Our European culinary adventure started in Amsterdam with Pannenkoekenhuis Upstairs, continuing on to La Jacobine in Paris and Al Barattolo Ristorante in Nice. For the next leg of our adventure, we crossed the border into Italy and arrived in Florence. After checking in to our accommodations, going for a brief stroll and enjoying some great gelato, we settled down for dinner at Trattoria Bordino.
Located just south of the famed Ponte Vecchio, tucked away in what almost appears like a quiet alley, Trattoria Bordino was recommended to us by Paolo, who was the one renting one of his Florence holiday homes to us. He told us that the pricing would be reasonable and the food would be authentic. That sounded like a good combination. Get seated on the small patio outside, we were then treated to a couple small glasses of white wine and a basket of bread.
Looking over the menu, we saw what we would quickly learn to be the “typical” menu in Italy. Getting beyond the antipasti, we found a substantial list of pastas for the primi piatti. Pastas (and soup) are mostly seen as an “appetizer” course, which is then followed by the main course of meat or fish.
The menu is a la carte, so sides like vegetables and potatoes are ordered separately. I ordered an additional glass of white wine, which actually came in a small carafe with about 2.5 glasses’ worth, for 2 Euro.
Tagliatelle fresche ai funghi porcini – My pasta was unfortunately a little bit past al dente, but it was still very tasty and they certainly didn’t skimp on the the olive oil.
Spaghetti alle vongole veraci in bianco – I found Susanne’s spaghetti to be much closer to that perfect al dente and the simple sauce with the clams made for a wonderfully simple but delicious dish.
Spigola al forno – I wasn’t able to get a photo, but the roasted sea bass was prepared for me tableside. The server delicately worked away the skin on the fish served whole, removing the head and bone to reveal the two fillets shown here. The meat was delicate and moist.
Bistecca alla fiorentina – When Susanne ordered the Florentine steak for one, she wasn’t expecting such a large cut of beef! It was richly flavorful, as you can imagine, and photos really don’t do it justice.
Since the menu was a la carte, we went with some spinach as our side. Realistically, this wasn’t all that necessary as we were quite stuffed with our pastas and our mains.
We ended up skipping dessert, getting a couple cups of espresso instead to finish off our relaxing meal. All said, dinner for two came to just under 70 Euro. And I’d say it was money well spent.
It looks as good as always Michael. It’s interesting that both of your main courses did not come with a small amount of another pasta or light sauce. I have always associated Italian meals, my first wife was from a large Italian family, with a pasta with the first two courses.
Nearly all the restaurants we encountered in Italy were a la carte. Pasta was the typical first course and the meat would be served on its own as the second course with sides ordered separately.
Interesting, just goes to show you that what you encounter with families outside the country is almost always different than the actual.