Ristorante Belcore — Restaurant in Florence

We were three American tourists who were serendipitously staying in an airbnb just around the corner from this restaurant. What luck! We read the Google reviews, which were all very positive, but were a little hesitant when we were on the street looking in, and saw that it was almost completely empty. I'm glad we ignored that and walked in! The wait staff was extremely friendly and responsive, without being cloyingly attentive. They started us off with a flute of champagne - gratis. A free basket of bread was also nice, but that is standard in most American restaurants. Next came tomato soup. Again, this was something that we had not ordered, and did not show up on the bill. When it was time to order, the waiter somehow divined that my son really wanted a dish with white truffles, but it was not on the menu. The waiter made this suggestion out of the blue, without any prompting from my son. And he offered it at a special price because it was a slow night. To say the main course was not a disappointment, would be quite the understatement. My spicy orecchiette is pictured below. I could go on and on about it, but I want to save "room" for dessert! When I ordered an espresso and a chocolate souffle for us to share for dessert, they first brought out a small plate of biscotti and cookies, along with three cordials of what I think was Vin Santo (pictured below). And if you guessed that we were not charged for the cookies and postprandial desert wine, you would not be wrong. Overall, a very pleasurable, and a very memorable experience! Thank you Ristorante Belcore! p.s. The only reviewer to give this a 1-star rating, did so because it seems they lamented the fact that there used to be a Chinese restaurant at this same location, and the phone number...

Truly exceptional service, fantastic food, and a good atmosphere.

Let's get the 'cons' out of the way first - the portions are very much on the small side compared to average. Probably not compared to 'upscale' restaurants, but still worth noting. Now that I've said that . . .

Far and away the best service we've received on this trip so far and some of the best service we have EVER received. Is this a restaurant or a spa? Seriously - amazing job on the service. I don't know if they do this for all of their customers but several 'extras' were provided. They didn't charge for the bread, they provided some prosecco before the meal without charge, they provided some biscotti after the meal without charge. Additionally, we liked the side dish for one of our main dishes so much that we asked for a 2nd helping, which they gladly and quickly provided, and they didn't charge us for it!

The food was also exceptional. We only had a couple dishes as we weren't that hungry, but they were very memorable. For an antipasto we had their eggplant and buffalo cheese flan. Exceptionally mild without being at all bland. Every ingredient came through perfectly. For a main course we had their sea bass with vegetable ratatouille. The sea bass was perfectly cooked and seasoned, and pretty much exactly what I would expect from a good sea bass dish. The vegetable ratatouille was the highlight of the meal - so good I'm not sure how to describe it. So we asked them for a 2nd helping which was gladly provided.

I'm delighted to give this restaurant 5 stars and highly...

Absolutely wonderful dining experience. We have been planning a night in Florence aligned to our Cruise Ship schedule.

We needed to work backward from when we needed to get back to the ship, and selected Belcore basis it’s proximity to the train station and their Web Site pictures and reviews.

Don’t hesitate to check this place out. From the glass of champagne welcoming us to the limoncello after dinner drink, we were blown away from start to finish. This is before considering the champagne and limoncello we’re complementary. By the way, so was the taste of the carrot soup that started the evening.

We ordered 2 glasses of wine allowing the waiter to choose and we were presented with a Tuscany blend that was delicious.When we decided to share a third glass, the original bottle was shared and emptyied and another new bottle was opened which was also excellent.

For those desert lovers, we had to skip our desert to head to the train station. Despite a little excitement getting to the track, we make the train with over a minute to spare. So, no comment on the desert selection. However, ……

This is a Michelin caliper restaurant and they deserve all the accolades and recognition...