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    Universo Vegano

    4.3 (35 reviews)
    ModerateVegan

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    Margherita pizza and merlot
    Julia G.

    I have allergies to dairy, meats, and shellfish, so eating in Italy has been a struggle. Not anymore! Universo Vegano took my allergies seriously and gave me a delicious Margherita pizza and gnocchi. (Also the Merlot was quite tasty). I'll definitely be coming again!

    Kelly F.

    *UPDATE: i moved to florence for a couple months to study abroad and this place has come in so handy. I really love the ravioli, it's not much but it's filling and delicious, plus i had an apricot cheesecake that was so good, although it wasn't much cheesecake, just a small layer of the cheesecake with a layer of fruit jello-y stuff (but regardless it was amazing). it's nice to be able to eat sweets and have dessert other than a bowl of fruit. i'm from los angeles so i'm used to hundreds of vegan restaurants and thousands of things at markets at my disposal, italy isn't quite so vegan friendly. i've been able to eat a lot of places but it's not as much variety and ease as i'm used to in the states. it's so nice having my own little haven where i don't have to worry about scouring the menu or making a special request or double and triple checking ingredients. i love it* sooo good. I was on vacation all over italy for 2 weeks and i was so tired of having spaghetti with marinara sauce or unseasoned vegetables for every meal, don't get me wrong, it was good but 2 weeks of no options gets tiring. Florence was my last city, and i'm actually moving there in the fall so i was desperate to find a vegan place that i really like. my aunt, grandma, and I went to this place on our first night and even came back our second night because it was so good. my aunt and grandma aren't vegan or even vegetarian and they LOVED it, it was so good, and i'm from LA so i go to vegan restaurants all the time, and i can tell you this was top quality and taste, i honestly wasn't expecting a lot because veganism isn't as big in italy as it is in CA, but this was great! i got a ton of desserts and pastries as well as my meal and loved everything. i had raviloli with tofu, and tiramisu, my aunt had a wrap, and my grandma had a a salad with some faux meat and it was all delicious and nice to change

    veghiotti gnocchi, lasagna, cream pastry, cheesecake, sacher torte
    SF O.

    Vegan sacher torte? Yes, please! Apparently, they have special desserts beyond what's on their menu. I also tried the blueberry cheesecake which featured what is likely an agar-based blueberry top layer, a delectable light and creamy 'cream cheese' middle layer and a soft and somewhat soggy crust as well as a couple blueberries. I also had a cream pastry that looked like a snowball covered with nuts. It was very rich with vegan whipped cream, a green custard filling, and a delicious, buttery crust. I am not a fan of very rich desserts, so I would skip this option in the future and gladly re-order the sacher torte or cheesecake. Furthermore, these restaurants are so popular that they seem to regularly run out of what is on their menu (hence the minus 1 star). This is the second location of this chain I've tried that hasn't had vegan tiramisu at dinner. Either it's really popular and sells out by lunch time, or they aren't making it anymore. Also, I was disappointed that this location had run out of cannelloni, too. Instead, I got the lasagna alla bolognese and veghiotto mediterrano. The lasagna was decent. I liked the textured vegetable protein faux ground 'beef' bolognese. I could also see some of the vegan bechamel. The veghiotto mediterrano was filled with potato gnocchi. The crust was buttery and delectable as always. The gnocchi filling can taste pretty bland (not much sauce in the veghiotto), so I wouldn't order it unless you love potato gnocchi. The staff was friendly and the service was quick. They issued coasters that vibrate when your order is ready since the seating goes around the corner, out of view of the front counter.

    Artichoke and olive pizza. Amazing!

    This was the first vegan place I found in Florence and I was so impressed! The service was kind and cheerful and did not judge me for my bad Italian, and their English was superb. I got the artichoke and olive pizza which was unbelievably delicious! It tastes exactly how I remember regular Italian pizza tasting, but healthier and cruelty free! Definitely am getting again before I leave. I also got a fruit tart for dessert which was also delicious. Go here! You won't regret it, they are very accommodating if you want to alter your dish in any way as well.

    Interior view
    Just The G.

    I would eat here every day if I could!! The lasagna al funghi was flavourful and creamy; the tuna, onion and olive pizza had a perfect crust and was perfectly yummy, too! A little fruit and custard tart for dessert was so cute and not too sweet. Seeing other diner's plates, I'm curious about about their risotto and maybe even their burgers ... Which, to be honest, aren't often high on my list of things to eat because they are so readily available as a go-to.

    Gabriela N.

    I have been desperately searching for soup, it has been a rarity, and I understand because it's summer. But I finally found it here! Soooo good! I definitely plan on going back! Thee best soup I have ever had in my entire life!

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    Il Vegetariano - Cat Artwork on Wall

    Il Vegetariano

    4.3(66 reviews)
    1.2 kmIndipendenza
    €€

    Delicious! Worth checking out. It's very local so either get there right when it opens or have a…read morereservation. Prices are affordable. If you are looking for something different. Menu changes daily. Vegan options. A nice change of pace for those of us who also eat meat but want to finally limit it. Also the way it works is that you order ahead and pay and then the food is brought to your table. Service isn't exactly warm but they are quick and efficient with your meals.

    We're always very excited to try a 100% vegetarian restaurant knowing we can eat anything we want…read moreon the menu and we were excited to learn that Il Vegetariano existed. It's a bit of a walk outside of the center of Florence but we'd thought we'd see what the Italian vegetarian focus experience was like. It was serviceable, but not as great as we'd hoped. The concept is interesting...the menu changes every day depending on the whims of that days chef, so our experience could have been informed a bit by just what we experienced that day, and might have been completely different on another day. An issue sometimes with all vegetarian restaurants is they specialize in the concept of being vegetarianism, without necessarily specializing in a particular kind of food which can lead to a mish-mash of disconnected offerings which is what we found on the menu here. The night we were there, for example you could get Italian, Indian, and strudel main dishes...all vegetarian, but otherwise not specializing in any particular type of food. We also didn't have a reservation. They were nice enough to seat us, but the restaurant was not at all full in any of its rooms (at any point when we were there) and the person who seated us, made a point of telling us they prefer reservations and then seated us at probably the least desirable table in the restaurant, right next to the cash register and right across from the salads display case which was the most trafficked area of the restaurant with people ordering their food hovering right over our table. We definitely felt like we were being unnecessarily punished with this table, especially when there were plenty of other places we could have sat and the overall demeanor of the person who seated us made us feel like she felt like she was doing us a big favor and she had her limits. So kind of a bummer of an introduction to the place. You order by writing down what you want on a slip of paper they provide you with, and then bringing that to the cashier to pay. That's fine, but it's not exactly "service" like you might get at any other sit down restaurant with servers and a wait staff. The food came extremely quickly...at the same time as the wine...It's hard to complain about quick service, but at most other places we experience in Italy (and the rest of the world for that matter) you get your wine first and can enjoy it a bit before the food shows up. We felt rushed. Also, and I'm sure I'm coming off as awfully picky, but you can see the high scores I typically give in my other reviews so...but the chairs were really uncomfortable to sit on. I typically don't think about the chairs at restaurants...these chairs made me think about them. My wife and I shared a lasagna and a greens-filled calzone-like pastry for our mains. Both of these portions were super-large...we appreciate generosity in portions, but these were just too large for us to be able to finish...both, especially the lasagna were really rich and heavy dishes too. They checked the box for being vegetarian but didn't excel to star dishes in terms of flavor or presentation that we'd want again. The desserts looked amazing but by the time we had eaten as much as we could of the mains, we just didn't want anything else or to hang around. We had many vegetarian-friendly meals at many restaurants in the cities we visited in Italy on this trip. This one was easily the most disappointing. If we lived in town we might come by to try the desserts or to see if it's a completely different experience with an unnecessary reservation and different chef...but otherwise, it wasn't really worth the walk out of the center of Florence to eat here.

    Photos
    Il Vegetariano - Glimpse into the Back Garden Seating Area

    Glimpse into the Back Garden Seating Area

    Il Vegetariano - Salads in Display Case

    Salads in Display Case

    Il Vegetariano - Store Front

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    Store Front

    Veg&Veg - Vegan Salad

    Veg&Veg

    3.3(12 reviews)
    1.0 kmSanta Maria Novella
    €€

    Sadly, it pains me to even give Veg&Veg two stars because one of their employees was so incredibly…read morerude as to ruin the meal, which itself was quite good. After a first visit there where the employee encouraged me to try samples of ingredients and allowed me to make a modification. the second time I went there, a different employee harassed me for making the same request which seemed perfectly fine (even encouraged!) the first time. He said he hoped no other customer would ever be like me and that I was difficult, all while I was the only person at the counter. I was stunned by the blatant hostility. Therefore I only reluctantly say that I did enjoy the meal, the vegetarian chicken is better than most substitute meat, and it's especially welcome surrounded by the ubiquitous cured meats. Nonetheless, the service was so unfortunate that I would almost prefer to give negative stars despite the food.

    Look, I am not about to come here and diss on the ONE vegetarian and vegan place in this amazing…read morefood hall. Grab an aperol spritz from the bar and take a chill pill. Both my husband and picky eater toddler enjoyed the burgers. I was happy my son was eating something healthy. And I thought the roasted potatoes were delicious! I did order a wok that was disappointing in that it needed more flavor. More of a sauce or something. Otherwise, gluten free options, nice staff that speaks great English, and so so fun to get to eat in the food hall! Loved it. Would totally return next time in Florence.

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    Veg&Veg
    Veg&Veg - Vegan Salad

    Vegan Salad

    Veg&Veg - Vegbab with potatoes

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    Vegbab with potatoes

    Santa Elisabetta - 11/3/2022

    Santa Elisabetta

    4.7(26 reviews)
    0.7 kmDuomo

    In Florence, I got super lucky in that Santa Elisabetta was a 5 min walk from my hotel, and that…read morethey had reservations available the next day for lunch, so I booked a table for one. The restaurant is located in a tiny space (just 6 tables) within a 13th century stone tower. There was only one other person in the restaurant during the entire duration of my meal - which meant that both my server and the 'overall server' were pretty focused on us the entire time. My server even escorted me up to the restaurant once I arrived at the location. I don't mean to sound too hyperbolic, but it feels like I ascended to a higher plane of existence when it comes to dining. I ordered the Carte Blanche option, which was a 3 course tasting menu of whatever the chef chose from the main dishes. The meal consisted of 7 separate sections, each with their specific parts. Firstly, it started with an amuse bouche, which consisted of 5 separate small dishes - there was chicken liver, prawn, oysters, and so on. It was in this very first meal that I realized I was going to have a meal that far exceeded the quality of anything that I've had before. Next, the bread came out, and this bread was just astounding. I was seeing types of bread I've never seen before. My favorite part of this was what looks like the focaccia, with lardo on top. The first main course was raw red prawns and caviar. It was my first time trying caviar, which I absolutely loved Next came what might be the best food I've had in my life - a spaghetti made with 3 different types of algae butter, and sea urchins. I can't even describe how good this pasta was - from the noodles, to the meat, to the natural, earthy flavors Before dessert, there was a mood cleanser of hibiscus tea and chocolate mousse. Dessert consisted of yogurt froth, kiwi, and namaleka, and was so good it exceeded a melt-in-your-mouth feeling. I thought I was done at this point, but they brought out another set of 5 smaller pastries - compliments of the pastry chef. These included a pistachio cream lollipop, french biscuits, madeleine, and more The cost of the Carte Blanche that I ordered was 159 euros, and I also got a glass of champagne for 25 euros I spent over 2 hours at this restaurant - way longer than I thought it would actually be. Like I said, this was my first fine dining experience of any kind, so I really had no idea what to expect. I was absolutely blown away by this experience and consider it to be 100% worth the money. For me - this felt like every single part of this experience was perfect. Everything I ate here was a massive step above any food I've had in the past. The quality is unreal. The variety is unparalleled. There are ingredients used here that I've never seen before - and stuff I didn't even know was edible. The amount of different food I got to try was like nothing I've experienced before. I left the restaurant incredibly full and completely satisfied

    Peak fine dining experience…read more The location alone is one of a kind. Located in the heart of Florence inside Hotel Brunelleschi, in a tower, they have very limited seating. The reservation process alone was an adventure in itself. Our visit was to celebrate 3 Libra birthdays. Our party of 4 opted for the 9 courses. One of us decided to do the wine pairing. When I tell you, there was so much food. We would've probably been better off doing the 7 courses, but we wanted to eat everything. We were all falling asleep by the end of the night. One was nonstop yawning. To the unfamiliar, they focus more on seafood. Every dish is out of this world. Down to the presentation. I savored every bite. The standout for me was the oyster and how it came in two parts. It was so innovative. I loved the sauces that accented the protein and the jus. Don't even get me started on the service. What an attentive team. I always refer to it as poetry in motion the way the team moves effortlessly that you don't even realize when they refill your glass of water. No crumb was left behind on that table. Someone scraped up anything that didn't belong on the table after every course. Lastly, I just want to mention what a great job they did with the birthday cake that was an add-on to our meal. It was so damn good. Grazie Chef Rocco and team for an amazing meal.

    Photos
    Santa Elisabetta
    Santa Elisabetta - 11/3/2022

    11/3/2022

    Santa Elisabetta - 11/3/2022

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    11/3/2022

    Le Vespe Cafe - Avocado, salmon and eggs were brilliant. They had a hint of orange or mango citrus, making for a wonderful experience.

    Le Vespe Cafe

    4.6(234 reviews)
    0.2 kmSanta Croce
    €€

    The food was a pleasure to eat. I ordered classic egg's Benedict. I wanted my egg poached medium…read morebut I was told by an unfriendly dry as dirt Italian waitress that I could only have it runny. I then had to take a little more time to find something else. A lovely American waitress came over and helped me.(I'm not saying she's lovely because she's American, she just was really friendly) She explained that the cook makes all the poached eggs in one big pot and can't specialize one for a customer. She said they could fry it medium well and that worked for me. The other waitress offered to fry the egg or scramble it but she just wasn't friendly, and she didn't give me all the choices of how I could get the egg fried. That really helped me make my choice. The egg's Benedict came with American pork bacon and not Canadian bacon. The hollandaise sauce was deliciousness, but they give you such a small amount. They need to double it. Another reviewer mentioned how good the green hot sauce was, so I tried it. It was spot on great!! I made sure every bite had the green sauce on it. I usually only like shredded hash browns but their breakfast potatoes were perfect. They weren't hard and had a good flavor. The restaurant was clean but very small. It had a nice relaxing feel. I love to try the food of the country I'm visiting, but after traveling for two weeks it was nice to have something I eat at home. The eggs Benedict was a treat. I had the hot amaretto coffee drink and that just hit the spot and made the waiting to be seated all worth it. The had many types of milk you can put in your coffee, for example, they have soy milk, oat milk, etc. I would definitely recommend this place and come back. Oh and the less than friendly waitress served my food to me with a smile, but she never smiled again and never accepted my thank you's no matter how much I said them. Word of advice don't have a sad face if they can't provide something the way you want it if the waitress is blond and Italian. That will not go over well. You're not allowed to be quietly disappointed.

    A little of the usual path, Yelp! recommended this place and was happy to have tried it. The place…read moreis classic, the service was of the best, and the food was excellent. We had the avocado, salmon eggs plate and the eggs benedict. Both were perfectly prepared and exactly what you would hope for in a top-tier cafe. The eggs had a hint of orange citrus that added to the joy of the meal. This super comfortable, clean restaurant with fantastic service and food will be on our best-of-best list in the future!

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    Le Vespe Cafe - Whole bean coffee is available for purchase too!

    Whole bean coffee is available for purchase too!

    Le Vespe Cafe
    Le Vespe Cafe - The mighty coffee cup -- guests can pick espresso, drip/filter coffee, or even canned nitro cold brew!

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    The mighty coffee cup -- guests can pick espresso, drip/filter coffee, or even canned nitro cold brew!

    Universo Vegano - vegan - Updated May 2026

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