la falterona

florence, italy

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sure, most people go to florence to see the amazing artwork, il duomo, maybe the famous statue of david. where did we go? the food market! mercato central is a must-see in florence - a bustling market full of both old and new. the lower floor has all kinds of traditional italian food stands - sandwiches, fruits, vegetables, spices, dried fruits, dried meats, cheeses, flowers, and more. upstairs had a more modern (almost hipster?) feel - clean white countertops for espresso, wooden countertops for the artisan pizza stand, small batch gelato - a modern hangout above the historical market.

we found a restaurant nearby that clearly benefited from its proximity to the market. the freshest mozzarella di bufala i've ever tasted, served with salty melt-in-your-mouth prosciutto. i ordered pici maialino - which i remember from eating at maialino in nyc means piglet. so i had piglet spaghetti. and it was delicious. i highly recommend both this spot and mercato central if you can tear yourself away from the art and architecture.

golden view

florence, italy

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our GPS was useless in florence. it kept directing us down streets that seemed to be restricted. i couldn't read the italian on the signs, but there was a certain "do not enter" look to them. eventually we found parking about a half mile away from the restaurant. the "golden view" here was a great view of the famous ponte vecchio bridge. that was about all i liked about this restaurant, though. there was an unpleasant smell wafting up from the arno river which put a damper on the whole meal. but it was fun watching the rowboats go by.