Top Experiences in Sant'Ambrogio Market (Mercato di Sant'Ambrogio)

I am mainly a mother and housewife who learned to cook from her grandmother and mother as it often happens in Italian families, for 20 years I worked in catering as a chef both in her own business and as an employee. I am a big fan of cooking and I like healthy food, which is why I prefer the market. I like being in contact with people, meeting new ones and sharing my experience with them, in fact I am also a host mother and my home is often a meeting point for foreign students.

FLORENCE AND FOOD, what better combination to discover the city?
Walking among scents and flavours, tasting wine, traditional biscuits and entering the still authentic market where Florentines go to do their shopping: this is what living Florence means!
Attention! The tour starts with a minimum booking of two participants!

Eat your way through Florence's culinary scene on a private food tour. Go on a delicious journey as you try 6 or 10 of the best food items beloved by the locals: from savory to sweet and local drinks; this tour will leave every foodie satisfied!

Enjoy tastings typical of the local cuisine and hand-picked by a local guide passionate about food like Chianti wine and Cantucci. But that's not it! This tour is more than just food; it's a cultural experience! In between food stops, you'll also find city highlights making this experience a well-rounded tour that will satisfy every foodie.

Withlocals The 10 Tastings Private Food Tour™ is one of Withlocals' signature tours available in major cities worldwide. We work with passionate local guides who earn a fair fee. We support local economies by only offering local produce and prevent over-tourism with only small non-intrusive groups. Our tours are carbon-neutral and away from the standard tourist routes.

Guests will visit the market with me with a brief history of the place and local traditions, the origin of the products and the choice of quality, we will choose the products that we will use in the kitchen.

Most tourists spend their time having bites at the touristy market of San Lorenzo. We take travelers to the real Florentine food market of Sant'Ambrogio, where locals have their daily shopping and fill up their bellies with some tasty and sometimes challenging bites!

Your guide will explain seasonal recipes and give you insights into locals' daily life.

You will have the chance to try food unavailable in restaurants and often not even mentioned in guidebooks. We offer whatever is local, seasonal and traditional. No tourist traps of any kind!
We offer a comprehensive cultural city experience. Along this tasty walking tour of Florence, travellers will also learn about history, traditions and local crafts.

All guides are local. They present their own city from the locals' perspectives without filters.

Come to discover Florence on our walking morning tour and you will have the perfect introduction to this wonderful town. Our guide will help you grasp the architecture and the food tradition while having a relaxing stroll through some famous roads as well as through unexpected hidden corners! Icing on the cake will be the visit to the food market and the various tastings in authentic stores.

Meet your host Patrizia near the Mercato di Sant'Ambrogio. She will guide you through the market, pointing out some of her favorite vendors and products. You will select fresh products to bring home and use for your cooking. After about one hour, you will walk back to Patrizia’s home to begin your hands-on cooking experience.

Once you get to her apartment, Patrizia will teach you authentic Italian dishes from Florence and Italy’s Emilia Romagna Region. You will prepare an appetizer, a first course, typically a fresh pasta like tagliatelle, ravioli, or gnocchi, a second course of meat and dessert! 

Patrizia specializes in seasonal dishes that bring out the flavors of the region – in the summer you might make sauces with fresh tomatoes, while in the winter months you might enjoy seasonal vegetables like artichokes. Your cooking class will last about 2 ½ hours before you sit down to enjoy your meal and some delicious Italian wine.

Embark on a culinary adventure starting at the Fish Loggia, where your local guide awaits. Meander through the vibrant streets of Sant’ Ambrogio to Florence's oldest and liveliest food market.
Delight insights from the artisans as you savor the finest olive oil, balsamic vinegar and their renowned crostini—a tantalizing prelude to awaken your appetite.
Immerse yourself in the world of formaggio: learn about the nuances of local cheeses paired with truffle honey and white wine.
We settle beside a market stall to indulge in a hearty spread of cured meats, fresh vegetables, and red wine. Then you'll be introduced to the first dessert: Almond dipping biscuits paired with sweet wine.
A brief stroll takes us to one of Florence's most highly rated street food spots, to sample a local delicacy: Coccoli with stracchino cheese and prosciutto…
This curated food tour offers a perspective on local cuisine, steering clear of classic dishes like pasta/pizza to show the region's culinary diversity.

Unsure how to spend your time? Food or Art? Why not both?

This 3,5 hours walking tour is a delicious way to explore the city and learn to eat like a local.

Experience what and where italians like to eat with a local guide.

Discover the history of the city while savoring the traditional food of Florence.

Start your flavorful journey through Florence, following a knowledgeable guide. Experience the Tuscan Street food while finding out the city's secrets. Savor sweet pastries that embody Tuscan culinary heritage and learn about their traditions. Delight in a variety of mouthwatering dishes paired with Chianti wine. Each bite tells a story of craftsmanship and passion. Discover "All'Antico Vinaio," the world's most reviewed venue in 2014, and, skipping the line, indulge in their famous and heavenly schiacciata (focaccia). Venture into hidden treasures, exploring fruit and vegetable shops, traditional bakeries, and wine shops with counters on the streets. See Florence's vibrant tapestry, walking amidst medieval and Renaissance monuments, uncovering hidden squares and narrow alleys. Let the flavors transport you through time, embracing the past and present. Indulge in the pleasures of the palate, allowing Florence to reveal its secrets, one delicious bite at a time.

Daily, in an elegant and typical neighborhood (Sant’Ambrogio) in the heart of Florence a special event is going on: a food stroll with a tasting experience.

Enjoy a 3-hour experience, where you will meet your Food Ambassador and toast with some Tuscan wine and crostini.

Furthermore, you will visit a local bakery and taste some Tuscan bread, then you will taste two main courses (including a pasta dish).

But keep in mind that those are just a couple of stops: you will be led through a five-course meal with their paired wine, with an amazing gelato at the end.

How can you find out which dishes will be tasted? By joining the experience, of course!

This will be a fun filled culinary experience of buying food, talking about food, preparing food and finally eating together with a local culinary expert Mirella!

Explore Sant'Ambrogio, a central market in Florence and visit local producers of oil, fruit and vegetables. On the 30-min drive to Mirella's home, hear about the history of Florentine and Tuscan cuisine. Enter Mirella's kitchen for a hands-on Italian cooking class during which you will learn to make 3-4 dishes that you will later enjoy. Your meal will include an appetizer, homemade pasta, a main and dessert.

Mirella’s approach to cooking has been influenced by both Florentine Renaissance (Tuscan nobility) and her proud Tuscan roots. Mirella uses seasonal ingredients and has a different menu for every season. A sample menu might include bruschetta or vegetable tart, penne with ragù, Tuscan meatballs with seasonal vegetables and cioccolatissimo (decadent chocolate dessert). Enjoy your meal over wine, prosecco and limoncello.

To all the Pasta Lovers from around the world: this is the perfect experience for you! Join us in an exclusive small group cooking class at a real Tuscan Trattoria and learn to cook tagliatelle, ravioli and tiramisù from scratch. Meet us in Florence's heart, then venture with our chef to Sant’Ambrogio food market to look for the finest ingredients. After gathering all necessities, return to the kitchen, don your apron, and dive into sauce-making—ragù and classic tomato. While they simmer, knead pasta dough to perfection under the chef's guidance. Once achieved, set aside to rest and delve into crafting tiramisù, the beloved Italian dessert. While it chills, enjoy Tuscan appetizers and tales of culinary tradition. Then, back to pasta: master tagliatelle and stuffed ravioli with ricotta. Season, and finally, savor the fruits of your labor with a glass of fine wine. Buon appetito, and don't forget to make scarpetta!

The most exclusive food tour that will take you to the secular culinary traditions of Florence in the most authentic markets—cafés and trattorias—where we will enrich our five senses to have the best experience Led by our expert guide, who shares a passion for food and a deep knowledge of the local culinary scene,

We'll uncover hidden gems, sample mouthwatering delicacies, and discover the untold stories behind each bite. this tour offers a unique opportunity to savor the essence of Florence and immerse yourself in its culinary soul., where every dish is a revelation, and every meal is an adventure. Get ready to eat, drink, and experience the flavors of Florence and Italy

Are you a foodie? If so, Florence will be heaven for you! Let me accompany you to the discovery of the genuine flavors of Tuscany in an unforgettable experience for your palate. During this tour you will explore our colourful local markets and you will find out where the locals go shopping and where they eat the best Lampredotto, the typical Florentine street food. You can drink a fine Chianti wine and taste an authentic Italian Gelato or taste our Cantucci almond cookies. You will taste plenty of different food, but you will also learn a lot about our traditional food recipees such as, what makes Tuscan olive oil so famous abroad and what are the main differences when talking about Italian cheese, why truffles are so expensive and how they can be tracked.....this tour will be a yummy experience that you won't forget!

Cooking in a Local's Home with Seasonal Ingredients, in a Typical Italian Neighborhood in The Heart of Florence

We will tour the farmer’s market where you will learn about seasonality, Italian butchery, salumi & cheese. We will create a personalized menu choosing what’s in season that day to create two fresh pastas and two sauces. After, designing our seasonal menu we will go back to my place, a classic Florentine apartment, in the heart of Sant’Ambrogio for a taste of local life. During this hands on experience you will make two pastas, two sauces, tiramisu for dessert and taste some Tuscan bites on some Tuscan bites along with prosecco/spritz while we cook so we don't get angry. This class is vegetarian friendly.

Once we’re done cooking, we’ll enjoy the dreamy pasta we’ve created with wine pairing, followed by our tiramisu for our lunch.

Join a talented local chef born and raised in the heart of the most authentic food market of Florence on an unforgettable food tour among the stalls of Sant'Ambrogio grocery market. Eat your way through the Cradle of the Renaissance and get to know the staples of Tuscan cuisine together with an outstanding starred chef. Prepare to embark on a journey back to the roots of a true Florentine chef who grew up in Sant’Ambrogio district, who will unveil to you all the secrets of a thousand-year culinary tradition.

With our help, you will discover very popular corners of the city
, in particular of the Sant'Ambrogio district, its market.
The Sant'Ambrogio market is one of the oldest in the city, where we can savor the genuineness and Italian tradition.
Our merchants will help us choose quality products that we will use in our dishes during the lesson.
We will also collect some vegetables from our Urban Garden, products that grow in a biodynamic and natural way in the center of Florence, cool right?
We will learn to transform a raw material in amazin meal by respecting its nature and its characteristics to taste it to the fullest.

For foodies, an exploration of delicious Italian cuisine is high on the bucket list. On this tour, you'll be taken away from the busy tourist haunts to see how locals live and go about their day in Florence, as well as visiting their favorite restaurants. Visit markets where skilful butchers cut steaks into masterpieces, revel in the never ending choice of wines at an authentic wine shop, and bite into unforgettable desserts that are distinctively Florentine — tasting Italian flavors has never been more satisfying.

Florence has long been celebrated as a hub of artistic and artisanal excellence, renowned for its fine craftsmanship and dedication to quality. From leatherworking and ceramics to perfume-making and marbled paper, the city's workshops showcase a diverse array of traditional and contemporary crafts, each with its own unique story to tell.

Immerse yourself in the creative process with live demonstrations led by master artisans. Watch as they deftly manipulate materials, shaping clay, hammering metal, or stitching leather with precision and expertise. Participate in hands-on activities, such as pottery throwing, jewelry making, or leather stamping, and experience the thrill of creating something beautiful with your own hands.

Tell me what you eat and I'll tell you who you are! Nothing could be more true, if you really want to know a city and its local people you can't just visit its museums and admire its palaces and churches, but you should also taste its cuisine!

EAT & GO is the right tour to explore the fantastic world of popular gastronomy along the streets of Florence: from snacks and tastings of schiacciata (flat bread) with ham, salami and others to the first courses of the season, passing through the classic lampredotto to the inevitable cantuccini and Vin Santo to be enjoyed at the Market of Sant'Ambrogio... an explosion of tastes and flavors to be discovered in the company of our Food & Wine Guide.