Il Barroccio

tl;dr: DON’T DO IT.
there are definitely better restaurants in the city for this price range. ordered the crostini toscani and the pâté’ di fegato was too creamy for how it should be. it was also served on top of crostoni (large pieces of bread rather than small ones). for the primo piatto i ordered the lasagna and this was what truly merited 1 star — worst lasagna i have eaten in a while. the slices of pasta were EXTREMELY OVERCOOKED. as soon as i put my fork in the lasagna, everything fell apart as if i’d used a knife. the top and the meat were burnt. it was so unpleasant i didn’t get past three bites before i ordered the check and left to find a decent primo piatto elsewhere.

I came to this restaurant for two reasons: 1) it’s near the Teatro Verdi where I was attending a concert and didn’t want to be late for it (since the service isn’t known to be the best in Italy) and 2) the Unilocal reviews were very positive. I had dinner really early — came in at 6:45 PM and it was dead. I was seated right away and offered some prosecco on the house. I opened the menu and was a bit disappointed by the lack of regular options. However, after ordering and tasting the pear and cheese ravioli, I quickly learned why the menu is inventive: it stands out and the food is really delicious. I will say, though, if you’re really hungry, don’t just order the pasta, because while the quality is excellent, the quantity is a bit lacking. The service was really outstanding — I was in and out within an hour. I told the waiter about the concert and he inquired what time I had to be there to make sure he got me out on time. I definitely recommend it, especially if you’re about to see a show nearby because they do know how to get you in and out without rushing you!

Visited 18.09.2014.
I’ll start this by saying Italian is not usually a cuisine I crave — I only like it when it’s really, really good. Secondly, I was very disappointed with most of the food and restaurants I encountered on my trip in Italy. I’m not ashamed to say that the apparent cultural lack of emphasis on food presentation also does not help a weary tourist to tell the good from the bad. (Where I come from, you can usually tell visually that a restaurant’s food is probably going to be above or below average. I clearly do not know what to look for when it comes to Italian food in Italy.)
Anyway, I found this restaurant on Unilocal that was literally a two minute walk from our B&B (Condotta House), and am so glad I did. My companion and I ate here every night of our stay in Florence, and nothing they served me was less than fantastic. Sitting in the cobblestone alley was a charming bonus.
All I can tell you is that when I do crave Italian food, I want it from Il Barroccio. Too bad I am over six thousand miles away.
Someday I’ll be back for you, Il Barroccio! Your restaurant played a big part in making Florence the highlight of my trip.

Two stars: the first because it’s a restaurant, second because I was able to finish most of the meal before leaving. The food that arrived to the table did not match the description in the menu and, for the price, was sub par. We were also overbilled. The restaurant corrected their billing mistake. I will never eat here again, especially given that for the same price you can get a much better meal, and service, elsewhere in this city.

The food was very ordinary and even bland. Definitely not a genuine Italian cuisine experience.

I was in the mood for steak, but we got more. My husband ordered the tomato soup, can I say one of the best things since I’ve been to Italy. My filet was delicious. Best of all, were the reasonable prices, at least for Italy.

It was good for the price. Wouldn’t seek it out again, but fine for a simple meal. Service was a bit slow in my experience.

Service was comfortable and friendly… excellent spinach ravioli with porcine mushrooms in Avery lightv cream. Wee shared a wonderful filet that was very thick and had a tasty charred glaze. It was a tad rarer than expected when ordered medium rare, but the quality of the meat was good enough to carry it off. The half bottle of chianti was nice. We could return if the opportunity arose.

The owner and master chef Giovanni is an awesome guy. He knows food. His assistant Roberto is equally cool. These guys know how to serve food and make you feel welcome. Located in the heart of Florence but off a side street so it is not chaotic or touristy.
You must eat here at least once while in Florence. I had the homemade noodles with wild boar and it was not only delicious but completely satisfying.
Tell them the Dude of Food (Peter from California) sent you.
Easy prices. Awesome everything.

Great food and service, reasonably priced as well. Delicious pasta dishes, lots of vegetarian options. Just off of the main drag of Via del Proconsolo on a quieter side street. It’s sit-​down dining, but still casual enough for a relaxed atmosphere. Close to Uffizi, Palazzo Vechio, Santa Croce, and Bargello; an easy walk from all of those areas. Was happy to rest our weary feet and recharge here for a delicious dinner.

They served us MOLDY BREAD.
If you don’t believe me, I posted the picture. I was in such disbelief myself I though maybe it wasn’t mold, it was some special bread, so I tried a little, and it was stale and flavorless and disgusting. I’ve never been so insulted.
Another table with two foreigners got served the same moldy bread and sent it back. I don’t know if they ever got the fresh bread they asked for.
I did think the meat lasagna was amazing, so I gave this place 2 stars (instead of 1) for that.
I also got the stewed beef with a side of vegetables. I’ve had plenty of stewed beef in my life… That was softer and processed better. It also had a weird flavor I didn’t like, though I think a lot of people would like it.
The side of veggies was just two veggies — carrots (which already came with my beef) and what we think was Italian zucchini. It was ok but not what I wanted, and pretty oversteamed.
I didn’t finish the veggies or the beef.
I didn’t like the server either. Yes he was friendly and spoke English, but on top of serving us obviously moldy bread (you could see the mold on top), promising the other table fresh bread but either taking forever or never delivering (and not offering the same to us), he was like, «you don’t like my beef?!» which is rude by American standards (maybe not Italian? But every other florencien was the sweetest human being I ever met). I politely told him I was stuffed, and then he tried to sell me dessert. There was no way I was ordering more, so we paid and took off.

Read about this place on Unilocal and gave it a shot. We were very happy with the food and wine which was very affordable. Order sausage from the Tuscany taster menu and I promise you won’t be disappointed with it.

Must visit if you are in Florence. We found it almost by chance when the place of first choice is closed. Randomly picked many from the menu. Everything is good. But, must ORDER the Stock Fish! As a seafood lover, I will give the stock fish a five star rating. Raw beef, cow tribe also delicious.

As mentioned by another previous post, the ravioli with mushrooms and truffles was amazing. Smelled just as good as it tastes! Gnocchi was soft and delicious. Price was very reasonable. The Exotic Salad was also good, with tons of freak veggies, though I personally thought it was a bit on the smaller side. Tiramisu was creamy and not too chocolatey. Service fee may be included. Menu in English available. Staff was so nice!

I enjoyed dinner here a couple of times while I was visiting friends and it was wonderful each time. Loved the pasta! The staff is delightful and very accommodating.

During a three month sabbatical in Florence we got in the habit of eating at Il Barroccio at least once a week. Like many people we found this restaurant by ducking out of the busy square next to the Bargello and down a quiet street. This charming place won us over with their excellent Tuscan food, and friendly atmosphere, and became our go-​to local dinner destination. We tried many other restaurants in the area and had plenty of good experiences, but the delicious food, reasonable prices, excellent view of the ancient stone wall of the Bargello kept us coming back to Il Barroccio. Every time we had guests we brought them to «our local.»
They keep generous hours– so if you are jet lagged or really busy and need lunch late in the day, or want to eat dinner before 7 when most other places are closed, they will welcome you and take good care of you. The owner Gianni speaks English very well and has a great sense of humor, and our adorable waiter Guisseppi speaks at least 4 languages that I know of and is ready with advice and recommendations.
I think we tried everything on the menu and were never disappointed. The bistecca alla fiorentina may be the best I have ever had. The house wine is wonderful but if you want something specific ask Gianni for recommendations– he knows his wine.

As of the end of April they still had some Christmas decorations out. Maybe we can talk about the décor some other time.
I hope we will be back soon. We really miss you guys.

14 Euro for 3 courses… that price fixe was the big draw at first since dining out it Italy gets expensive quickly. I had the lasagne, mixed green salad, and chicken cacciatore, and to my amazement, everything was a great portion size and tasted great! The waiter didn’t speak a lick of English but he smiled a lot and got us everything we asked for! This place was worth more than 14 Euro for what we got. I would definitely go back again!

I tried my luck here because someone I met in Florence highly recommended this restaurant as being priced reasonably. The restaurant was quite deserted when I visited in February during the low season but the food was great. I had the ravioli with porcini mushrooms and truffles. When it was served, it smelled heavenly and tasted wonderful. The waiter recommended wild boar with polenta. It tasted great. The dessert I had was tiramisu. It tasted good too. They do take credit cards unlike he previous comment. The staff was very friendly. You should give it a try when you are in the area.

Got lucky on trying this one. Here’s a list of the positives. Only negative is its cash only although the prices are modest (under 10 euro for a plate of pasta).
1. Owner speaks English
2. Menu is in both English and Italian
3. Place is air conditioned
4. Owner was very accommodating to the vegetarians in out party
5. Owner was the waiter and cook (I just think that’s cool)
6. Food was delicious (been to Italy over a dozen times and tried a lot of restaurants here. This was definitely one of the better ones)
Few of the highlights of the meal were the carbonara, roasted potatoes and lasagna. If you’re in the area I definitely recommend giving this place a try.