1. Gutsy Eating: Lampredotto, Tripe and Frattaglie
A chewy lampredotto sandwich — made from the fourth stomach of a cow, or abomasum — is royalty on the Florentine street food scene, but its roots are working-class. Florence’s signature blue-collar lunch, it’s prepared in lampredottai or trippai carts all over town, including the Trippaio del Porcellino near Ponte Vecchio, the buzzing Da Nerbone at the Mercato Centrale and the rowdy I’ Trippaio di San Frediano. The goods are boiled in an herby broth, then slapped on a crusty roll with salt, pepper, parsley-rich salsa verde and a dash of piccante (spicy sauce) for all but the purest of purists, who opt for plain. Many trippai and lampredottai offer twists on the original preparation, and most hawk other frattaglie (offal and giblets) alongside less daring cuts.
2. No Frills, All Flavor: The Real Sandwich Scene in Florence
Social media trends push Florence as a place for stacked sandwiches made with schiacciata (a “squashed” Tuscan flatbread), but this phenomenon is new, and towers of toppings are hardly local. Schiacciata can be enjoyed as a standalone snack (Antico Forno Guasti’s in Le Cure is worth the bus ride to the ’burbs; Pugi offers a more central fix), but Tuscany’s famously unsalted bread is often paired with cheese (mostly pecorino toscano) and cold cuts like finocchiona (salami with fennel) or soppressata (made with “non-noble” pig parts). It’s served with house wine at workers’ joints like the Casa del Vino (San Lorenzo) or I’ Vinaino (San Frediano).
Crostini, small slices of toasted bread with various toppings, are a classic, and crostini toscani (with chicken liver pâté) is the most common variety. But poppa (cow udder) crostini are a local favorite; prepared with salsa verde, mayonnaise and black pepper with a squeeze of lemon, they’re often served to customers in line for lampredotto. Fiaschetteria Osteria Nuvoli churns out the best crostini on the block to regulars seated on stools, goti di vino — small, informal wine glasses — firmly in hand.
3. From Coccoli to Bomboloni: The Fried Foods Florence Won’t Let Go Of
Florentines of a certain age wistfully speak of childhood outings to friggitorie — largely extinct fry shops that once populated the city and outskirts. The old Friggitoria N. 34 signage on Via Sant’Antonino speaks to this heritage, which you can still taste on some menus around town — often at antipasto time in savory snacks like coccoli (fried dough balls), which might be paired with prosciutto and stracchino cheese (though some of the best are at Osteria Tripperia il Magazzino, where they hold the cheese). The young and hip flock to eat curbside coccoli at Enoteca Alla Sosta dei Papi, while those with a sweet tooth prefer bomboloni (filled fried donuts), prepared meticulously at Pasticceria Giorgio and the more central Pasticceria Buonamici.
4. How Florence Gave the World Gelato
Though not a Florentine street food per se, gelato has deep local roots and is often enjoyed on the go. Local lore goes that the Florentine architect Bernardo Buontalenti invented the dessert before the court of Catherine de’ Medici in Florence — and many local gelaterie still reach the high bar that history sets. Try the signature Buontalenti flavor (a simple cream) at the nearly century-old Badiani, or the more experimental flavors proffered by La Sorbettiera.
Hero Image: Lampredotto sandwich © RossHelen/iStock
