Ristorante Il Caminetto - Duomo di Firenze — Restaurant in Florence

Disappointing. We have been to Florence twice previously, and dined at Il Caminetto each time, where it became our favorite restaurant in the city. While visiting Florence for the third time, we decided to go to Il Caminetto again on Thanksgiving to celebrate our holiday. In hindsight, big mistake. We made reservations and upon entering the restaurant, were surprised to find that 90% of the restaurant was being utilized for a private wine tasting event. Unfortunately there is not a private room, but rather every table in the small restaurant, except for our party of five and a party of two, were essentially right on top of the private event. There was a photographer “flashing” photos like a constant strobe light on our dinner. In addition, there were ongoing speeches and presentations during the entire dinner, forcing us to speak in a whisper so as not to disturb the wine tasting. If we got a bit loud, we received glares from the attendees. It was beyond uncomfortable and awkward. We should have been informed of this event while making the reservation and we would have gone elsewhere to allow for an enjoyable dinner. This event was clearly the focus of the staff, as the service was well below attentive, bordering on dismissive. The food, which was previously excellent, was also below expectations. The steak was cooked well below our requests, and the beef tartare was sinewy and truly inedible. Will not return. Our Thanksgiving dinner was ruined. The experience would have been better if someone had informed us in advance of a massive private event, or at least acknowledged or apologized for us feeling like we were intruding on someone else’s...

🚨Tourist Trap Alert 🚨 Unfortunately, this was the worst place we ate at on our entire trip in Italy. From a food perspective, it was just fine. Not the worst thing ever, but it wasn’t worth the money we paid. Everything was definitely more expensive— the cover charge per person is €3.50 (€7 for two) and just a half liter of water was also €3.50. We understand it’s close to the duomo, but there are places next door that offer better food at cheaper prices (Casella 18, Osteria Cicalini, to name a few that were wayyy better, just as close, and cheaper).

The WORST part was at the end when the owner had us pay and pressured us into tipping. He told us after we paid that the tip was not included in the bill and could only be paid in cash. We’ve been in Italy for two weeks now, and we have never been asked to leave a tip. We smiled and said “ok, thank you!”, to which he then said again, “Tip is not included, cash only. Obbligatório” I know what obbligatório means, and i know sure well that tip is NOT an expectation or requirement in Italy, especially not at a place that places pressure to do so. He asked us where we were from, we said the US, and he huffed and left us.

(To be fair, it was the owner who was especially sour and rude at the end. The other waitstaff were great and nice to us the whole time. Owners at other restaurants have been nothing but kind to us).

The owner’s strong pressure to tip completely soured our evening. 0/10, go somewhere else...

Absolutely incredible experience at Il Caminetto!

We stumbled across this gem right in the heart of Florence—literally at the foot of the Duomo—and were half expecting the usual tourist trap. But wow, were we wrong.

The spaghetti carbonara was nothing short of perfection—rich, creamy, perfectly seasoned, and with just the right touch of traditional authenticity. You could tell it was made with real care, not rushed or overly catered to tourists.

The service was equally impressive. Warm, attentive, and genuinely passionate about the food they were serving. Our waiter made us feel like welcomed guests, not just another table passing through.

Despite its prime location, Il Caminetto maintains the soul of a true Italian trattoria. It’s the kind of place you hope to find in Italy—authentic, flavorful, and run with pride. We’ll...