Italians on Italians
Beyond Toscano

The trattoria: fantastic food without the fuss

Good food, fairly priced is the holy grail for food lovers. In a world where margin and ceremony often overshadow an authentic dining experience, it can be hard finding great places to eat.

Luckily, it’s relatively easy in Tuscany to navigate your options, with three different types of dining experience. Lovers of haute cuisine and formal dining are well served by ristorantes, while casual diners, more interested in meeting up with friends and drinking than the food itself, enjoy the simplicity of osterias. Which leaves a wonderful middle ground to explore, taken up by the trattoria.

Trattoria’s are a very traditional Italian eatery, where the focus is on quality of food. A sort of local home-from-home, you can expect a warm welcome, with large, often shared tables and an emphasis on socialising. There are no fixed menus, just an ever-changing variety of local recipes are on offer, providing a great way to sample some of the local delicacies at an affordable price. Served in decanters, instead of by the bottle, the wine flows in abundance, making it easy to get to know your table-mates and feel a part of the community in no time. If you’re in Italy, it’s an experience not to be missed.