I hear alot about great restaurants in these two cities but I was wondering about street food. In the rest of the world, I often find that you can get wonderfully interesting and affordable food sold by vendors. I was wondering if there is a street food culture and what kind of things to look out for that are yummy in either of these cities.

The old tradition of street food in Florence was porchetta (a sort of roasted pig) and trippa (tripe), but both are getting lost and I do not remember seeing food stands in the recent period.

There are some vinaio or fiaschetteria shops, sort of old style wine bars where you can eat simple dishes, but even this is a tradition slowly getting lost.

There is a bar food culture in Venice. Do some google searches for "cicchetti."

I'm not aware of any street food in Firenze (but I was there in winter, so there may be). However, the shops sell wonderful salamis and cheeses and wines, and no doubt many other great things to eat on the fly.

I regularly ate at the quick pannini or pizza by the slice places. Never dissapointed. Decent fare, quick and reasonably priced. I was on a train recently where a group of American women were going on and on about the great pannini they got at the Florence train station. And they were right, it was pretty good.

Also, if you're looking for a quick, inexpessive alternative, try dropping by a supermercado or someplace like Pegna in Florence and picking up sandwich/pic-nic fixins.

pete

To find porchetta you can alos try the weekly markets at some of the smaller towns. I had a porchetta panini in Montalcino that was served from a mobile kitchen at the friday market. It was delicious, though it had the odd bit of gristle and bone.

jb

Last November there were street vendors selling roasted chestnuts in Florence.

In Florence to try the best Tripe you need to walk out to the Porta Romana here at lunch time is a small mobile van that sells the best tripe in Florence, if you get off the main streets you will still find this culture in Florence and the food is of the highest quality at good prices, this is proven by the fact that there is always a queue of Italians at these places

Matt

O.K. - we're getting somewhere...NOW if many things aren't sold in the street...what about take-away food that is good (besides pizza..) Are there any special "fried dough" kind of things? or special sandwiches...where do you get those fried rice balls - do they serve them in restaurants or are they only cooked in homes?? Thanks for your answers...

Look for a "rosticceria" - a take away food store, originally geared to roasting chickens, but gradually expanding to a lot of foods including primi. They are to be found everywhere (in Florence, I already adviced to try the rosticceria in via del Ponte alle Mosse, but it is quite out of hand for people not leaving there). Also consider deli shops, and also consider that supermarkets have often deli sections worth trying.

In Florence there is also a tripe stand near Casa Dante and a friggatore (place selling fried bits through a street window) in a side street near the Central Market. Also I Fratelli selling small glasses of wine and bits to eat on a side street on the way from Ponte Vecchio to the Duomo. I don't have the exact addresses for any of these in my head, but if interested you can surely find them in a guide book like Emily Wise Miller's "Food Lovers Guide to Florence"- gedlin

I can recommend the boiled beef sandwiches at Nerbone, inside the Mercato Centrale near San Lorenzo, lunch only. They were so good, we went back a second time on our trip this past September.

You pay first, then line up with the locals. They dip the bottom half of the roll in the meat juices, slice up the beef and top with two different sauces (one mild, one hot). Two sandwiches, two waters, less than 6 euro.

They have tripe as well (we weren't that adventurous) and other daily specials which I have read are tasty as well.

Ciao!
checking in...

The stands now are mostly all tripe sandwiches, called Lampredotto, it is the last of the stomachs and the most delicate, cooked in broth and served with salsa verde ( parsley caper garlic anchovy and oil sauce: and or chili sauce).

At Nerbone you have a choice of the bollito, Boiled Beef, or lampredotto at the sandwich end, and more food by the plate at the restaurant end.

Now is the question really.... are there alternatives to sit down restuarants for food... yes and lots!
Look for the locals. Since the Euro has come in... pursestrings have tightened!

I adore the Bondi sandwich shop on Via dell'Ariento... hard to find while the stands are open.. but near the corner of via nazionale.. on station side (left,walking toward V. Nazionale)
incredible combinations of fabulous fillings for a wonderful soft foccaccia sort of bread.
there are tables to sit down. coke beer and wine.

Wine bars.. stand up in cafes ( which costs 1/2 of sitting down) have sandwiches, sweets, wine beer coffee etc.

Now FLorence is filled with Shwarma places too, some turkish, some ???

PIazza Santa Maria NOvella has a huge Mr KEBAB..which has a huge selection of various dishes besides Shwarma.

for ITalian as mentioned, there still exists a few ROSTICCIARIA'S, where mom would go and get food to go when she was tired.. or Sunday lunch. for a variety or roast meats, a huge selection of veggies, baked pasta dishes. IT is possible to get small portions to go, you pay by weight. and some actually has small places to sit and eat there.

the old Friggitoria's ( fry shops) are still around, but harder to find.
They sell fried dough called coccoli ( small balls) polenta slices, and doughnuts and sometimes rice fritters or apple fritters.

Sicilian ones sell the arancini which are huge filled rice balls or triangles and there are some in Florence.

I often suggest eating small bites often... instead of a large meal.
there is an article on wine bars and enoteca's on my newsletter section in my site.