Steak Florentine & Central Market

Before our son Ross left for his sailing adventure, the three of us tried an upscale restaurant and the food specialty the city of Florence is known for: Steak Florentine. We also checked out the huge city market, a place to either buy fresh meat, vegetables, baked goods, candy, and you name it! Then upstairs is one of the largest food courts I have seen with everything. And I mean everything.

Steak Florentine

This is an Italian steak dish made of young steer or heifer that is one of the most famous dishes in Tuscan cuisine. It is loin steak on the bone cooked on a grill until rare. No matter how you ask for it to be cooked, they prepare it one way: rare.

The steak is usually an extremely thick T-bone that is cooked and then sliced into 1.5 inch thick sections. Restaurants all seem to do it differently. Some will bring the uncooked meat to the table and place on a scale. You pay by the kilogram. Most prices are 50-70 euros per kilo. The one we ordered for three was 1.5 kilo and had plenty for us. It was very tender and incredible taste.

They brought it to the table still cooking on a very small grill with charcoal brickettes in the bottom. No kidding! After we ate all of our 3 steaks each, Ross proceeded to pick the bone clean! There was no waste on that sucker.

Florence City Market

The 1870’s building is a huge structure with windows near the top. It is a two-story affair with mainly fruit, vegetables, and meat in the lower section, and then many small restaurant counters upstairs with many tables in the mid section. There were possibly 50 shops up there selling everything from steaks to pasta to a specialty called “fourth stomach of the cow.”

There are several entrances to the old building, just walk up some stairs and enter the first floor. It seems fairly organized with an outer isle and several inside isles around the merchants. Most fish is in one section and then red meats and then chicken plus all the exotic stuff.

Wrap Up

Thanks for following along! We are quickly approaching our one week remaining in Florence. So much still to do after three weeks! Just as a reminder, after Florence we fly to the major Spain city of Barcelona where we explore for a week. Then we board a cruise ship for six days of stops around the Spain coast. After Spain the ship sets sail for Florida and seven days at sea for the Atlantic crossing. There are no ice bergs at this time of year, are there?

Take care and God Bless.