Gastronomia Panico — Restaurant in Florence

Gastronomia has such a special place in the hearts of me and my partner. We went there two out of the three nights we stayed in Florence.

Firstly, the owner and chef personally sits with you at your table to walk you through his hand-written menu he’d written the morning of. This act alone makes the experience like no other!

Secondly, the amount of complementary bread, Parmesan, and homemade chilli oil you get with your meal! Be sure to come starved as you will want to try every kind of bread on offer!

Thirdly, and most importantly, the food. Absolutely authentic Florentine homemade pastas on offer! The first night, I asked the chef to serve me what he loved on the menu. This might not be to everyone’s liking, but the meal came with my pasta and my partner’s pasta shared between our plates, allowing us to enjoy what we both ordered! This happened with both our meals! We genuinely appreciated this and loved that we could both enjoy separate plates but share each other’s meals. All pasta, gnocchi and ravioli made fresh each day!

Fourthly, BEST tiramisu we had in Italy hands down! I dream about it!

Lastly, the overall atmosphere of the restaurant allowed for such a genuine experience. All the restaurant-goers around us felt exactly the same way and we all chatted and gushed about how happy we felt eating there!

We felt quite emotional knowing we were leaving and even hugged the chef goodbye! Overall, I cannot stress how much I recommend this restaurant. A special place worth...

My husband and I spent our day in Florence waiting in lines and going to restaurants where no one greeted us - which isn't a typical experience we've had in Italy so far. We wanted a nice dinner so we looked up some nearby places and saw this place with 4.9 stars! When you walk up, it doesn't look like a restaurant from the outside. We went inside anyway and where happily greeted and shown a table in the back. This experience was one of our favorites so far! We felt like family! We started our dish with a lovely red wine (quite a pour, might I add!) and fresh bread with a great assortment of homemade sauces that were to die for! The owner explained each dish on the custom menu for us. For our appetizer we ordered the caprese salad that was delicious and a great entry into the dinner. I ordered the linguine and my husband ordered the lasagna - the owner brought each of us a plate with both the dishes on it. We're quite foodies and came to Italy because we love the respect the country has for food. These dishes were everything we wanted to get out of our experience of Italy. The flavors were full without overpowering the freshly made pasta. For dessert we had tiramisu with some espresso (as you should) which we both ate fully (somehow !). We adored this place and strongly recommend for anyone who truly loves food and loves to respect the folks that put effort into the food. Thank you to the owner who made us feel like family and sent us waddling back to our hotel filled with...

This place had it all! Great food, great service, and as many others have commented on, a truly memorable experience. My wife and I had been traveling and found ourselves on our first night in Florence hungry. We ended up picking Gastronomia Panico after seeing the reviews and seeing how close by it was and we were in for a treat.

The owner sat down next to us and very warmly explained each dish on his menu and where it originated from (he had a map). He was honest and didn’t try to sale the menu. You could tell that food was his true passion when speaking to this gentlemen! It felt like a place that you could walk in and talk to everyone in the restaurant like friends.

While waiting for our order the waiter provided us extensive appetizers (on the house) of creations they had made. The waiter was very attentive, kind, and made sure you were having an enjoyable experience. All of the appetizers tasted amazing! Our meal came out and they split it so we could each try some! I have NEVER had better pasta (which they make handmade fresh everyday!).

The final course was a homemade tiramisu which simply sent us to heaven! It was hands down the most delicious tiramisu my wife and I have ever tried.

I would say that this restaurant embodied the heart of Italy! Love for food and love for the people that they are serving. Truly a gem that should...