To drink or bite, as long as there is! Here is the best of for those who do not fear sins of gluttony
The most precious of all tropical fruits has found in Italy some of its highest expressions. The chocolatier tradition has also made its mark in Florence, and you can enjoy it in cocoa ateliers and elegant historic cafés.
Rivoire
Rivoire
It was Enrico Rivoire, chocolate maker of the royal family of the Savoia, when Florence was the capital of Italy in 1872, who opened at the sides of the share Piazza della Signoria a little cafe, in order to produce and offer to Florentine customers a sublime chocolate, resulted from an old and secret recipe.Today Rivoire, after 140 years of activity, is one of the oldest cafes in Florence, where time seems to stop forever. Among its artisan products, don’t miss the cremini and gianduiotti (hazelnut chocolates), as well as the wonderful chocolate cream.
Vestri
Vestri
Belonging to the great tradition of Italian chocolate shops from two generations, it has since always based its managing philosophy on a research of peculiar products in order to come first in the never-ending taste challenges. Its main resource - a finca, a cocoa plantation of eight hectars lays exactly in Puntacana (Santo Domingo). Ice-cream and cake shop, too, it counts among its specialities the panforte (an Italian cake made with honey, nuts, spices and dried fruits), cantucci biscuits, torrone (nougat) with Tuscan honey and ricciarelli (Sienese almond biscuits).
Venchi
Venchi
The concept boutique of Venchi, a historic chocolate company founded in the Piedmont Region in 1878, boasts ample space for savoring a wide selection of gelatos, pralines and chocolate candies-from extra dark, to gianduja (chocolate with hazelnut) and even salty white chocolate. Other delights include hot chocolate in the winter, frappé, and the famous Venchino-melted Gianduja. Products of note are the Chocaviar, a chocolate shell filled with gianduja cream and covered with 75% chocaviar pearls, the penny shaped vanilla “Diablotin” and the famous Venchi chocolate spread.
Caffè Gilli
Caffè Gilli
Over 250 years of history back this “salon” which has been successfully passing on the style and tradition of pastry-making since 1733. A pastry shop where the furnishings and lighting take us back to a long-ago time and place. A lovely outdoor area looks out onto Piazza della Repubblica in the summer, while the main indoor space offers an intimate and refined atmosphere. The café and pastry offerings are excellent, as well as the selection of chocolate candies. Once a meeting place for artists and writers, Caffè Gilli is today a cultural benchmark of the city.
Caffé Concerto Paszkowski
Paszkowski Caffè Concerto
From a brewery to a literary café that brought together intellectuals at the end of the 19th century, Paszkowski has preserved all its charm and style over time. It's one of the symbols of the town's tradition. Fresh from a stylistic renewal that leaves in the meantime the absolutely inimitable elegance of the place. In addition to the excellent coffee declined in many different ways, at the "new" Caffè Concerto Paszkowski you can taste the desserts signed by master pastry chefs Massimo Davitti and Francesco Lippi and, always in great demand, the classic toast, a real must thanks to the recipe of the delicious bread box.