Ristorante Lorenzo de’ Medici — Restaurant in Florence

Please avoid this place at all cost! It’s definitely a tourist trap and while the place looks nice the food certainly isn’t good. To begin, when we got there we were seated and were not given menus and 5 minutes later the waiter came and asked what we wanted and we told him we had never received menus so he went and got them and left us for around 10 minutes since he was busy. Unfortunately he didn’t give us a drinks menu so when he came back and asked what we wanted to drink we told him we couldn’t tell him because he never gave us a drinks menu— another 5 minutes. However since we ordered our food , I have to admit food came out in around 10 minutes so it wasn’t much of a wait but the portions were smaller (compared to other restaurants that charged the same price) and my mushroom tagliatelle were disappointing. The pasta was not all dente, it was undercooked . There was no flavor whatsoever and the overall taste was not good. I was sad given this was my last meal in Florence but hoped the steak that would come afterwards would be better. Btw we also got the eggplant Parma and that was better but unfortunately both dishes were also cold which was concerning .

For the secondi piatti we ordered steak, fries, and green salad. We asked to get additional dishes since we were sharing and that’s when it all started again. The dishes we were given were dirty. Through the reflection of the light one could see the grease still in them. Thus we had to take our napkins to clean them. The steak was not bad, I have to admit- but the salad was a sad dish and definitely overpriced for what it was and fries which can never be bad actually were . I think they must have been frozen fries because a few of them were still hard and cold and while others were ok.

Overall, if you are looking for fine dining , definitely avoid this. Sure the staff is nice but that won’t give you a good culinary experience. I’m a person who’s usually pretty content with everything but this time I was beyond disappointed and regretted going there for my last meal in Florence.

Btw I read all the reviews before going there and really trusted people who said it was great so I hope whoever sees my post really thinks twice before spending their money on such a bad meal and...

This is a large space with dark wood but nice lighting. However a large tv on the wall showing sport seems out of place.

Service was fast & efficient although one waiter brought oil and balsamic but no bread. The bread was offered after my appetisers and 2/3 through my primi.

The menu is large with primi and secondi split between Land or sea. There is an extensive wine selection with some expensive bottles but thankfully they offer single glasses of Chianti for 6 euro or quarter/half carafes of homemade wine. There is no water by the glass. You need to buy a 750ml bottle.

I had the crostini toscana (chicken liver spread on toasts) which was very nice. For primi I had the penne with Gorgonzola and walnuts and it was delicious but very rich (as expected). To finish was a beautiful panna cotta which comes with either chocolate, strawberries or summer fruits (my choice was the last one).

I watched 2 tables being changed after 4 customers left and noted that they only changed one of the linen tablecloth’s. Perhaps the other wasn’t visibly dirty. There are however large paper placemats on each table which are charged.

At the end of my meal the place was starting to get more busy and I asked a different waiter for my bill. And waited, waited. My usual waiter was busy flirting with a table of 2 girls behind me. Eventually he asked if I wanted the bill and I said I had already asked for it. So he went and got it.

When my waiter went to put my bill through the card machine he asked if I wanted to add a tip (servicio). I declined and he challenged me “was the service not good enough”?. I pointed out the issues with the bread and the bill and that while everything was ok, I didn’t think it deserved extra. Then he asked where I was from and rudely asked if service was better in my country! I doubt he would have asked Italian diners to tip (my Italian friends say it is rare). I have to say that the manner of this rude waiter completely ruined what was a...

AVOID - FOOD POISONING FROM RAGU

EDIT: Hi again, thanks for this pathetic reply. I have given the restaurant far too much leeway for the fact I hadn't completely slated them for giving me food poisoning on my 2 week holiday in Italy - as mentioned, the staff were accommodating and my girlfriend enjoyed her lasagne.

I am a tourist from the UK that ranks in the top 10% of reviewers on Google, as anyone can see on my profile. The fact you threaten me with court as if I am some sort of slanderous rival restaurant is completely laughable and only shows that you cannot handle criticism, or in this case - given a paying customer a stomach bug when they are supposed to be enjoying a relaxing holiday. The fact that you do not even acknowledge this and hide behind a ridiculously defensive reply of this sort rings alarm bells. I will attach an image of our meal as proof, and the fact remains that I had a stomach bug for over 72 hours after this meal. If anything this is making you aware that you are making your customers ill - it is dangerous

It's unfortunate, as the staff are very accommodating, but I ate at this restaurant on Monday and I have had a stomach bug since then for 3+ days. I ordered the boar ragu pasta and I put this down to the food as I was affected within 30 minutes of eating the meal. My girlfriend ordered a different dish and was fine.

I enjoyed my meal but I did notice at the time that this main was part hot / cold in different areas - I don't know if this is down to reheating or if this is because the plate it was served on was cold. However, when I think about the pasta now it makes me feel sick and the experience has obviously put a strain on my holiday and made me more anxious about what I eat as I...