Founded by the owners of Nerbone in the Mercato Centrale, this simple room right on the piazza may not look it, but it's one of the city's premier restaurants in town for ultratraditional Florentine food.
This place is True Florentine, all the way. Few tourists ever find there way over here. Fewer still wish they did. It is, however, an experience—and one of the best places to get true, unreformed, traditional Florentine dishes.
Alla Vecchia Bettola is where I once memorably bit into something that for all the world I thought at the time was a sheep's testicle. It turned out to be merely a sheep's eyeball. Strangely, I was relieved.
The dish in question was the riso sul testicciole d'agnello, a stew of various mutton parts cooked and served in a halved sheep's skull.
It fills up very early with food-loving Florentines, who choose from an always-changing menu that may include penne alla Bettola in spicy cream tomato sauce, or rigatoni dressed with crushed olives.
Secondi range from anatra ripiena tartufata (stuffed duck in truffle sauce) to the superlative carpaccio con rucola—pounded disks of beef piled high with arugula and tissue-thin slices of pecorino cheese.
As far as wine goes, you simply pay for however much you finish of the light and tangy house wine on the table.
Ristorante alla Vecchia Bettola ★
Via Luigi Ariosto 34r/Viale Vasco Pratolini (at Piazza Tasso)
(Oltrarno)
tel. +39-055-224-158
Closed Sundays and Mondays
€€€
Bus: 12, 13, 37, 50/G, 131O, 131R, 365A, 3681, 370A, 371A, 372A
Hop-on/hop-off: Guicciardini (A); Tasso (A) Piazza Tasso (C)
Walks & Seminars
Wine tastings
Cooking classes
Special meals
Vineyard excursions
» Chianti
» Other Tuscan wine regions
English (Inglese) | Italian (Italiano) | Pro-nun-cee-YAY-shun |
Good day | Buon giorno | bwohn JOUR-noh |
Good evening | Buona sera | BWOH-nah SAIR-rah |
Good night | Buona notte | BWOH-nah NOTE-tay |
Goodbye | Arrivederci | ah-ree-vah-DAIR-chee |
Excuse me (to get attention) | Scusi | SKOO-zee |
thank you | grazie | GRAT-tzee-yay |
please | per favore | pair fa-VOHR-ray |
yes | si | see |
no | no | no |
Do you speak English? | Parla Inglese? | PAR-la een-GLAY-zay |
I don't understand | Non capisco | non ka-PEESK-koh |
I'm sorry | Mi dispiace | mee dees-pee-YAT-chay |
Where is? | Dov'é | doh-VAY |
...a restaurant | un ristorante | oon rees toh-RAHN-tay |
...a casual restaurant | una trattoria un'osteria |
oo-nah trah-toar-RHEE-yah oon ohst-air-EE-yah |
I would like to reserve... | Vorrei prenotare... | voar-RAY pray-note-ARE-eh |
a table for two | una tavola per due | oo-nah TAH-voal-lah pair DOO-way |
...for 7pm | per le sette | pair lay SET-tay |
...for 7:30pm | per le sette e mezzo | pair lay SET-tay eh MET-tzoh |
...for 8pm | per le otto | pair lay OH-toh |
I would like | Vorrei... | voar-RAY |
...some (of) | un pó (di) | oon POH (dee) |
...this | questo | KWAY-sto |
...that | quello | KWEL-loh |
chicken | pollo | POL-loh |
steak | bistecca | bee-STEAK-ah |
veal | vitello | vee-TEL-oh |
fish | pesce | PEH-shay |
meat | carne | KAR-neh |
I am vegetarian | sono vegetariano | SO-no veg-eh-tair-ee-YAH-no |
side dish [veggies always come seperately] | cotorno | kon-TOR-no |
dessert | dolce | DOAL-chay |
and | e | ay |
...a glass of | un bicchiere di | oon bee-key-YAIR-eh dee |
...a bottle of | una bottiglia di | oo-na boh-TEEL-ya dee |
...a half-liter of | mezzo litro di | MET-tzoh LEE-tro dee |
...fizzy water | acqua gassata | AH-kwah gah-SAHT-tah |
...still water | acqua non gassata | AH-kwah noan gah-SAHT-tah |
...red wine | vino rosso | VEE-noh ROH-so |
...white wine | vino bianco | VEE-noh bee-YAHN-koh |
...beer | birra | BEER-a |
Check, please | Il conto, per favore | eel COAN-toh pair fah-VOAR-eh |
Is service included? | É incluso il servizio? | ay een-CLOU-so eel sair-VEET-zee-yo |
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Ristorante alla Vecchia Bettola ★
Via Luigi Ariosto 34r/Viale Vasco Pratolini (at Piazza Tasso)
(Oltrarno)
tel. +39-055-224-158
Closed Sundays and Mondays
€€€
Bus: 12, 13, 37, 50/G, 131O, 131R, 365A, 3681, 370A, 371A, 372A
Hop-on/hop-off: Guicciardini (A); Tasso (A) Piazza Tasso (C)
Walks & Seminars
Wine tastings
Cooking classes
Special meals
Vineyard excursions
» Chianti
» Other Tuscan wine regions