Tuscany is world-famous for her hearty cuisine, which is based on peasant traditions but is now synonymous with being tasty, comforting, and utterly irresistible. There are endless excellent places to eat all over the region if you have found a vacation rental in Tuscany, in fact it often feels like you could stumble into any given eatery and have one of the best meals of your life. However, if you are a more discerning eater or, especially, a foodie, there are some particular restaurants that you should check out: Tuscany's 2019 Michelin-starred and listed restaurants. With one three-star option, four two-star restaurants, and a whopping thirty-three one-star eateries, there is plenty of choice all over the region for foodies looking to taste a slice of the Michelin lifestyle over the course (or multiple courses, as the case may be) of their holiday in Tuscany...
If you find yourself with a luxury villa in Florence, for example, you'll have the only three-star restaurant in the region, Enoteca Pinchiorri, nearby. Balancing both a classic and modern menu and boasting a famous wine list and a luxurious ambience, the restaurant is located on via Ghibellina and is a must for the most serious of foodies visiting the city. There are, however, plenty of other options with six of the thirty-three total eateries awarded one star by the Michelin guide located in the city. Among these is La Leggenda dei Frati, a stunningly elegant gem located in the beautiful Villa Bardini, which boasts the extra-special treat of being able avail of a visit the Villa's museum accompanied by the restaurant owner who – somehow – has a set of keys. In addition to this there is Il Palagio in the Four Seasons Hotel, Ora d’Aria, La Bottega del Buon Caffè on the Lungarno, the Winter Garden By Caino in the St Regis Hotel and Borgo San Jacopo, with its wine list of over 600 labels and terrace overlooking the Arno.
However, beyond Florence there are many, many more Michelin opportunities, so fear not if you had other options of Tuscan holiday destinations in mind. If you would prefer to be by the sea, for example, and were thinking about a vacation rental in Viareggio, you could visit the two-star Piccolo Principe, located on the fifth floor of the Grand Hotel Principe di Piemonte and boasting stunning views, or the one-star Romano, which boasts friendly service and top quality haute cuisine. With a vacation rental in Forte dei Marmi – known as the Miami of Tuscany – you have several options including the two-star Lux Lucis, a minimalist gem that boasts a creative menu, and one-star options like the seafront Bistrot, the 30-year-old Lorenzo, and La Magnolia in the Hotel Byron, which is described as “Tuscan-Campanian fusion" cuisine. Another great seaside option is Il Pellicano with its wonderful terrace overlooking the sea, which is idyllic and romantic and serves Mediterranean dishes that take inspiration from varied cuisines from the likes of Puglia, Tuscany, and more. Just find a vacation rental in the lovely Porto Ercole and drop by.
If you were considering heading to another of Tuscany's famous cities, there are plenty of other excellent foodie destinations inland as well. San Gimignano, the city made famous by its medieval towers, boasts two one-star Michelin restaurants; the newly added Ristorante Al 43 for the 2019 year and Cum Quibus. At Ristorante Al 43, you'll get regional ingredients and flavours and amazing views over the Sienese hills while the well-established Cum Quibus is a top-quality gourmet restaurant with just a few tables and “typical Tuscan ingredients full of intense flavours”. A vacation rental in Lucca, meanwhile, means trips to another new one-star entry into the list of Michelin restaurants in Tuscany, Ristorante Giglio, and the magical L'Imbuto. Ristorante Giglio may be a new entry on the list but is a long-established restaurant that is located in the wonderful setting of a beautiful 18th century palace in the centre of the city and in which the serve up a “modern cuisine with its roots firmly anchored in the region yet also with a hint of Japanese influence in some of the ingredients”. The intriguing L’Imbuto is housed inside the city's contemporary art museum, serves a creative cuisine and allows diners to choose only the number of courses they want.
Other unique entries on the list include: the two-star Bracali, which is a bit of a hidden gem, located in the small and modest hamlet of Ghirlanda; Il Pievano in Gaiole in Chianti, which is set within a 1,000 year-old monastery; Osteria di Passignano in Badia a Passignano, which is located next to an abbey in the late nineteenth-century cellars of the Marquises of Antinori; and Castello di Fighine in San Casciano dei Bagni, which is hidden away at the end of a dirt track, in a magical medieval castle that overlooks the rolling Tuscan hills.
In addition to these, the other restaurants on the list include Caino in Montemerano, Arnolfo in Colle di Val d’Elsa, La Tenda Rossa in Cerbaia, Poggio Rosso in Castelnuovo Berardenga, Osteria Perillà in Castiglione d'Orcia, Meo Modo, Borgo Santo Pietro in Chiusdino, Il Falconiere in San Martino, La Torre in Tavarnelle Val di Pesa, Silene in Seggiano, La Pineta in Marina di Bibbona, Butterfly in Marlia, Atman a Villa Rospigliosi in Lamporecchio, Il Colombaio in Casole d’Elsa, La Bottega del 30 in Castelnuovo Berardenga, I Salotti, Il Patriarca in Chiusi, and La Trattoria Enrico Bartolini in Castiglione della Pescaia.
So, now you know where to go, why not get planning the foodie getaway of a lifetime and spend a whole vacation just eating up a storm in Tuscany? As you can see, there are plenty of excellent options of eateries to choose from, making the culinary world your oyster if you are thinking of making the region your next holiday destination!
