The Review
All'Antico Vinaio is a problem for anyone trying to visit Florence without queueing: the line regularly extends 40 or 50 people deep, moving slowly in the narrow Via dei Neri. You smell it before you see it — the warm, yeasty complexity of schiacciata bread, the funk of aged Tuscan salami, something herbaceous underneath.
Schiacciata is Tuscan flatbread, olive-oil-rich, dimpled, slightly chewy, with a crust that develops some resistance as it cools. All'Antico Vinaio makes the bread themselves, fills it to order with a rotating menu of Tuscan specialties. La Favolosa — the house signature — involves finocchiona (fennel pork salami), a smear of cream cheese, and a stripe of truffle cream. It is a combination that should not make sense and is, in practice, the best thing the street has to offer.
The price is absurdly low for the quality. The experience of eating it on the Arno bridge five minutes later is the best possible use of a lunch hour in Florence.
What to Order
La Favolosa — it is named correctly. Ask for it fresh out of the oven if the timing works. The Infuocata (spicy option) is excellent if you want heat.
Tips
Go early (10–10:30am) or very late (after 9pm) to minimize the wait. They have expanded to multiple locations in Florence and internationally — the Via dei Neri original is the best but any branch will make the same bread.
Our Rating
★★★★★
Price Range
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