You know when I picture a dinner date in Italy, I imagine a cute, little Italian restaurant with beautifully decorated flowers, classical music, and the smell of good food. I found that, but there is this one literally hole-in-the-wall restaurant that captured my surprise in a different way. This restaurant is called l’Mangiarino, located in Florence, Italy or the Duomo. One of the hardest things to do when traveling abroad is finding a restaurant that isn’t a tourist trap. Thankfully, we found a local place!! Hidden away from ALL of the many, many restaurants that crowd the outside, cobbled streets. This place was isolated and alone, but inside wasn’t lonely. Instead of the stereotypical display of flowers on the outside and a musician playing music, this place had the constant burst of delicious aromas escaping from its small entrance.
And we beat the dinner rush! We only had to wait about 20 minutes for a couple to finish up the rest of dinner and just after we were seated, multiple parties came. I love the small, fragile bench on the right and the random barrels. For some reason, in our hipster phase, this is such cute decoration (even though I doubt they were aiming for hipster). Once you walk inside, you can see a bunch of sausages tied up and hung from the walls and ceiling! Many wine bottles decorate the walls. And the food? Don’t get me started.. Oops 😀
Ravioli al pecorino, noce e salvia – Pecorino cheese stuffed ravioli with goat cheese, walnuts, and sage sauce. It’s as cheesy as it looks and even though it didn’t look like much, it was so darn good! The texture and taste of the ravioli just immediately tells you that they were handmade! (As expected of a true local Italian restaurant). The crunchy walnuts contrasted with the soft, soft ravioli and the creamy sauce.
Tagliata di manzo con contorno di patate saltate – Sliced beef with potatoes. We couldn’t get enough of steak! And in Florence, steak and potatoes is a common entree to be eaten by many! You would think that it’s pasta and pizza? But don’t forget the steak! Look at how perfectly medium-rare it is!! Now althought not as good as the ZaZa’s FAMOUS T-bone Florentine steak (https://cookiecukie.com/2016/07/16/when-in-florence/), it is still very, very savory and delicious! The one key difference from this steak compared to all other steak restaurants is that this place slices it up for you! Yay! How convenient 🙂 And the potatoes were onion-y and garlic-y. Yumm 🙂
Tiramisu. This may look like your typical tiramisu cake that you order anywhere, just anywhere, but don’t let the picture fool you. I almost wish I could let all of you try a bite of this tiramisu because it is “hands-down” the SOFTEST tiramisu cake I have ever eaten! The reviews rave about this cake, and this cake was a must-order. Normally I don’t order dessert at a restaurant that I eat, but the cake just totally blew my mind. Literally the softest and lightest and fluffiest cake ever! And perfectly, mildly sweet. How do they perfect such cake?! I wish I knew their secret..
Complimentary shots. How nice of them to give everyone at all the tables complimentary shots! These were slightly milky and fruity in nature and was an interesting drink to try! Otherwise, the service was very good. The staff was friendly. Our waiter actually noticed that our table was uneven and crooked. What did he do? He got a little stopper and put it at the bottom on one of the table legs to keep the table steady and still for us! Now that is what I call excellent service and attention to detail! You would only find this at the most finest of restaurants, but not here! Even a hole-in-the-wall restaurant has amazing service!
Great food and great people! This place makes me dream I could teleport back to Italy just to eat more! 🙂
