Tucked away in a street not too far away from the Ponte Vecchio lies Il Parione. This was a fantastic Florence restaurant that I visited multiple times. This is an upscale restaurant, but the food backs up the price tag. There are so many amazing options on the menu that I want to share.
Their appetizers at Il Parione are so good, yet are typical of what you will see across the city. You will have the meat and cheese platters, crostini misti, salads, and other starters that are all great choices. If I had to give a recommendation or two, I would get the artichoke salad or the cheese plate which were both extremely tasty. However, you are not coming here for the starters, so it is not necessary to get one.
There’s no tiptoeing around the fact that the pasta dishes are extraordinary at Il Parione. One of the best gnocchi dishes I have ever had in my life was this truffle gnocchi. It is robust with flavor. The truffles and rich pecorino cream sauce pair incredibly well together and bring that dish to life. Every bite is delicious, and makes you yearn to put your fork back in for the next bite. I will warn you, this is a very rich dish so make sure to come with an empty stomach. The other pasta which I enjoyed was the pici pasta. Pici is a unique tuscan pasta, and Il Parione does it right. The pasta had a fresh tomato sauce as well as croutons and fresh shaved cheese on top.
If you have room after the gnocchi, you should get the Florentine steak. The Florentine steak is a must try while you are in Florence. Many places offer it, but it is important to do research and get a good one because no matter where you go, it’s pricey. The Florentine steak at Il Parione is definitely worth it. It is cooked rare (as they usually are) and seasoned with just the right amount of salt. The slices of the steak are also very big, so it is a good bang for your buck. You can also share a steak for two with 4 to 5 people.
Finally, I couldn’t write a review without talking about the tiramisu. The tiramisu here is genuinely incredible. Once the server put it down at our table it was gone in under a minute. It was fluffy, sweet, and was just straight up delicious.
Takeaways: Can’t really go wrong with anything here. Was another one of my favorite restaurants in Florence. Truffle gnocchi is one of those dishes you do not forget about. Highly recommend this place.
Score: 9.4/10
a dude eats abroad 