4 Best Restaurants in San Lorenzo, Florence

Come here for creative panini, such as sgrombri e carciofini sott'olio (mackerel and marinated baby artichokes) and an ever-changing list of significant wines by the glass. It also has a good selection of bottles to go.

This tavola calda (cafeteria) in the middle of the covered Mercato Centrale has been serving Florentines since 1872. Tasty primi and secondi are always available, as are bollitos (boiled beef sandwiches), but the cognoscenti come for the panino con il lampredotto (tripe sandwich)—best when it's prepared bagnato (with the bread quickly dipped in the tripe cooking liquid) and served slathered with green and/or spicier red sauce.

Locals flock to this narrow, family-run trattoria to feast on Tuscan favorites served at simple tables under a wooden ceiling dating from 1536. Genuine Florentine hospitality prevails—you'll be seated wherever there's room, which often means with strangers—and, yes, there's a bit of extra oil in most dishes, which imparts calories as well as taste, but aren't you on vacation? Worth the caloric splurge is riso al ragù (rice with ground beef and tomatoes).

This restaurant just across from the Basilica of San Lorenzo and run by the Gozzi family since 1915 serves food that's as delicious as it is affordable. The short menu changes daily, though the lombatina alla griglia (grilled veal T-bone steak) is almost always available, and meat eaters should not miss it. Pastas are equally terrific. Dessert, in true Florentine fashion, is usually limited to biscotti with vin santo. The trattoria doesn't take reservations so expect to wait in line.