Solo Dining in Florence: The Complete Guide to Eating Alone (Comfortably)

Solo dining in Florence is one of the most underrated pleasures of independent travel in Italy.

Not because Florence has exceptionally accommodating restaurants though many do but because Italian food culture itself is built for it. Italians eat alone at bars all the time. The standing espresso. The panino at a counter. The glass of Chianti at an enoteca before dinner. The aperitivo spread that replaces an evening meal entirely. None of these require a reservation, a companion, or any social navigation at all. They are simply how people in Florence eat every day.

When you know where to go, solo dining in Florence does not feel like a compromise. It feels like access. Access to the lampredotto cart that the tourist restaurant version of Florence never shows you. To the communal lunch table at Trattoria Mario where a Florentine worker will inevitably start telling you what to order. To the Oltrarno wine bar where the list is handwritten and the counter has three stools and the owner brings you extra crostini because you asked about the wine.

This guide is the solo dining chapter of our complete Florence solo travel guide. It covers the best restaurants for solo dining in Florence with bar seating, the best neighbourhoods for eating alone, what to order, how aperitivo works, budget by meal type, and everything else you need to eat well in Florence by yourself.

For a curated list of Florence’s top restaurants across all categories, our best restaurants in Florence covers every price range and cuisine type.

Is It Comfortable to Dine Alone in Florence?

Before the restaurant recommendations, the most important question deserves a direct answer. Yes, solo dining in Florence is comfortable. More comfortable, in fact, than solo dining in most northern European or American cities.

Here is why Italian food culture works naturally for solo diners:

Italian lunch culture is built around speed and independence. The standing bar lunch, an espresso, a panino, and a plate of pasta consumed at the counter in 20 minutes  is what most Italian workers do on weekdays. A solo traveller joining this rhythm does not stand out. They fit in.

Italian dinner culture values the table, not the number of people at it. A single diner at a family trattoria in Oltrarno is a customer to be served well, not an anomaly to be managed. The owner will suggest dishes. The waiter will explain the wine. The experience is often warmer than a table of four who just want to eat and leave.

Italian aperitivo culture was essentially designed for solo travellers without knowing it. One drink, a counter seat, a spread of free food, and a room full of people all doing the same thing. It is the most naturally social eating format in Europe.

Is it awkward to eat alone in Florence?

Only if you choose the wrong type of restaurant. A large tourist restaurant near the Duomo with tables for four sets with too many wine glasses is slightly awkward for a solo diner. A trattoria counter in Oltrarno with a chalkboard menu and a wine list that starts at €3 per glass is completely natural.

The format matters more than the restaurant. This guide focuses on formats as much as specific venues.

Best Restaurants for Solo Dining in Florence with Bar Seating

Counter seating and bar seating are the gold standard for solo dining in Florence Italy. No empty chairs opposite you. No awkward geometry. Just the counter, the food, the wine, and whatever conversation happens naturally.

I Fratellini Best Standing Wine and Sandwich Bar

• Address: Via dei Cimatori 38r, Florence historic centre
• Type: Standing wine and sandwich bar (no seating)
• Price: €3–6 per visit
• Hours: 10am–7:30pm (closed Sunday)

I Fratellini is one of Florence’s most beloved hole-in-the-wall wine bars. The entire operation runs from a tiny arch in the wall on a narrow street near the Uffizi. Two brothers (fratellini means “little brothers”) serve small glasses of wine (ombra) and made-to-order panini filled with Tuscan cured meats, cheeses, truffle paste, and vegetable combinations.

You eat standing on the cobblestones outside, hook your glass on the wall rack, and watch Florence walk past. It is one of the purest solo dining experiences in the city, completely natural, completely alone, completely comfortable.

Order: The house wine by the glass (€1.50–2.50) and one of their cured meat and cheese panini. The finocchiona (Tuscan fennel salami) and pecorino combination is classic.

Trattoria Mario Best Communal Lunch Tables

• Address: Via Rosina 2, near Mercato Centrale, Florence
• Type: Traditional trattoria, communal tables
• Price: €12–18 for full lunch
• Hours: Monday–Saturday 12pm–3:30pm (lunch only, no dinner)

Trattoria Mario has operated in the same location since 1953. It has communal tables  you sit wherever there is space, next to whoever is already there. The menu is handwritten daily, the wine comes in a carafe, and the waiters have worked there for decades.

For solo dining in Florence, Mario is one of the most welcoming environments in the city. The communal table format means eating alone is genuinely impossible if you are always sitting next to someone. Florentine workers, market traders from the adjacent Mercato Centrale, tourists who know what they are doing, and the occasional local grandmother all share the same tables.

• Order: The daily pasta (usually a ribollita or pappardelle), the second of the day, a carafe of house Chianti. Do not ask for the menu in English at what the person next to you is eating.
• Note: Arrive before noon or expect a queue. Cash only. No reservations.

Buca Mario Best Historic Trattoria with Counter Option

• Address: Piazza degli Ottaviani 16 r, Florence
• Type: Historic trattoria (since 1886)
• Price: €25–40 for full dinner
• Hours: Daily, lunch and dinner

Florence’s oldest restaurant welcomes solo diners comfortably; the staff are accustomed to independent travellers and solo business visitors. Ask for a counter seat or bar position when booking or arriving, which the restaurant accommodates.

The menu is classic Florentine  bistecca alla Fiorentina, ribollita, pappardelle al cinghiale, crostini neri. The wine list focuses on Chianti Classico and Brunello.

Il Latini Best for Solo Diners Who Want Company

• Address: Via dei Palchetti 6r, Florence
• Type: Traditional Florentine communal dining
• Price: €35–50 set menu
• Hours: Tuesday–Sunday, dinner only

Il Latini operates on a communal dining model, long shared tables, a set menu, wine included, and a deliberately social atmosphere. Solo diners are actively welcomed and often seated with other solo travellers or small groups. It is deliberately loud, deliberately communal, and deliberately the opposite of a quiet solo dinner. If you want the experience of eating with strangers in the best possible Florentine setting  this is it.

Restaurant	Type	Solo Format	Price Range	Best For
I Fratellini	Standing wine bar	Standing counter	€3–6	Quick authentic snack
Trattoria Mario	Communal trattoria	Shared tables	€12–18	Lunch, social atmosphere
Buca Mario	Historic trattoria	Counter on request	€25–40	Classic Florentine dinner
Il Latini	Communal dining	Shared long tables	€35–50	Social dinner with strangers
Mercato Centrale	Food hall	Shared communal tables	€8–20	Best overall solo dining
Enoteca Alessi	Wine bar / enoteca	Bar counter seating	€10–25	Wine + light solo meal
Tripperia Il Magazzino	Street food trattoria	Counter + small tables	€5–15	Authentic Florentine food
Volume, Oltrarno	Aperitivo bar	Bar counter + tables	€7–9 (drink)	Aperitivo dinner replacement

Mercato Centrale Best Solo Dining in Florence

The Mercato Centrale on Via dell’Ariento is Florence’s most reliably comfortable solo dining environment. The ground floor has fresh produce, cheese, meat, pasta, and wine vendors. The upper floor  accessible via escalator  is a large covered food hall with individual stalls serving every category of Florentine and Italian food.

Visit the official Mercato Centrale Florence for current opening hours and stall information.

Why Mercato Centrale works perfectly for solo dining in Florence:

The communal tables eliminate the single-table problem entirely. You sit wherever there is space next to other solo diners, couples, families, and Florentine workers. No one is watching you eat alone because everyone is watching their own food.

The multi-stall format means you can eat exactly what you want rather than navigating a full restaurant menu. Order pasta from one stall, a glass of wine from another, and dessert from a third. Build your own meal without any of the social choreography of a sit-down restaurant.

The atmosphere is consistently lively and informal; the noise and energy of a busy market make solo dining feel natural rather than conspicuous.

What to order at Mercato Centrale:

•  Fresh pasta with seasonal sauce from the pasta stall (€8–12)
•  Lampredotto or porchetta sandwich from the street food section (€4–7)
•  Bistecca alla Fiorentina at the steakhouse stall  ordered by weight (€25–40)
•  Florentine gelato at the gelateria stall (€3–4)
•  Wine by the glass from the enoteca counter (€4–8)
• Hours: Monday–Saturday 7am–2pm (ground floor market); daily 10am–midnight (upper food hall)

Street Food  Solo Dining in Florence at Its Most Authentic

Street food is the most naturally solo-friendly dining format in any Italian city. No booking. No table. No social choreography. Just food, eaten while standing or walking, from a vendor who has been making the same thing for decades.

Florence has one of Italy’s richest street food cultures  and most of it is completely unknown to tourists staying in the tourist zones.

Lampredotto Florence’s Definitive Solo Street Food

Lampredotto is the fourth stomach of a cow, slow-cooked in vegetable broth with tomato and herbs, then sliced and served in a crusty semelle roll (Florentine bread) with green salsa (salsa verde) and a chilli sauce. It is Florence’s oldest and most authentic street food, a working-class dish that has been eaten by Florentine market workers since the 19th century.

A lampredotto sandwich costs €4–5 and is eaten standing at the cart. The vendor will ask “bagnato?” (wet?) meaning do you want the bread dipped in the cooking broth? Say yes. It transforms the sandwich.

Where to find lampredotto in Florence:

•  Nerbone, inside Mercato Centrale ground floor (the most famous)
•  Tripperia Il Magazzino, Via dei Macci, Sant’Ambrogio area
•  Tripperia da Sergio, near Piazza di San Lorenzo
•  Lampredotto carts at Mercato di Sant’Ambrogio market square

Schiacciata The Solo Lunch Under €4

Schiacciata is Florence’s own flatbread  thicker and oilier than focaccia, brushed with olive oil, and sold by weight at every forno (bakery) in the city. It comes plain (just oil and salt), topped with rosemary and coarse salt, or filled like a sandwich (schiacciata con ripieno) with cured meats, cheese, grilled vegetables, or tuna.

A schiacciata lunch from a neighbourhood forno costs €3–4 and is eaten wherever you find a convenient wall, bench, or piazza step. It is what Florentine children eat after school and what Florentine adults eat at their desks.

Best fornos for schiacciata:

•  Forno Sartoni, Via dei Cerchi (historic centre)
•  Forno Il Magnifico, Piazza di Santo Spirito area (Oltrarno)
•  Panificio Pugi, Piazza San Marco (the Florentine flatbread institution)

Crostini Neri  The Solo Antipasto

Crostini neri (black crostini) are toasted bread rounds topped with a paste of chicken livers, capers, anchovies, and white wine. They appear on every Florentine trattoria menu as antipasto but are also available at aperitivo bars as part of the free food spread.

Ordering a plate of crostini neri at a wine bar counter with a glass of Chianti is one of Florence’s most comfortable and affordable solo dining experiences. Total cost: €6–10.

Aperitivo The Perfect Solo Dining Solution

Aperitivo is not just a pre-dinner drink in Florence. It is a complete solo dining strategy.

The format: from 6pm to approximately 8pm, bars across Florence serve aperitivo. Buy one drink: an Aperol Spritz (€7–8), a Negroni (€8–9), a glass of Prosecco or wine (€6–8)  and access the free food spread. The spread varies by bar from a simple bowl of olives and crisps to a generous table of bruschetta, cheese, charcuterie, pasta salads, crostini, frittata, and hot snacks.

Why aperitivo is the best solo dining format in Florence:

The bar environment is inherently social. Standing or sitting at a counter with other people all doing the same thing creates a natural atmosphere where eating alone is invisible.

The free food is often substantial enough to replace dinner. At the best aperitivo bars in Oltrarno, the spread can cover a full meal. The drink costs the same regardless of how much food you take.

The format is short (most bars clear the food by 8pm)  you eat, drink, and leave without the lingering awkwardness of a long solo restaurant dinner.

The bar counter creates natural conversation. Other solo travellers, Florentine workers, and local regulars all stand at the same counter. The aperitivo setting is one of the easiest places to meet people during a solo Florence visit.

Best aperitivo bars for solo dining in Florence:

Bar	Neighbourhood	Food Spread	Drink Price	Solo Vibe
Volume	Oltrarno	Excellent — generous table	€7–8	Mixed local/traveller crowd
Mad Souls and Spirits	Oltrarno	Good selection	€8–9	Friendly, international crowd
Rasputin	Santa Croce	Good — hot snacks included	€7	Young crowd, social
Il Santino	Oltrarno	Excellent wine + cured meats	€6–9	Wine-focused, quiet
Piazza di Santo Spirito bars	Oltrarno	Varies by bar	€6–8	Outdoor piazza, very social

Aperitivo tip for solo diners: Arrive at 6:15–6:30pm early enough to get counter seating before the after-work crowd fills the bars, but late enough for the food spread to be fully set up. Order your drink at the bar, take a plate from the spread, and find a counter spot. No one monitors how much food you take.

Best Wine Bars for Solo Dining in Florence

Florence’s enoteca (wine bar) culture is arguably the best solo dining format the city offers. A good enoteca has:

•  Counter seating that is natural and comfortable for one person
•  Wine by the glass from local and regional producers
•  A small food menu of crostini, cheese boards, charcuterie, and sometimes pasta
•  A quiet, contemplative atmosphere that does not amplify the fact that you are alone

Best enoteca wine bars for solo dining in Florence:

Enoteca Alessi Best Historic Wine Bar

• Address: Via delle Oche 27–29r, historic centre
• Hours: Monday–Saturday 9am–7:30pm
• Price: €4–8 per glass, €8–15 for food

Florence’s oldest wine shop and enoteca. The shelves rise floor-to-ceiling with bottles. The counter at the front serves wine by the glass alongside cold snacks, crostini, and Florentine specialities. The atmosphere is quiet, serious about wine, and completely comfortable for a solo diner spending an hour with a glass of Brunello and a cheese plate.

Il Santino  Best Counter Dining Experience

• Address: Via di Santo Spirito 60r, Oltrarno
• Hours: Monday–Friday 12:30pm–11pm, weekends 12:30pm–midnight
• Price: €6–9 per glass, €15–25 for a small meal

Il Santino is the wine bar adjacent to the famous Buca dell’Orafo restaurant, run by the same family. The tiny room has a counter with five or six stools, a chalkboard wine list, and a small menu of natural wine-paired small plates cured meats, aged cheeses, marinated vegetables, and simple pasta dishes. It is exactly the kind of place where solo dining in Florence feels like the correct way to eat.

Buca dell’Orafo Wine Bar Counter

• Address: Via dei Girolami 28 r, near Ponte Vecchio
• Hours: Tuesday–Sunday, lunch and dinner

The front bar counter at this historic Florentine restaurant accepts solo walk-ins for counter dining even when the restaurant itself is full. The wine list is excellent and the bar staff are used to solo international visitors.

Enoteca Pitti Gola e Cantina

• Address: Piazza dei Pitti 16, Oltrarno
• Hours: Daily 12:30pm–midnight
• Price: €5–10 per glass, €15–30 for food

Positioned directly opposite the Pitti Palace, this enoteca has outdoor seating with a view and indoor counter seating for solo diners who prefer to stay warm. The focus is on natural and organic Tuscan wines by the glass alongside a short menu of cheese, charcuterie, and seasonal small plates.

Best Neighbourhoods for Solo Dining in Florence

Where you eat in Florence matters as much as what you eat. The tourist-heavy zones around the Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, and Piazza della Signoria have restaurants that primarily serve international visitors at elevated prices. The residential neighbourhoods have the restaurants that Florentines actually use.

Oltrarno Best Overall Neighbourhood for Solo Dining

Solo dining in Florence Italy is most comfortable in Oltrarno. The neighbourhood south of the Arno has:

•   The highest concentration of genuine family-run trattorias in Florence
•   Neighbourhood wine bars (enoteca) with counter seating
•   Local market food at Mercato di Santo Spirito
•   The aperitivo bars of Piazza di Santo Spirito and Via del Serraglio
•   Casual lunch spots where Florentine workers actually eat

Specific streets worth exploring: Borgo San Jacopo, Via Maggio, Via dei Serragli, Via di Santo Spirito. The restaurants on these streets do not need to advertise because their regular local clientele fills them. Solo diners who wander here and choose based on what they see through the window will rarely be disappointed.

For the best accommodation in this neighbourhood to maximise your solo dining access, our where to stay in Florence covers Oltrarno-specific hotels and B&Bs.

San Niccolò Best for Evening Solo Dining

San Niccolò is a narrow street at the base of the hill below Piazzale Michelangelo, running from Piazza dei Mozzi toward the medieval gate of San Niccolò. Every evening, its enoteca wine bars, small restaurants, and aperitivo spots fill with a mix of Florentine locals and informed visitors.

For solo dining in Florence at night, Via San Niccolò is the single most comfortable street in the city, well-lit, animated, and full of small-format dining options that welcome single diners.

Santa Croce  Best for Solo Lunch and Casual Dining

The area around Mercato di Sant’Ambrogio (Florence’s local market, near Piazza dei Ciompi) has some of the best casual lunch spots in the city. Nerbone-style market food, simple lunch trattorias, and the market itself all provide excellent solo lunch options at local prices. The neighbourhood is also home to some of Florence’s best gelaterie for a solo dessert walk.

Historic Centre Convenient but Choose Carefully

The historic centre around the Duomo, Uffizi, and Ponte Vecchio has restaurants ranging from excellent to deeply mediocre  with price not always being an indicator of quality. Solo diners in the historic centre should:

•  Walk at least one or two streets away from any major landmark before choosing
•  Look for restaurants with Italian-language menus displayed outside
•  Avoid places with touts standing outside
•  Prioritise Mercato Centrale (just north of the centre) for guaranteed quality

The historic centre is convenient after museum visits but requires more care in restaurant selection than Oltrarno. For a complete area-by-area guide to Florence with safety ratings for solo female travellers, our is Florence safe for solo female travellers  covers every neighbourhood in detail.

What to Order When Dining Alone in Florence

Solo dining in Florence Italy opens you to a specific style of eating that group meals often skip: the single primo (first course) as a complete meal, the glass of Chianti with a cheese plate, the lampredotto sandwich eaten standing. These are more Florentine than any three-course dinner.

Best Solo Lunch Orders

Ribollita Tuscan bread and vegetable soup, slow-cooked with cannellini beans, cavolo nero, and stale bread. A single portion is a complete meal. Rich, filling, and only available at genuine Florentine trattorias. Never rush a ribollita — it takes 20 minutes to cook to order.

Pappa al Pomodoro thick Florentine tomato and bread soup with basil and garlic. The summer equivalent of ribollita. Even better as a solo lunch because a full bowl costs €8–10 at most trattorias.

Pasta del giorno  is the daily pasta, usually written on a board rather than on the menu. Ask the waiter what it is today. At lunch, it is almost always the best value item.

Schiacciata ripiena  stuffed Florentine flatbread from a forno. The ideal solo walk-around lunch.

Lampredotto sandwich  see the street food section above. The definitive Florentine solo lunch.

Best Solo Dinner Orders

Pappardelle al cinghiale  wide flat pasta with slow-cooked wild boar sauce. The quintessential Florentine pasta, available at virtually every trattoria in the city.

Crostini neri  chicken liver crostini as a starter. Order at the bar with a glass of Chianti before sitting down.

Ribollita is equally valid as a dinner first course. In autumn and winter, it is often on the dinner menu alongside the pasta.

Bistecca alla Fiorentina  Florence’s legendary T-bone steak, sold by weight (minimum 500g). Expensive (€30–50+), rich in flavour, and always served rare (al sangue). Ordering a bistecca as a solo diner at a trattoria counter is completely acceptable; the staff will cut it to show you the cooking before serving.

A single secondo  at many Florentine trattorias, ordering just a secondo (main course) with a glass of wine and a piece of bread is entirely acceptable and common for solo diners at lunch and dinner. You do not need to order every course.

Solo Dessert in Florence

Gelato  Florence takes gelato extremely seriously. Look for gelaterie with gelato stored in metal containers (pozzetti) with lids, not the brightly coloured towers of gelato piled high in trays. The real thing has a muted, natural colour. Flavours at artisan gelaterie rotate seasonally.

Cantucci e Vin Santo Florence’s traditional dessert: hard almond biscuits dipped in sweet amber Vin Santo wine. Order at any restaurant as a dessert or at an enoteca bar. The ritual of dipping the biscuit is inherently solo-friendly; it is a slow, individual process.

Schiacciata alla Fiorentina the sweet version: a flat sponge cake flavoured with orange peel and dusted with icing sugar. Available at fornos and pastry shops throughout the city and eaten standing at the counter.

For unusual food experiences beyond the standard tourist circuit, our unusual things to do in Florence  covers the hidden food culture that most visitors never find.

Best Solo Lunch Options in Florence

Lunch is the most comfortable meal for solo dining in Florence. The culture supports it completely standing bars, market counters, quick trattorias, and market food are all built around the individual lunchtime experience.

Lunch Option	Format	Price	Where
Lampredotto sandwich	Standing at cart	€4–5	Mercato Centrale, Sant’Ambrogio
Schiacciata ripiena	Take away / standing	€3–4	Any forno / bakery
Mercato Centrale food hall	Shared table	€8–15	Via dell’Ariento
Trattoria Mario (communal)	Shared table	€12–18	Near Mercato Centrale
Enoteca counter (wine + crostini)	Bar counter	€8–15	Oltrarno / San Niccolò
Mercato Sant’Ambrogio	Market / shared	€5–12	Santa Croce neighbourhood

The single best solo lunch in Florence for under €5: Lampredotto sandwich (bagnato bread dipped in broth) from Nerbone at Mercato Centrale, eaten standing at the counter. Add a small glass of house red wine for €2. Total: €6–7 for the most authentic Florentine lunch available to any visitor.

Solo Dining Budget Guide for Florence

How much does solo dining in Florence cost across different dining styles?

Meal Type	Budget	Mid-Range	Splurge
Breakfast (coffee + pastry)	€1.50–3 at bar	€4–7 sit-down café	€10–15 hotel breakfast
Lunch	€4–7 street food	€12–18 trattoria	€25–40 restaurant
Aperitivo (replaces dinner)	€6–9 (drink + free food)	€8–12 (2 drinks)	—
Dinner	€15–20 trattoria	€25–40 restaurant	€50–80+ fine dining
Wine (per glass)	€2–4 house wine	€5–9 Chianti Classico	€12–25 Brunello
Gelato	€2–3 (cone)	€3–4 (cup/cone)	—
Daily food total	€18–30	€40–70	€90–150+

The coperto explained: Every restaurant in Florence adds a coperto (cover charge) of €1–3 per person. This is a legitimate Italian restaurant charge covering bread, the tablecloth, and table service. It will appear as a line on your bill. It is not a tip, it is standard practice across all Italian restaurants.

Tipping in Florence: Not obligatory. Rounding up €1–2 is appreciated for good service. Large American-style tips are not expected and can cause mild confusion.

For broader Florence budget planning and money-saving strategies, our travel tips for Italy in October covers 35 practical tips including food budget optimisation.

Practical Solo Dining Tips for Florence

These specific habits make solo dining in Florence noticeably more comfortable:

Sit at the counter or bar whenever possible.Counter seating eliminates the single-empty-chair problem that makes solo dining in large tourist restaurants feel conspicuous. In Florence, counter and bar seating is natural, normal, and often preferred by locals over table seating for quick meals.

Eat at local hours. Lunch is 1pm–2:30pm. Dinner is 8pm–10pm. Arriving at 6pm for dinner will find most good restaurants still closed. Arriving at 12:15pm for lunch puts you ahead of the main wave.

Order in Italian where possible. Learning six words (buongiorno, per favore, il conto, acqua, vino rosso, grazie) makes a visible difference in how you are received at a neighbourhood trattoria counter. Staff who realise you are making an effort will often suggest dishes and explain the menu more fully.

Ask what the daily special is. The piatto del giorno is almost always the best-value and freshest option at any trattoria. Ask “Qual è il piatto del giorno?” and point at what you want.

Use market halls for your best value meals. Mercato Centrale and Mercato di Sant’Ambrogio both offer excellent food at genuinely local prices with zero social awkwardness for solo diners.

Do not book in advance for the best solo experiences. The restaurants that welcome solo diners most naturally  Trattoria Mario, I Fratellini, market food halls, and aperitivo bars  do not take reservations. Showing up independently is the correct approach.

Combine aperitivo with an early evening walk. Florence’s most memorable solo food experiences are often found by wandering Oltrarno from 6pm, stopping at a wine bar for aperitivo, then continuing to a trattoria at 8:30pm for a single pasta course. This two-stop approach is genuinely local and genuinely enjoyable.

For the full Florence solo travel planning guide  neighbourhoods, things to do, meetings people, safety, and day trips  our 2 days in Florence itinerary covers the most efficient solo route, and for a broader exploration, our Cinque Terre things to do guide covers one of Florence’s best day trips by train.

Final Thoughts: Solo Dining in Florence

Solo dining in Florence is not something to manage or navigate around. It is one of the genuine pleasures of visiting the city independently.

The lampredotto cart at Nerbone with a glass of house red. The aperitivo counter at Volume in Oltrarno at 6:30pm with bruschetta and olives and a Negroni. The communal table at Trattoria Mario where the Florentine worker next to you will tell you to stop looking at the menu and just order the ribollita. The enoteca counter in San Niccolò at 9pm with a glass of Brunello and a cheese plate and nothing to do but sit with it.

These are the experiences that solo travel in Florence makes possible and that group travel often misses entirely. They are not compromises for eating alone. They are the reason to eat alone.

For the complete guide to exploring Florence independently of safety, neighbourhoods, things to do, budget, and day trips  see our Florence solo travel guide .