Sostanza Florence | Eating With Ziggy

Another year, another City of David. First Jerusalem, now Florence. After withstanding repeated 14th century attacks by Milan, underdog Florence over time chose David as its symbol. Besides the masterpiece in the Accademia you can see all sorts of Davids everywhere in Florence such as Donatello’s David at the Bargello. It may take more than a day trip to see and understand this phenomenon. And then there’s that other famous underdog, found only in one particular 140 year old trattoria

In a city dominated by the Bistecca Fiorentina, a stocky and bloody T-Bone, the little Pollo al Burro, Chicken with Butter prevailed, reaching legendary status over time. 2 generous breasts are cooked over coal before pan fried with eggs and one stick of butter. Thats still 2 sticks less than the similarly celebrated BBQ Shrimp at Mr B’s in New Orleans, but rich nonetheless. The result is moist and addictive. With the massive Sostanza Bistecca Fiorentina side by side, for the first time ever my fork was reaching for the bird over a well cooked medium rare steak. Long live the pollo!

But that’s not all we enjoyed in Sostanza. Tortellini al Sugo was a subtle, cruel reminder how different are the sauces in the States. A nice assortment of prosciutto, melon, salami, and a well crafted Finocchiona which made us order it just about everywhere we would see it the rest of the trip.

There were a few misses however on this night. The omelette with artichoke which is another signature dish, was just ok for us. I Didnt care much for the artichoke part in particular (out of season perhaps?). A “stew” with beans produced 2 fairly dry bland veal cutlets but mighty delicious white beans.

Sostanza is like a timeless well oiled machine. 7:30 reservations for tourists like us. You may share your table with other {shrug} tourists. 9:30 is for mostly locals who may share a table with more tourists. Although fairly touristy, Sostanza is far from a tourist trap, like this one for example. If you only have the weekend, you are out of luck, as Sostanza closed Saturday and Sunday. Otherwise, try to make reservations ahead of time (by calling only unfortunately). I like places with signature dishes like Sostanza. Easy to write about and easy to recommend. Get the chicken!