Osteria Pastella is tucked away on Via della Scala in the Santa Maria Novella part of Florence. As you walk into this classic Tuscan osteria two things will catch your eye. The first is the pasta maker in the window. This is a good way to psyche you up for your meal; as you see the pasta you will be eating being made just inside the doorway. The second thing that struck me was the “old time” atmosphere. Walking into Osteria Pastella you feel as if you have been sent back in time, from the wooden tables, wooden bar, to the lighting.
The pasta that I ordered was the pappardelle Al chingiale (wild boar ragu). This was one of my favorite dishes to eat in Florence, and Osteria Pastella made a great version of it. There was a generous portion of meat on the pasta, and it was a simple delicious dish. It was also a good bang for your buck.
Now here is the show-stopper, that unfortunately none of us ordered! Whenever I go to a restaurant, I like to order the marquee dish. At Osteria Pastella, I don’t know what we were thinking, but we didn’t order the truffle pasta prepared in a cheese wheel. Almost every other table ordered it. Sure it was going to cost a little more, but it looked unreal. I had been itching to have a pasta made in a cheese wheel, and that was my golden opportunity. I walked out of there so mad at myself and didn’t stop thinking about it for an entire day. When I am in Florence next time, this will be one of my first stops because I need to try this pasta.
We didn’t order anything other than pastas and the house wine, which was great (as every house wine is at all the restaurants in Florence). Our server hooked us up with limoncello which was a nice end to the meal.
Takeaways: The biggest takeaway is that I didn’t order the truffle pasta in the cheese wheel. My pasta was good, but I cannot give a true score to Osteria Pastella until I try that damn pasta in the cheese wheel. But overall, it’s a great restaurant.
Score: 6.9/10
a dude eats abroad 