Locale Firenze — Restaurant in Florence

NO. I am from Florence, and I DON’T recommend this bar. I have been to a good share of international cocktail bars in London, Paris, Tokyo, New York, Dubai etc.. this bar should not be on the list of the top 50 cocktail bars in the world, and I felt embarrassed by the service as a Florentine. This is not what service in my city should look like to both locals and international travellers.

I arrived at 7.30, and I noticed a good amount of tourists waiting at the entrance. This is not unusual, given the spotlight the cocktail bar gets thanks to its presence in the top 50 cocktail bars list. Immediately, I noticed some disorganisation and inconsistencies amongst the staff and the way they related to customers, but I didn’t think much of it. We were welcomed with a nice shot, and the waiter was knowledgeable and polite when asked about the drinks (each drink is 20 euros). We ordered three drinks - one drink per person - and got some snacks with it. The snacks were: dry olives in soy sauce, slightly spicy almonds and some vegetables in vinegar. Nothing about the snacks was special or particularly good for a bar of this calibre. After the drinks arrived (without coaster?!), the staff brought a nice set of snacks in a pretty tree shaped tower. The snacks were very nice and tasty, about 4 spoon-sized finger food per person. We enjoyed the atmosphere, and order 2 additional drinks. The staff was lovely and friendly until this point, and brought us another free shot from one of the cocktails. The quality of the cocktails is definitely good, the barman seemed very nice, and we were having a good time.

However, this is when things started going down. We finished all the snacks (which were enough for one round of drinks), and when I noticed that they were not bringing more I asked them if we could have some more olives and almonds - very reasonable request for 100 euros. The waiter brought us more - but this is when we noticed that the almonds’ bowl was half filled with inedible leftovers from the almonds’ package. I found it very bizarre, and I asked the staff if they could bring some more snacks proportionate with the order of a second round. The waiter was a young guy. My impression was that - after he spoke with the senior waiter - he literally purposely ignored the request. I asked him again after 20 minutes, and he said “it’s coming”. Of course, it never came. I don’t know if they believed I was drunk or stupid, but I found this behaviour outmost offensive and definitely not appropriate nor proportionate to the price. I have never been to cocktail bar with 20 euro cocktails who would not NATURALLY refill snacks such as almonds or olives, especially after the customer asked for it to be served with a second round of drinks. And to be clear, the customer SHOULDN’T ask for it - you should bring it before the customer even noticed it is finished. I asked for the manager, who eventually gave me a very good discount after I expressed my concerns (hence the two stars and not one).

i am afraid that this doesn’t change the fact that this bar is nowhere near an average good cocktail bar according to international standards, let alone “top 50 in the world”. I wouldn’t recommend coming here, if you want appropriate service. If you are looking for an alternative Gucci bar near Palazzo Vecchio has great cocktails and much more sophisticated service, which is more proportionate...

I very much hope you take the time to read this review.

I would not eat here if it was free.

I had the opportunity to dine at Locale tonight with my wife and three friends from the States. We are towards the end of two weeks exploring Italy and have had countless wonderful meals, excellent service, and lifelong memories. Unfortunately this review only reflects on one of the most disappointing meals of my entire life.

This restaurant was recommended to us by a mutual friend who is in the culinary world, plus with Locale being world known for their cocktail bar, it was an easy decision to visit while in Florence.

As we walked in to a mostly empty restaurant, it was obvious that the cocktail bar was the highlight of the building. It was a gorgeous room that I would return to. We each had the 5 course tasting menu, which was 120pp, with the option for a 90pp wine pairing. We decided to sample some of the cocktails (20euro each) instead of getting the pairing, which admittedly were all very good.

I will also mention that I was not aware of the price point of the restaurant when told about the reservation. I have faith in my friends and our recommendations have never lead us astray previously, so while it was more than I wanted to spend at the end of an expensive trip, I was still willing to continue and hope for the best. But I want to make very clear that this review is independent of the price of the meal.

This tasting menu is built around the 5 senses, with each course going through sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch. While an interesting concept, it was incredibly disjointed and ultimately fell flat. The meal relies on cheap gimmicks with props added throughout the meal to try and elevate an otherwise lackluster experience. They only ask you about allergies or dietary restrictions at the start of the meal, but you do not know what you are being served until you've completed each dish. Some of the 'highlights' included chicken liver and pigeon heart. I also want to make clear, that this review is not because of the out of the ordinary food that was served without our knowledge. I would have tried each of the above listed foods if they were known, however the lack of description on the food prior to eating made for a very lazy service of dropping the food off and returning with the next course and a brief description of what was already done. Including multiple servers not being able to answer fairly simple questions about the previous dishes.

I write this review for a very simple reason. I do not want another couple, family, whomever to waste a meal in Florence in this restaurant. I am so much more disappointed that this is one of last meals in this city than I am in the 330 euro price for two people. Dinner at Locale is not worth your money...

The bar is ranked as one of the top 50 in the world and it is truly gorgeous. We came a bit early to hang in the bar before dinner. Interesting drinks and they even brought over cute bar snacks and the house shot of the night. 10/10 would go to THE BAR again. The restaurant, not so much. The tasting menu was a choice between “Salvation” and “Sin” with a choice of 3 different drink pairings. We chose the Sin tasting menu for $150 each and the matching Sin drink pairing for $130. First while the food presentation was unique and interesting—and the prices high—making you think it’s fine dining, the service was not. Nice, very young servers reciting scripts with no sense of timing or actual service training beyond the regurgitated pomp they learned there. For example, I went to the restroom before one of the many, many course (each came with a memorize script at presentation) and the wait staff brought out the dish. The waiter started his speech and my husband asked for him to wait til I got back. Waiter says no. Did his song and dance never to return until the next course. An (over priced) fine dining experience should be for the enjoyment and pleasure of the client. Paying for their performative masturbatory ego stroking was not my expectation. The night was not without great moments and there was a touch of whimsy in every course. The mussel amuse was amazing and we got super excited for the meal. But the finger sandwich that followed was dry. Next course was cuttlefish ceviche. The cuttlefish is one of my favorite animals and my heart broke a little with each bite. It was not untasty but my husband ate most of mine due to my own hang up. Then a delicious vegetarian stew was followed by a good chicken heart taco. My least favorite courses were the lamb brain and the fermented (aka rotten) rice nigiri. Half a bite for each. But the escargot parmentier was special. As was the elk ravioli and saffron soup. Even the bread presentation was kitschy and cute but served on wooden cake stands with peeling paint. I mean how do you even clean props like those between service? The drink pairing was matched well but definitely don’t ask any question off script. They will deer in headlights you. It was an experience but I have a hard time saying it was a good one. I’ll say it was interesting and...