near Santa Croce)
Arguably the city’s best gelato, so who am I to argue with that? We had one every day, just cause. So good.

Il Pizzaiuolo
Via dè Macci, 113, 50122 Florence, Italy
The Pizzaiuolo was recommended to us as the best pizza joint in Florence serving Naples-style pizza. Husband and I tend to concur. It was up there with the best pizza we’ve ever had. The trattoria is very small, quite crowded and slightly chaotic. Don’t go here expecting a romantic or elegant dinner but do expect the kind of pizza that will blow your mind. Also, this is where we had the best ever buratta. Holy shit. That’s all. P.S. Booking ahead is highly recommended.

Il Santo Bevitore
Via di Santo Spirito, 64/66, Florence, Italy
Cross the river to the “other side” of Florence where you are guaranteed to escape most of the tourists. You will be rewarded with a more contemporary twist on a classic trattoria, with seriously awesome food. Go there.

All’Antico Vinaio
Via dei Neri 65R, 50122 Florence, Italy
One of the few genuine Florentine fast food places left in the city, All’Antico Vinaio is always packed. Great food, great prices, and many interesting characters crushed into the tiny bar and spilling onto the street, combine perfectly with a help-yourself-to-wine arrangement. Just keep count and pay at the end.

Related Post: #YellowtraceTravels: Gucci Museum Florence.
See other #YELLOWTRACETRAVELS posts.

[Photography © Nick Hughes/ Yellowtrace. iPhone snaps by Dana Tomić Hughes/ Yellowtrace.]