With its artistic, cultural and even culinary wonders, Florence offers you many opportunities to choose how to spend your days and evenings.
You are in one of the most beautiful cities in the world, in a region with one of the best culinary traditions. And after trying all the traditional dishes, why not indulge in something alternative?
From breakfast to the last cocktail of the evening, we have many proposals to enrich your day in Florence with something different.
Find the best one for you and enjoy the alternative side of Florence.
The 3 best places for an alternative breakfast in Florence
ORA
Are you in the mood for something original and organic for breakfast?
From 10:30 am you can stop by ORA and order one of our cakes or desserts to start your day in the best way, or for a sweet break.
Are you looking for a place that will make your smart working experience sweeter? Are you out and about with friends and want to enjoy a moment of relaxation? Do you want to take a moment away from hectic city life?
Now is the perfect time to order one of our desserts and break up your day.
Shake Cafè
Freshness, wellness and eco-sustainability of products. These are the three ingredients of Shake Cafè.
In each of its three locations in Florence, this juice bar and restaurant will be able to offer you the perfect opportunity to eat something healthy, alternative and original.
For your breakfast you can choose from many different types of coffee, accompanied by a delicious vegetarian or vegan dessert.
And if you wake up late or if you want to start your day at leisure, at Shake Cafe there are also many alternatives for a completely vegan brunch.
SimBIOsi Organic Cafè & Bistrot
For true coffee lovers, it is impossible not to try SimBIOsi.
Located in Via Ginori 64r, Simbiosi Organic Café & Bistrot has a very simple philosophy: to guarantee quality to its customers by finding the perfect balance between man and nature.
To do this, this restaurant is committed to promoting organic farming and avoiding the use of synthetic products and GMOs.
SimBIOsi is synonymous with the love for coffee. Here you will find a real coffee card, just like the one for wine: on it are indicated origin, roasting, blend and aromatic characteristics of each type of coffee.
But excellence can be seen in the details. At SimBIOsi you will not only be spoilt for choice in coffee, but also in sugar. You can choose from Muscovado whole sugar with molasses flavor, Svaziland sugar with vanilla flavor, or Mauritius, flavored with licorice.
The 3 best places for an alternative cocktail in Florence
ORA
It’s time for a drink!
Our philosophy is 100% organic: from breakfast to cocktails we serve only organic and vegetarian products.
Whether you’re in the mood for a glass of wine, a beer or a cocktail, at ORA you will find only carefully selected organic drinks.
Fancy an aperitif? Accompany your organic cocktail with one of our vegetarian or vegan platters, our fresh gazpacho or our chickpea patties our way (… with a secret ingredient to discover).
River Urban Beach
For an aperitif or an alternative evening, how about a trip to the beach while remaining in the heart of Florence?
You got it right. River Urban Beach animates the Florentine summer in its beautiful beach on the Lungarno.
An urban beach, as the name suggests, whose project is based on four key elements: culture, open spaces, sharing and well-being. Here you can also attend live music events or book the beach volleyball court for a game.
In this wonderful location you can enjoy a delicious cocktail, choosing between the most traditional ones and the original signature cocktails of River Urban Beach.
Rasputin
Secret bar in the heart of Florence, located “somewhere in Santospirito”. A unique place of its kind, that from the name to the furniture recalls the court of a czar of the nineteenth century.
This kind of secret place is called speakeasy, a name born to indicate those clandestine bars that continued to serve alcohol during the years of American prohibitionism.
No address, no indication: if you want to find it you have to look for it.
In Italy there are only three such places: in Milan, in Rome and of course in Florence with Rasputin.
The cocktails are also unique and original, all prepared with extreme care from the selection of ingredients of the highest quality to the choice of the glass.
If you love mystery, as well as excellent cocktails, Rasputin is for you.
The 3 best places for an alternative after-dinner drink in Florence
ORA
Strolling around downtown Florence after dinner?
Stop by ORA to enjoy a glass of wine, an organic beer or a tasty cocktail, or end your evening on a high note with one of our desserts.
At ORA’s we are ready to see you through to midnight, giving you the perfect opportunity to relax in our casual, colorful environment in the heart of Florence but away from the chaos.
NOF
Are you a lover of live music? Then you must visit NOF.
Located in Borgo S. Frediano, this place is a meeting point for music lovers and gives ample space to many emerging projects in the Italian music scene.
Rock, jazz, blues, electronic music and much more. If you love music, at NOF you will find the perfect opportunity to listen to something new while sipping a cocktail, a glass of wine or a beer.
And if you are a singer or a musician, don’t miss the chance to perform at NOF in one of its many live concerts!
Mayday
Mayday is definitely one of the most unique places in Florence.
The retro environment will be the first thing to surprise you, followed by the basket of popcorn that you will be offered once you sit down at the table.
Mayday’s décor is so unique that your eyes will not stop wandering around the place, discovering all the bizarre objects hanging from the ceiling and the shadows that are projected on different walls.
Mayday has one of the richest cocktail lists in Florence, giving you the opportunity to choose from many original and quality alternatives. If you do not know what to choose, ask the staff: they will be more than happy to guide you in choosing the best cocktail for your taste.
Do you want to try a unique experience or do you want to give it to someone?
At Mayday you can also take a masterclass to learn how to mix cocktails like a real professional. Classes are two hours long and accommodate one to four people.
No matter your level, at Mayday you can learn how to make a delicious cocktail like an expert bartender.
ORA’s top 5 dishes for an alternative dinner in Florence
Are you looking for a restaurant in Florence for a different kind of dinner?
At ORA we have just the thing for you. We are ready to offer you all the best of Bio & Veg excellence to satisfy your desire for an alternative dinner in Florence.
Here are 5 dishes that we offer to make your dinner special.
Fresh Gazpacho
Let’s start with the appetizer. Close your eyes and enjoy this delicious cold soup, you will feel like you have magically arrived in Spain.
Available in different variations and enriched with puffed millet, it will be the perfect start to an original dinner.
Panzanella crock
A great classic of the Tuscan tradition is combined with the creativity of our chef, and the result can only be delicious.
Enjoy the best of tradition paired with a crunch that’s all about savoring.
Tagliatelle with basil and confit dates
A first course with which to enjoy the pleasure of simplicity. But you’re looking for an alternative dinner, so why choose a simple dish like this?
Because the originality is in the tagliatelle: this great classic of Italian tradition is colored green thanks to the basil that is hidden in the dough.
The tomato is caramelized in the oven, to add an extra magical touch to this tasty first course.
Crispy yolk with potatoes, peperonata and egg white waves
There are so many ways to cook eggs, but we’re sure you’ve never tried this one.
Crispy outside, liquid inside, but all incredibly tasty and out of the ordinary. This dish can’t be missed in your alternative dinner.
Peaches, amaretto and ricotta cream coulis
Crunchiness and softness come together to create this special dessert to end your evening with.
We took panna cotta, another great classic of Italian cuisine, and we enriched it with something that would make it different from the ordinary: amaretto, ricotta and fresh peach coulis.
A soft and crispy dessert that will refresh your summer evening while respecting the seasonality of the ingredients. Don’t you already feel like trying it?
Where to find us in Florence downtown
Breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack or aperitif? At ORA you will find an original proposal suitable for every moment of your day.
From noon to 11pm we are at work to accompany each one of your moments with something sweet, salty, soft or crunchy but always and strictly organic and vegetarian.
And if you feel like drinking something different from the usual, our selected organic drinks are waiting for you for the aperitif or to end your evening.
We are in Via San Zanobi 126R, 50129, corner of Via delle Ruote, in the center of Florence but out of the chaos of the city. We are waiting for you with our organic proposals, our wines, our music and all the taste of a sweet moment of relaxation.
