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    Leonardo Self-service

    3.9 (25 reviews)
    InexpensiveItalian
    Closed 12:00 pm - 2:30 PM, 7:00 PM - 9:30 PM

    Leonardo Self-service Photos

    LEONARDO SELF-SERVICE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Good for groups
    Good for kids

    Recommended Reviews - Leonardo Self-service

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    Typical cafeteria style, but much, much better in value and flavors.
    John C.

    Great value, very well prepared food. Don't pass this very affordable place We were here years ago (on a budget) and wanted to come back and see how the place fared. Quite well as it turns out. You can see the Duomo from the upstairs dining room great sights, great food and very friendly staff.

    Ana K.

    After reading all the great reviews and getting very positive about my forthcoming lunch I headed for my budget treat. Alas, it couldn't come up to my expectation. The prices are truly very appealing, I payed 14,5€ for my meal: a main (fish and potatoes), bruschetta, mozzarella and tomatoes and a small bottle of wine. It looks pretty neat in the picture attached. Unfortunately, it was all completely tasteless, bruschetta was hard as rock. The wine was good though. The place itself is not attractive looking, but pretty clean and the staff is nice. They also have a decent bathroom. Verdict: I probably won't be back. I would prefer to have one good filling and satisfying dish even for the price of the whole meal rather than a bunch of tasteless foods. After all Italy is a lot about its magnificent food, right? But if you are on a very tight budget, in the area and want a quick fill, that would probably be your catch.

    You pick and choose what you want. This was my selection that was about 12 euros
    Alex K.

    This place is a savior for a weary and hungry traveller. The restaurant was recommended in Rick Steves Italy guide book and it is a perfect place for lunch if you want to sit down, have real tasty food, but not interested in paying full service restaurant prices. It's on the second floor and serves great food also popular with locals. Prices are also quite moderate. You have a selection of salads, pasta and meats. It may be a bit hectic, but I didn't think it was too much - I had a nice lunch break.

    The dining area
    Dana G.

    My family and I have been in Italy for five days from Texas, USA. It has been hard to find a place to eat that doesn't cost a fortune. This restaurant popped up when I opened Yelp and I was interested because I'm tired of paying coperto. If you want water, it costs about 4€ a L. Coperto seems to just be paying for the privilege of sitting at a table. So. This place is cafeteria style. The only thing is dishes are not labeled, but the person behind the counter will tell you what it is if you ask. Very friendly service here. Everything was reasonably priced, I got the lasagne and I think it was 5€. Got some side vegetables, a bowl of strawberries (not fresh), tiramisu, my husband got a breaded chicken breast with fries, my kids got some seafood risotto, lots of food and free pitchers of water for 32€. First time I didn't leave a meal still hungry here! They had small bottles of wine and beer, also sodas, bread, salads, but we didn't get any of that. Clean seating area. Lots of locals eating lunch here. One toilette per gender but two sinks outside the toilette rooms. The ladies bathroom was really nice too. I definitely recommend Leonardo self service!

    Sweet and juicy kabob style meat and veggies.
    Jen O.

    Leonard's is perfect! The owner, servers, and chef are friendly, warm, and welcoming. The food was authentic and delicious without all the fees of a sit down. There's something for everyone here; especially, traveling with kids (ages: 3, 6, 8) that all eat different foods. The menu changes daily. We ordered 10 dishes and paid 40 euros!

    Self service.

    My globe trekker friend highly recommended this self-serviced canteen to me. The canteen is located in the centre of Florence, near the Duomo. I noticed that most of the customers were locals. Me and my travel buddy were the only tourists there. There was quite a queue during lunch time and the place was packed with locals. They have a good variety of food to choose from. Food was cheap and cheerful. I had the chicken breasts with mushrooms and some bruschetta. The chicken breasts were a little cold. I believe the dish was prepared before we arrived. The bruschetta was nice, with a subtle aromatic tones of olive oil. The total bill was €7.70, very good value for money. Tap water was free. We got ourselves a jug. The lights in the toilets would automatically turn off very quickly. Do not panic. Just make some movements and the lights will turn on again.

    Entrance
    David S.

    Always a favorite in the center. This is located just down from the duomo on the second floor. Plenty of seating, self service style restaurant. Friendly staff that speaks enough English to help you. Cheap prices and good food. After your meal grab a caffe and the cheapest price in the center. My favorite is the lasagna with ricotta. This place has a great variety of food

    Sea bass, I think... Great price
    Adrian O.

    Actually a very affordable lunch spot with good food. I had the sea bass (I think that's what it was, didn't check) but it was as good as the one I'd had at a restaurant another day, for much less cost. The servers were very nice and flexible to swap out the potatoes that should have come with the sea bass for the brussel sprouts that were in another dish. I also got a side salad and small bottle of wine that were great. Despite the self serve, cafeteria-style look and feel we were able to get in and out with good food in our bellies between two tours when we had less than an hour to eat lunch.

    Chicken cutlets and bruschetta. VERY good.

    If you are looking for a place to get a quick bite of fresh food -not just pizza and pasta like all the other places in Florence, take your family here and you'll spend €50 on food for four- and that's over eating, instead of €110 at a regular restaurant. The chicken cutlet was great, the lasagna was pretty good, the french fries were great, the penne with bolognese sauce was very good, pork chops very good - different selection of vegetables- pretty good all around in my book! My family ate well and we then had money to SHOP!!

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    8 years ago

    Best place I found so far in Italy. Very convenient, taste great and price is the best. I definitely recommend this

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    9 years ago

    Everything in Florence is expensive of course except for this location. Great food at a fair price, if on a budget this is a place to go.

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    Leonardo Self-service Reviews in Other Languages

    Review Highlights - Leonardo Self-service

    Do you wanna eat in a cheap and fast place with no junk food and a perfect location in the center of Florence?

    Mentioned in 5 reviews

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    Trattoria Zà Zà

    Trattoria Zà Zà

    4.2(1.7k reviews)
    0.4 kmSanta Maria Novella
    €€

    Looking for a place to eat, found this gem and realized I wanted to try it. Everyone had told us…read moredinner reservations were a MUST here, but didn't think about it. Not many places actually have yelp reviews, but this one had so many with great feedback. The food looked amazing. When we arrived we thought they were closed, but that is because they moved to a bigger restaurant a few doors down. When we arrived at the front, the gentleman asked if we had reservations, which we didn't. He directed us to the line with no reservations. The line was a bit long, but doubled in size almost immediately. It also started pouring rain during this time and we were ALL getting drenched even with an umbrella. The non reservation line was not really moving unless people left the line. We waited a good hour. As we inched closer and closer, the lines were now both outrageous and getting seated seemed like a distant memory. The staff came out and gave out Sangria and Bread bites to help those in line feel welcome. We did finally get seated and we were so glad we waited, it was worth it! We ordered the Spaghetti Carbonara, the lobster spaghettini and the chicken breast with roasted potatoes. We also ordered sangria. Everything was so good and our total was 83 €. Prices were unbelievable! We were amazed at the quality, the service and how large the restaurant they relocated to was. It was like a well oiled machine. The food coming out quickly and efficiently. I will 100% be back if I return to Florence!

    What a maze of a restaurant, super interesting decor and set up. Such a cute restaurant with so…read moremany "rooms". Definitely can tell the old building and maybe they had expanded over the years. The service was amazing and the food delicious. This is one of the places that friends recommended and it's also on the list of many influencers. Tourist trappy, maybe. But the food was totally worth it. We were in the area around 4:30PM and decided to stop in, totally not expecting much as we didn't make a reservation but figured if they're open and not busy, why not give them a try. The most memorable dish we had was the appetizer we order - fried polenta with mushrooms and chicken liver pate, the polenta fried crispy, the mushrooms creamy and the chicken liver pate so smooth and savory. We also ordered 2 pasta dishes - wild boar sauce pappardelle and spaghetti alla carbonara. So tasty and with depth of flavors. Paired well with the house white wine we ordered as well. Definitely a spot you don't want to miss when in Florence.

    Photos
    Trattoria Zà Zà - The African zoo room

    The African zoo room

    Trattoria Zà Zà - His and hers

    His and hers

    Trattoria Zà Zà - Boccalona style Spaghettini

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    Boccalona style Spaghettini

    La Buchetta - Linguine in clam sauce

    La Buchetta

    4.8(309 reviews)
    0.8 kmDuomo
    €€€

    Another excellent spot we tried in Florence. We were greeted as soon as we walked in and seated…read moreimmediately. The staff was very friendly and our waiter was Nugo. He was awesome and had us laughing the entire night. We peppered him with a lot of questions about the menu, he answered everything and also accommodated my father-in-law, who is GF. He had his own GF bread basket and was able to order almost anything on the menu. We ordered a nice bottle of Montepulciano red for the table that was $48. Others had the Hugo spritz. For app I had the anchovies with roasted red pepper, sea salt and oil over grilled crostini, very good. I skipped first course and ordered the ribeye steak for my main course. Bone in, medium rare, sprinkled with sea salt and a side of onion marmalade. The steak was very good and had way less fat than I expected. The waiter suggested a huge steak for the table, but I was the only one ordering steak that night. Maybe next time. Others ordered the fillet and it was cooked perfectly, the angels and demons gnocchi, and the veal scallopini. Everybody was pleased Really cool spot with a very good wine selection, drinks, excellent food and a fun atmosphere that you don't find at many places. Nugo was an A+ server.

    Fyi there are two locations, make sure you go to the correct one (only two blocks apart)…read more Wonderful, laid back but inviting ambiance. Waiter was super friendly, taking time to explain their wines in detail and food options. They even have a kids menu with sizeable portions for older kids. We all thoroughly enjoyed our meal, and it was definitely the best wine we had with meals in Florence. Gnocchi and wild boar taglietelle were outstanding. Had we had come earlier in our stay we might have come back again They also do a wine window which I wish I'd known about earlier because the other one we tried for fun was not good

    Photos
    La Buchetta - A gigantic cork arched walkway. All corks came from wine opened here.

    A gigantic cork arched walkway. All corks came from wine opened here.

    La Buchetta
    La Buchetta

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    Vini e Vecchi Sapori - Paccheri with with zucchini flower & saffron

    Vini e Vecchi Sapori

    4.6(321 reviews)
    0.4 kmDuomo
    €€

    One of the best dining experiences I've ever had. No wonder it's always fully booked here!!The…read moreowner is so welcoming and kind, taking the time to introduce himself, the menu, and provide personal recommendations. The servers check in frequently and are quick to help with anything you need. The ambiance is lively with popular music, laughter, and conversation. We chatted with the table next to us on the way out and met some fellow Texans! On our way out, the owner also remembered my name and started introducing me to other tables to make friends. What a fun place to be! The food was absolutely amazing. When we saw them slicing the salami right in front of us, we decided to order the salami plate and we were so glad we did! The zucchini flower and saffron pasta was bursting with flavor and the pasta was so perfectly cooked. I couldn't get enough! The duck ragu pasta was also hearty, rich, and delicious. The sauce was so good, my family soaked up every last bit with our bread. The ricotta spinach ravioli was also amazing!! Again the sauce was such a standout. The ravioli was so fresh with the perfect amount of bite. The green pepper sauce steak was soooo good. Cooked perfectly, with such a unique sauce that the whole peppercorns added perfectly to in texture and spice. Finally, the raspberry tiramisu. We were so full, but when they set these down our dessert stomachs were ready. They were amazing! Not the strongest raspberry flavor, but still such a delicious end to the meal. Side note, you MUST have a reservation to eat here, and they only take reservations by call. Because I didn't have a way to call them, I asked my Airbnb hosts who did it for me (also amazing people). While we were eating, there was a crowd forming outside of people waiting to get in but unable to. It's so worth it to visit Vini e Vecchi Sappori! I'll definitely have to come back next time I'm in Florence.

    If you're planning a trip to Florence, make the effort to book a table at Vini e Vecchi Sapori…read more It's a small, popular restaurant that only takes reservations by phone, and it does seem to book up for every meal. We had our hotel call for us when we checked in and were lucky to grab a 1:30 lunch slot on a Thursday afternoon. We saw the fat physical reservation book when we went, and also saw an attempted walk-in get turned away. We wanted to go for dinner, but I'm just glad we were able to get in at all. Vini e Vecchi Sapori was easily my favorite restaurant in Florence. I loved the cozy, vibrant dining room, snug and eclectically decorated. We were at a table so tiny, I worried about pulling a muscle when I crossed my legs. It was nestled amongst other tiny tables, and abutted a counter where plates were put out for service and the reservation book set down in its glory next to my husband's head. Service was warm, efficient, and attentive. Our waiter basically told what to order and we obeyed him, with excellent results. The one-page handwritten menu, helpfully available in English, presented the day's offerings and this preemptive list of disclaimers: No Pizza No Cappuccino No The Fork No Ice No Spritz No Ketchup FUCK CANCER There was a brief selection of Italian wines by the glass, and we got the Chianti Classico and the Bruno de Montalcino, both lovely. The food was delicious, starting with good bread and good olive oil. We ordered the mixed Tuscany salami and the beef carpaccio as appetizers, and they were both superb and not in the least bit redundant. There were four or five types of salami, every one of them fantastic, and I loved the thin, silky carpaccio, served with rucola, parmesan, olive oil, and black pepper. We shared two splendid pastas, spinach ricotta ravioli in a creamy rose tomato sauce and a hearty pappardelle with duck ragu. For dessert, we had the lush, irresistible raspberries tiramisu. I plan to come back to Florence one day, and will make a point of coming back to Vini e Vecchi Sapori. It's a special restaurant, the kind you hope to find in Italy, a welcoming place with lively ambiance and wonderful food.

    Photos
    Vini e Vecchi Sapori
    Vini e Vecchi Sapori - Pappardelle with duck ragu

    Pappardelle with duck ragu

    Vini e Vecchi Sapori - Peposo

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    Peposo

    La Giostra - My steak cooked perfectly and flavored just enough to be fabulous.

    La Giostra

    4.2(797 reviews)
    0.7 kmDuomo
    €€€€

    By far one of the most highly recommended restaurants when we were making our plans for Florence…read more Highly recommend making a reservation because the wait without one would have been quite long. This restaurant is such a VIBE. Cozy, romantic and a total scene. Service was great as was the food. It was tough because there was so much on the menu that I wanted to try but we couldn't not order the pear ravioli and the Florentine steak. If I went back I would want to try the ossobuco which I saw at the table next to us and looked dynamite. If you only had one night in Florence this is the restaurant I would recommend.

    Food was good but not necessarily the best we had in Florence. Given the reviews and the price I…read morewas hoping for a supreme experience. I shared two pasta dishes with my daughter (the handmade Pappardelle with Maremman Wild Boar Ragu and the Carbonara). Both were very good but not the best we've had. Appetizers were good: Salad with pecorino cheese, oranges, pine nuts and walnuts. We ordered the Octopus appetizer as well. The Octopus was beautifully prepared and presented, but didn't have much flavor. They nailed the Espresso Martini! One of the best I've ever had! We ordered the huge Florentine steak to share between 4 of us and it was more than enough. Ultimately what knocked this review down to 3 stars and what was really disappointing was how they targeted us as tourists with the note at the bottom of the bill (see picture). It read "GRATUITY NOT INCLUDED" in all CAPITAL LETTERS. Also note it was the only thing in English on the entire bill. If it had been our first meal in Florence we might have fallen for this tactic, however it was our last. There's definitely some hostility towards tourists in Florence. Don't get me wrong, some of the people and restaurants we've visited have been very welcoming and friendly. However we recently saw tourist taxes go up significantly, and then you see tricks like this on the bill at La Giostra. This was the ONLY restaurant in Florence where we encountered this. Once jet fuel prices make flying a relic of the past I would argue that some Europeans who depend on tourists for their livelihood may not miss our presence but will certainly miss our spending. Save your money and go research the many other places to eat while in Florence.

    Photos
    La Giostra - Vibes

    Vibes

    La Giostra - Steak

    Steak

    La Giostra - Interior

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    Interior

    Leonardo Self-service - italian - Updated May 2026

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