We wanted an easy, casual dinner after a day of wine tasting and ended up at Al Solito Posto for pizza. It wasn't terrible, but it was a definite miss for a vacation dinner, probably the worst meal we had in Italy.
The place was dead at 8:30 on a Wednesday. Empty dining room, bright lights, no music, no ambiance. We might have turned around and gone to one of the nice-looking places we passed on our walk over, except that we'd made a reservation online an hour earlier. The space was colorful and small, and I could see how it might be charming with a little more effort or a few more customers. Maybe it's a nice refuge from tourist hell during peak season, but on a cold November night, it was kind of depressing.
Service was indifferent, not rude but inattentive. We weirdly had to go in back to pay our check, where we stood around waiting while the staff ignored us and did whatever pizza prep they had to do for the handful of customers who'd wandered in after us.
The food was okay. We got a classic Margherita and a Ripiena and a couple glasses of the house Chianti Classico. The Margherita was solid, with a good crust, topped with mozzarella, tomato, Apulian olive oil, and two leaves of basil. Oddly, though, there were additional cherry tomatoes on top of the sauce, and they were jarringly cold. The Ripiena was a calzone stuffed with tomato, provolone, riccotta, salame piccante, smoked buffalo mozzarella, basil, and Apulian olive oil. Not bad, if also not memorable.
Ultimately, we did get a low-key pizza dinner, and the food was edible and reasonably priced. I just didn't realize a restaurant could be this dead in Florence. I guess if you're overwhelmed by crowds and want a quiet spot for dinner, Al Solito Posto is a decent bet. It is, for better or worse, the opposite of a tourist trap. read more