Florence: The steak

They say that the Florentine t-bone steak, or the Bistecca alla Fiorentina, is a must when visiting Florence. And I agree.

Walking around touristic places like Florence, you can surely find a place that offers the famous menu, along with some good deals that include water, appetizers, desserts and even a cup or two of wine. So the meal starts with light appetizers, like bruschetta (you pronounce it Broo-ske-ta).

You can also try the ribollita, which is also a traditional Florentine dish. It’s basically a soup made with leftover bread and inexpensive vegetables such as carrots, onions and cannellini beans. It’s famous as a peasant dish and also originates from the Italian word “ribollire,” which means “to reboil.”

리볼리타라고 불리는 피렌체 전통 스프도 맛볼 수 있다. 오래전 평민들, 혹은 노동자들이 남은 빵이나 야채 등을 한꺼번에 넣고 많이 만들어서 먹었던 것이라고 하는데 그냥 야채 스프같은 맛.

Growing up in the seaside, G is not a huge fan of steak. But he insisted we needed to try the famous Florentine t-bone stak. And we did. To be honest, there’s nothing really amazingly different or special about it, except that it’s a very large portion (you can normally choose your portions). Florentine t-bones are mostly taken from the Chianina, an Italian breed of cattle (which is the largest and one of the oldest kind in the world, and the tallest and heaviest breed in cattle. I found this weirdly interesting).

치아니나라는 이탈리아의 소 품종의 티본으로 만든다는 피렌체의 티본 스테이크. 찾아보니 치아니나는 전세계에서 가장 크고 역사가 오래된 품종. 스테이크는 사실 고기의 질도 질이지만 어떻게 굽느냐에 따라 맛이 정해진다고 생각. 그래서 조금은 비싸더라도 제대로 구워주는 곳을 가길 추천!

For those who are not into steak, many restaurants also offer alternatives, such as meatballs, fish dishes and burgers. Although I do recommend the steak, the meatballs were not so bad either. I always make fun of G and give him a hard time whenever he says Italy is THE place for food (“uhh, have you heard of French cuisine?”), but sometimes, I do have to agree.

All photos by rachelsanghee