text Virginia Mammoli
The best cafés in Florence
City lounges for a sweet, warm break on colder days
What could be more pleasant on a cold autumn or winter day than taking refuge in an elegant café and warming your hands and heart with a tea or hot chocolate? We take you to the best cafés in Florence where you can indulge in this flavourful and relaxing break, amidst period lounges and renowned personalities.
Looking for the best coffee spots for breakfast? Click here! If, on the other hand, your passion is brunch, here are the ones not to be missed in the city!
Gilli
Via Roma, 1r
ph. +39 055 213896
This is the oldest café in the city, Florence’s ‘living room’ since 1733. Originally in Via dei Calzaiuoli, it was in 1917 that Gilli moved between Via Roma and Piazza della Repubblica. The only Florentine Art Nouveau café, amidst Murano crystals, precious marbles and frescoes, where artists and personalities such as Ardengo Soffici and Marinetti used to meet. Gilli’s coffee is a real speciality, as is their cioccolata in tazza (chocolate in a cup), to be accompanied by their mouth-watering mignon or a single serving of one of their spectacular miniature cakes.
Paszkowski
Piazza della Repubblica, 6r
ph. +39 055 210236
The other favourite haunt of early and mid-20th century intellectuals, the aforementioned Soffici, as well as Gabriele D’Annunzio, Eugenio Montale and many others. At the time the ‘Caffè Concerto’ was a literary salon and brewery, and in 1991 it was declared a National Monument. First-class coffee, pastries, teas and infusions. Pan brioche for real connoisseurs, as well as delicious savoury offerings.
Giacosa
Via della Spada, 15r
A historic establishment, reopened this summer, and known to all as the bar where, in 1919, the Negroni cocktail was born, a revised and corrected version of the Americano based on the idea of Count Cammillo Luigi Manfredo Maria Negroni. Today, the iconic cocktail is also interpreted in pastry dishes, such as the mouth-watering mignons, part of an assortment that ranges from sought-after single-servings to biscuits and traditional desserts, such as schiacciata alla fiorentina, available all year round, torta della nonna and the unmissable rice pudding.
Atrium Bar (Four Seasons Hotel Firenze)
Borgo Pinti, 99
ph. +39 055 26261
The elegant bar and lounge with an international mood at the Four Seasons Hotel Firenze is the ideal place for a rejuvenating coffee or tea break in the heart of the hotel, surrounded by decorations, marble and fine furniture, overlooking the marvellous Giardino della Gherardesca, the largest private garden in the historic centre of Florence.
Atrium Bar - Four Seasons Hotel Firenze ph. Dario GarofaloWinter Garden (The St. Regis Florence)
Piazza Ognissanti, 1
ph. +39 055 27163770
If you want to spend an elegant afternoon, savouring tea blends designed and prepared ad hoc by the Tea Sommelier and the sweet and savoury proposals of Pastry Chef Ugo Rossi, you can only choose the rooms of the Winter Garden of The St. Florence. A perfect place to discover the secrets hidden behind this ancient ritual.
Rituale del tè al The St. Regis FlorenceRivoire
Piazza della Signoria, 5r
ph. +39 055 214412
An institution in the world of chocolate making for 150 years. It was Enrico Rivoire, chocolatier to the royal family of Savoy, when Florence was the capital of Italy in 1872, who opened a steam-powered chocolate factory in Piazza della Signoria to create and offer customers excellent chocolate made according to an ancient and secret recipe. From the silkiness of their chocolate in a cup to the crunchiness of pralines, bars and hazelnuts, this is pure ecstasy.
Gucci Giardino 25
Piazza della Signoria, 37r
ph: +39 055 75927012
This is the caféand cocktail bar of the award-winning Gucci Garden restaurant. A unique ambience, somewhere between a Tuscan shop and a French bistro. For tea, Giardino 25 relies on the expertise of La Via del Tè, the hot chocolate is milk or dark, and as for the coffee, special blends are used, to be enjoyed in one of the small lounges of the café, alongside sweet and savoury proposals.
Galleria Iginio Massari
Via de' Vecchietti, 3
ph: +39 055 802 5253
Considered the greatest Italian Master Pastry Chef in the world, Iginio Massari has brought his delicious art to Florence, on the ground floor of the Hotel Helvetia & Bristol, where you can try his iconic maritozzo, an irresistible selection of mignons and macaroons and chocolate single servings, together with a cappuccino, tea, hot fondant chocolate, or his exclusive coffee blend ‘Sinfonia del Maestro’.
Cafe Odeon
Piazza degli Strozzi, 8r
ph. +39 055 5134648
Together with the rebirth of the former Cinema-Teatro Odeon, which has embarked on a new path as a multifunctional space called Giunti Odeon, the bistrot and restaurant Cafe Odeon has also reopened its doors. The establishment offers a diverse menu curated by chef Christine Maninger Ferragamo, catering to everyone – from breakfast to lunch, including aperitifs, dinner, and late-night weekends. The all-day dining menu starts in the morning with the opening of the bookstore, featuring coffee from Ditta Artigianale, French croissants, and Italian pastries. It then progresses to lunch, offering Austrian, Tuscan, and more dishes, and transitions into the evening with expertly crafted drinks. A place to be enjoyed at every moment of the day.
Cafe OdeonDitta Artigianale
Via dei Neri, 32r - ph. +39 055 2741541
Via dello Sprone, 5 - ph. +39 055 0457163
Via dei Carducci, 2r - ph. +39 055 9367419
Via Lungarno Soderini, 7 - ph- +39 055 3874550
Piazza Ferrucci, 1r - ph. +39 055 7714875
Five locations with sophisticated and appealing designs, including historical addresses such as the one in the former Sant’Ambrogio Convent. Not just a coffee shop, but also a roasting plant and a coffee school. Coffee is therefore the great ‘must have’, also available in quirky versions, such as the Pumpkin Pie Latte, and Salted Caramel Latte, to be accompanied by the specialities of the bakery inspired by French and northern European pastries, with a Tuscan twist.
ToscaNino in Rinascente
Piazza della Repubblica, 4
ph. +39 055 4933468
Located on the fourth floor of the Rinascente and sheltered by a beautiful skylight, this is the perfect address for a zero-kilometre tea time. In fact, ToscaNino’s concept is simple and straightforward: use only products of Tuscan excellence. This not only applies to the teas and herbal infusions, but also the coffee, organic juices and chocolate, as well as the flour used for the pastries and baked goods made in-house.
Caffè Lietta
Piazza della Libertà, 6/7/8r
ph. +39 055 2696874
Opened by sisters Francesca and Lucilla Tacconi, the elegant café under the loggia in Piazza della Libertà is named after their mother Lietta Cavalli, who was the sister of fashion designer Roberto Cavalli and a fashion personality in her own right. The interior is reminiscent of a greenhouse, with lights wrapped in green shoots and an entire wall dedicated to vintage objects and small bouquets. The highlight of the menu is their famous ‘pirulo’, a filled shortcrust pastry pudding, to be enjoyed in its classic version, ricotta and cream, or in one of its infinite variations.
