If once eating in an ethnic restaurant in Florence essentially meant going to a Chinese restaurant, today that is no longer the case. The gastronomic offers are more and more varied and interesting: quality, refinement and differentiation are the characteristics of many ethnic cuisine places in Florence.
But how to choose the ideal place to go for lunch or dinner? Which characteristics to consider? How to recognize quality? Here is our guide to ethnic restaurants in Florence.
Strictly speaking, "ethnic food" is that which belongs to the heritage and culture of a specific ethnic group, which uses its food knowledge of local ingredients. The word has in fact Greek origins: ethnikos derives from ethnos which in ancient Greek means people.
So at the ethnic restaurant, what do you eat? Basically dishes of the gastronomic culture of a territory outside the national one.
The proposals of ethnic cuisine in Florence today are many but not all offer the same quality. Here are some indications to choose the right place and enjoy good ethnic food in a suggestive atmosphere.
The Florentines, and Italians in general, seem to appreciate ethnic cuisine very much. It is no coincidence that ethnic restaurants in Florence have literally multiplied in recent years. And more and more often people choose to eat Indian, Japanese or Thai food instead of the usual pizza.
Eating in an ethnic restaurant has in fact a special charm: you don't just taste dishes but you savour the essences, stories and scents of a distant culture. You taste different flavours and you come into contact with ingredients and preparations never tried before. If all this is missing, a fundamental part of the experience in an ethnic restaurant is missing.
The ethnic restaurant, whether in Florence or any other city, is not just for eating. What you expect is to take a real trip, to travel around the world sitting at a table set in a colorful and sometimes bizarre way!
In a good ethnic restaurant, the feeling is to travel without packing your bags: golden dragons, cacti and sombreros, flags from faraway countries, votive statues and, in the background, traditional music are just some of the details of an ethnic restaurant that will take you hundreds of kilometers from home while remaining in the center of Florence.
Today we find in Florence both ethnic restaurants that offer original and authentic cuisine and places that, starting from the tradition of their country, offer dishes and recipes slightly reviewed to meet the palate of Westerners.
In this case, the choice is entirely personal: there are those who prefer the strong and characteristic flavors of a country and those who prefer proposals that take into account our traditions and gastronomic habits.
This does not mean that the dishes will be less good or of lower quality: it simply means that the recipes are reviewed in some details to make them more palatable for the taste of Westerners.
For those who want to go and eat at the ethnic restaurant, Florence offers a wide range of possibilities. Although in some rare cases the quality is not excellent, there is now less and less risk of finding yourself in poorly maintained restaurants offering bad food. On the contrary, the proposals in the Florentine panorama are definitely interesting and for all tastes, given the variety of ethnic cuisines that are offered in Florence by restaurateurs from all over the world.
All you have to do is choose your favourite!
Haveli is one of the oldest ethnic restaurants in Florence, the first Indian. We opened in 2000 our restaurant a few steps from the train station of Santa Maria Novella, appreciated by tourists and travelers but especially by Florentines, who return every time they want to make a trip to discover India.
Our dishes are linked to our tradition but, over the years, we have redefined them in some details to make them more tasty for our customers. The essence of India transported to Florence. Our ethnic Indian restaurant offers all kinds of dishes: vegetarian, meat and fish dishes, in a modern location but linked to our country.
Discover something more about HaveliIn the wide range of ethnic restaurants in Florence, choosing the right one for you might seem like an arduous undertaking! Actually, if you know what features to evaluate, finding a quality restaurant is not at all complicated: to get an idea, you can read our guide on how to choose a quality ethnic restaurant in Florence.
The gastronomic proposals of ethnic cuisine, therefore, in Florence are not lacking. What we have given you in this article is our advice but, of course, the best thing is to experiment and go in search of your favorite ethnic restaurant!
At Haveli, we will be happy to offer you much more than just a meal but a real gastronomic experience to discover India. Our dishes and our restaurant tell the story of our country: come and listen to it!