Destination: Florence

Join me at the place I’ve called home for the last few days in Florence — Hotel Loggiato Dei Serviti — and check out my rooftop view of the Duomo, coming right in through the bathroom window. I’ve set up a little office here where I can work on the next edition of my Rick Steves Florence & Tuscany guidebook while enjoying a picnic dinner with the best sandwich in town.

Tonight, after a beautiful dinner and a bit of wine, I was overcome by the historic beauty of Piazza S.S. Annunziata, the most Renaissance square in Florence — and the graceful arches and columns of Filippo Brunelleschi’s Hospital of the Innocents, built in the 1420s.   

Join me as I take in the harmony, just feelin’ good under the floodlights, out and about, getting excited about the Medici. Life is good.  

My friend Tommaso (who runs Hotel Davanzati with his family) and I have a tradition of spending an evening getting up-to-date on restaurants in Florence. I’m so thankful to have a local friend to help me know the latest. Join me here, with Tommaso and Bobo (who runs this restaurant), as we get all excited about a 500-year-old dessert the Medici family loved, and we debate the best after-dinner drink: Amaro vs. Limoncello vs. Vin Santo.

Excuse our French.

I’m spending every evening this month researching restaurants for my guidebooks. Every night, I have a list of a dozen or so places to check, and my treat to myself — when I finish the list — is to enjoy my favorite of the bunch. Here in this candid, alcohol-fueled moment, a chef/owner illustrates how a personality-driven restaurant can be a real winner. Bobo loves his work, and as he told me, “When I stop to be happy, I would quit…that’s a promise.”

Here’s how I wrote Bobo’s place up in my Rick Steves Italy guidebook:

[$$$] Antica Trattoria da Tito, a 10-minute hike from the Accademia along Via San Gallo, is great for a memorable meal with a local crowd and smart-aleck service. The boss, Bobo, serves (theatrically) quality traditional food and lots of wine. While the food is good, there’s no pretense — it’s a noisy playground of Tuscan cuisine. To gorge on a feast of antipasti (cold cuts, cheeses, a few veggies, and bruschetta), consider ordering “fermami” (literally “stop me”) — for €18, Bobo brings you food until you say, “Fermami!” A couple can get fermami for two, desserts, and a nice bottle of wine for around €60 total. Dinner is served in two seatings: 19:30 (more sanity) and 21:30 (less sanity). Reservations are smart (€18 “gran tagliere” — big plate of cheese and meat, show this book for a free after-dinner drink, Mon-Sat 12:30-15:00 & 19:00-23:00, closed Sun, Via San Gallo 112 red, tel. 055-472-475, www.trattoriadatito.com).

I want to make sure my Rick Steves Florence & Tuscany guidebook includes the most characteristic, fun, and affordable places to eat — so I’ve been spending my lunch and dinner hours here blitzing restaurants. Today, I dropped in at Gianni’s Casa del Vino (“House of Wine”), a place I’ve recommended for 20 years, and it’s better than ever. Check out this video taste of my lunch — a delightful $8 board of antipasti with a fine glass of wine (for another $8).

Here’s how this place is written up in the guidebook. (Gianni said he’ll be waiting for all my readers.)

            [$] Casa del Vino, Florence’s oldest operating wine shop, offers glasses of wine from 25 open bottles. Owner Gianni, whose family has owned the Casa for more than 70 years, is a class act. The sandwiches, crostini, and mixed plates of meat and cheese with fine wine by the glass are perfect. During busy times, it’s a mob scene. You’ll eat standing outside alongside workers on a quick lunch break. But come early or late, and you can actually connect with Gianni. Ask him for “uno etto misto €5,” add two glasses of fine wine, and you’ve got a memorable and very cheap lunch (Mon-Thu 9:30-15:30, Fri-Sat 9:30-20:30; closed Sun year-round, Sat in summer, and Aug; Via dell’Ariento 16 red, tel. 055-215-609).