Private Mercato Centrale Tour and In-Home Cooking Class with a Florentine Chef

Your homemade meal may include dishes such as an antipasto of crostini di fegatini (chicken liver pate served on crusty bread) or a seasonal segato di carciofi (artichoke carpaccio with pecorino), a main of ossobucco alla Fiorentina (braised veal), pollastro affinocchiato (braised chicken with fennel) and a pasta like pappardelle ai fungi (mushrooms) or risotto al nero (squid ink) with a typical Florentine vegetable side dish. Your meal will conclude with a dessert of torta della nonna (cream pie) or schiacciata alla Fiorentina (orange sponge cake).

Alessio is a fun, warm and welcoming host and professional chef who is excited to share his local cuisine and Fiorentino traditions with travelers. He has a wide repertoire of Florentine dishes that you may not see in restaurant menus. Alessio studied economics while he was at University and worked at a bank but quit after a few years to follow his true passion – cooking! He was keen to use the creative part of his brain and flex his artistic muscle and diligently taught himself to cook from cookbooks. He worked his way up to head chef at a few restaurants before he became a private chef. Alessio was very close to his grandfather growing up and cooking brings back fond memories of himself as a young boy helping his grandfather in the kitchen.

Please note: If there is a specific Fiorentino dish you'd like to learn, please let Alessio know when making your booking and he'd be happy to teach you how to prepare it.