La Dolce Vita

Mangia, Mangia! (Eat, Eat!)

In Siena, I had a wonderful meal at Osteria Da Gano. Serving Tuscan dishes in a casual setting with friendly service.

At the hotel I stayed at in the Chianti Region, they served outstanding meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner at their two food outlets – Pavilion and La Torre. La Torre is a Michelin-starred restaurant where both food and service was top notch.

First stop in Florence was a cappuccino break at Gucci Giardino 25.

Osteria Filetto d’Oro served traditional Tuscan dishes with attentive service.

I had to return to Trattoria Sostanza for their famous Pollo Con Burro (Chicken with Butter) on this visit to Florence . The hotel concierge was only able to snag a lunch table, as dinner reservations for the whole week was sold out. Note that they only accept cash.

Final dinner in Florence was at Trattoria Giovanni. A wonderful cap to a week’s visit to Tuscany.

I stayed for four nights at COMO Castello Del Nero, located in Barberino-Tavernelle in the Chianti region. Situated in a 740-acre estate surrounded by rolling hills, olive groves and vineyards, the hotel is around 35 minutes from the Florence airport. Part of the COMO hotel chain (based in Singapore), service was outstanding and as I mentioned, the food served at its food outlets were excellent.

In Florence, I stayed again at Gallery Hotel Arts. Very well located in a less traffic side street, but only a few steps to Ponte Vecchio, I had good memories of my stay at this Ferragamo-owned hotel a few years ago and that is the reason I chose it again. The front desk / concierge service was very professional and efficient.