Day one The jewel of Renaissance Italy may be like a giant museum

FEATURE florence
Florence
The jewel of Renaissance Italy may be like a giant museum, but it’s far
from dead. Bar-owner extraordinaire Lorenzo Segre has been key in
reincarnating Florence’s nightlife, so Kamin Mohammadi caught up
with him to discover the charms of the old and the call of the new
Far right: The stunning
Santa Maria del Fiore
cathedral is a potent
symbol of Florence
Below: In Piazzale
Michelangelo, a replica
of the artist’s David
looks out over the city
Below right: Stop off
at Lorenzo’s Zoe bar
for a light lunch or
evening DJs
34
D
esigned by the master
architect and sculptor
Brunelleschi, it’s fitting that
the magnificent cupola of the
Duomo (cathedral) dominates Florence
– a city brimming with Renaissance
treasures. But once you’ve feasted your
eyes on the works of Michelangelo,
Botticelli and Da Vinci, there’s plenty
to satiate your other senses: make like
a local and join the throng of beautiful
people at aperitivo time…
Brussels Airlines b.there! magazine
March 2010
Images photolibrary.com,
Bernardo Conti, Getty Images
Day one
9:30 Start your day at Pasticceria
Giacosa (10r Via della Spada, tel. +39
055 277 6328), one of the city’s oldest
cafés and now owned by Roberto Cavalli.
It’s always buzzing and, because it’s next
to Florence’s designer shopping street,
full of fashion people.
10:30 Across the street, Palazzo Strozzi
(1r Piazza degli Strozzi, tel. +39 055 264
5155, palazzostrozzi.org) is well worth
seeing, not only as it’s the most
monumental of Florence’s Renaissance
palaces, but also because it hosts the
city’s best temporary art exhibitions.
11:30 Walk to nearby Piazza della
Repubblica and through its loggia to
the Porcellino market. This is what the
Florentines call the Mercato Nuovo,
which was built in the 16th century and
still houses a market. It’s a bit touristy,
so have a wander but don’t bother
florence FEATURE
FR
Mon parcours de Florence
Le joyau de la Renaissance italienne a beau ressembler à un musée
géant, il est loin d’être un lieu ‘passé’. Le propriétaire de bar Lorenzo
Segre est au centre du renouveau de la vie nocturne de Florence et
Kamin Mohammadi l’a rencontré pour découvrir en sa compagnie
les charmes de l’ancien et du nouveau.
Jour 1
9:30 Démarrez votre journée à la Pasticceria Giacosa (10r Via della
Spada), l’un des plus anciens cafés de la ville.
10:30 Le Palazzo Strozzi (1r Piazza degli Strozzi) héberge les
meilleures expositions d’art temporaires de la ville.
11:30 Au marché touristique de Porcellino (Mercato Nuovo),
caressez la truffe du sanglier de bronze (le Porcellino) et placez une
pièce sur son socle dans l’espoir de revenir un jour dans la ville.
13:00 Traversez le fleuve jusqu’au quartier de l’Oltrarno pour un
lunch chez Zoe (13 Via dei Renai).
14:00 Lorenzo Villoresi (14 Via de Bardi) vend sa propre gamme de
parfums, et peut créer une fragrance rien que pour vous.
15:00 Sortez de la ville pour grimper jusqu’à la Piazzale
Michelangelo avec sa somptueuse vieille église de San Miniato.
18:00 De retour dans l’Oltrarno, La Dolce Vita (6r Piazza del
Carmine) est le lieu parfait pour l’aperitivo – de petits amuse-gueule
servis avec un verre.
21:00 Réservez une table chez Buca Lapi (1r Via del Trebbio), le plus
ancien restaurant débit de vin de Florence.
23:00 Colle Bereto (4-6r Piazza Strozzi) avec sa clientèle glamour
variée et ses soirées rythmées est un club exclusif situé à l’étage.
Jour 2
10:00 Un petit-déjeuner de délicieuses viennoiseries chez Gilli (39r
Piazza della Repubblica) est un autre must florentin.
11:00 Visitez le marché couvert de San Lorenzo – touristique mais
amusant.
13:00 À l’heure du lunch, promenez-vous en direction du fleuve et
découvrez un de mes bars, Moyo (23r Via dei Benci).
14:30 De l’autre côté de la rue, entrez dans l’église de Santa Croce
(Piazza Santa Croce) où les notables de Florence sont inhumés.
15:30 À l’intérieur, cherchez l’école du cuir et la boutique Scuola del
Cuoio, qui propose des articles avec des fresques de l’école de
Ghirlandaio.
17:00 Sur une petite place, Flair (2r Piazza Scarlatti) vend du
mobilier contemporain.
19:00 Le Bar Fusion à l’hôtel Gallery Art (5 Vicolo dell’Oro) est un
endroit chic pour prendre un verre et l’aperitivo.
21:00 Dînez dans un autre restaurant cave à vins de Florence, Buca
dell’Orafo (28r Via de’ Girolami), caché au fond d’une ruelle étroite.
Il est recommandé de réserver…
36
Brussels Airlines b.there! magazine
March 2010
Image Bernardo Conti
Above: Indulge in
aperitivo and art at
Florentine institution
La Dolce Vita
Right: The famous
Porcellino has a well
polished snout thanks
to local tradition
Below far right:
Made-to-measure
perfume is on offer
at Lorenzo Villoresi
buying any leather here. Instead, stroke
the snout of the bronze boar – the
Porcellino – and drop a coin at its feet
to ensure you’ll return to the city.
13:00 For lunch, head over the Ponte
Alle Grazie (enjoying a great view of
the Ponte Vecchio as you do so) to
the Oltrarno. This area’s like Paris’ Left
Bank – a bit bohemian – and it’s where
I opened my first bar, Zoe (13 Via dei
Renai, tel. +39 055 243111), in 1994.
At lunchtimes it’s packed with locals
enjoying a light meal, while the evenings
see gorgeous young Florentines arrive
for the fantastic drinks and live DJs.
14:00 Make an appointment to meet
Lorenzo Villoresi (14 Via de Bardi, tel.
+39 055 234 1187, lorenzovilloresi.it),
who sells his range of perfumes in the
funky San Niccolo area. He can also
create a scent just for you in his atelier,
which overlooks the city. He’s very true
to Florence’s artisan spirit.
15:00 Walk out of the city walls through
the medieval San Miniato gate and head
up to Piazzale Michelangelo. It’s a bit
of a climb, but the views of the city are
stunning. Then take a short stroll to the
11th-century San Miniato, one of
Florence’s oldest and loveliest churches.
21:00 Make a reservation at Buca Lapi
(1r Via del Trebbio, tel. +39 055 213768,
bucalapi.com), Florence’s oldest ‘cellar’
restaurant, opened in 1880 in the Palazzo
Antinori cellars. There are frescoes on
the walls and it serves authentic Tuscan
food. Quintessentially Florentine.
11:00 Visit the covered market at
San Lorenzo, where you can satisfy
your gastronomic desires. Fruit and
vegetables are upstairs, while the
surrounding streets are packed
with stalls selling leather. It’s rather
touristy, but fun.
16:00 Back in the Oltrarno, pop into
the Cappella Brancacci of the church
of Santa Maria del Carmine (Piazza del
Carmine, tel. +39 055 276 8224) before
it closes. Masaccio’s famous frescoes
illuminate this chapel – one of the
Renaissance’s most important works.
23:00 At Colle Bereto (4-6r Piazza
Strozzi, tel. +39 055 283156) there’s
a glamorous mix of people and a party
vibe. I loved this bar so much that I also
ended up buying it. Upstairs is the club,
which overlooks the Palazzo Strozzi,
where you can party till 3am. You must
book a table to get in and there aren’t
many tables, so it’s very exclusive.
11:30 Officina Profumo Farmaceutica di
Santa Maria Novella (16 Via della Scala,
tel. +39 055 216276, smnovella.it) is
a chemist with a difference. Another
of those places that can only exist in
Florence, it’s been run by monks since the
16th century. They still make tinctures
using their own herbs, and their soaps,
candles and perfumes are gorgeous.
There’s even a small museum.
18:00 Across the square from the chapel
is a Florentine institution, La Dolce Vita
(6r Piazza del Carmine, tel. +39 055 284
595). It’s the perfect spot for another
Florentine institution, the aperitivo
– little dishes of food served free with
a drink. Fashionable Florence has been
hanging out at this bar for years, and
I was lucky enough to buy it last year.
Day Two
10:00 Breakfast at Gilli (39r Piazza
della Repubblica, tel. +39 055 213896,
gilli.it) is another Florentine must.
Enjoy delicious pastries on the large
terrace on the Piazza, where you can
watch the world go by.
13:00 For lunch, stroll towards the river
and pop into another of my bars, Moyo
(23r Via dei Benci, tel. +39 055 247
9738). This place is quite funky, and
again serves a great lunch. There’s
also free Wi-Fi and a large communal
Map illustration Jason Pickersgill/
Acute Graphics
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March 2010
37
FEATURE florence
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Mijn Firenze
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De parel van het Italië uit de renaissance mag dan wel op een gigantisch
museum lijken, maar de stad is verre van dood. Bareigenaar Lorenzo
Segre is een sleutelfiguur geweest in het terug tot leven wekken van het
Florentijnse nachtleven, dus sprak Kamin Mohammadi met hem af
om de oude en nieuwe trekpleisters te ontdekken.
38
Dag één
9:30 Begin je dag bij Pasticceria Giacosa (10r Via della Spada), één
van de oudste cafés van de stad.
10:30 Het Palazzo Strozzi (1r Piazza degli Strozzi) biedt onderdak
aan de beste hedendaagse kunsttentoonstellingen van de stad.
11:30 Streel de snuit van het bronzen everzwijn (il Porcellino) op de
toeristische Porcellinomarkt (Mercato Nuovo) en gooi een muntstuk
aan zijn voeten om je terugkeer naar de stad te verzekeren.
13:00 Steek de rivier over en ga naar Oltrarno om te lunchen bij Zoe
(13 Via dei Renai).
14:00 Lorenzo Villoresi (14 Via de Bardi) verkoopt zijn eigen gamma
parfums en kan speciaal voor u een parfum samenstellen.
15:00 Verlaat de stad om naar de Piazzale Michelangelo en de
mooie oude kerk van San Miniato te klimmen.
18:00 Terug in Oltrarno is La Dolce Vita (6r Piazza del Carmine) de
perfecte plek om van ‘aperitivo’ – kleine gerechtjes die gratis bij een
drankje geserveerd worden – te genieten.
21:00 Reserveer bij Buca Lapi (1r Via del Trebbio), het oudste
‘kelderrestaurant’ van Firenze.
23:00 Colle Bereto (4-6r Piazza Strozzi) biedt een aanlokkelijke mix
van mensen en een feestsfeer, en een exclusieve club op de
bovenverdieping.
Dag twee
10:00 Een ontbijt met heerlijke gebakjes bij Gilli (39r Piazza della
Repubblica) is een must wanneer je in Firenze bent.
11:00 Bezoek de overdekte markt bij San Lorenzo – toeristisch
maar leuk.
13:00 Wandel voor de lunch in de richting van de rivier naar nog één
van mijn bars, Moyo (23r Via dei Benci).
14:30 Aan de overkant van de straat, in de kerk van Santa Croce
(Piazza Santa Croce), worden de vooraanstaanden en de gegoeden
van Firenze begraven.
15:30 Ga wanneer je in de kerk bent op zoek naar de lederschool en
-atelier Scuola del Cuoio, waar je fresco’s vindt van de school van
Ghirlandaio.
17:00 Op een klein plein verkoopt Flair (2r Piazza Scarlatti)
hedendaags meubilair.
19:00 De Fusion Bar in het Gallery Hotel Art (5 Vicolo dell’Oro) is
een stijlvolle gelegenheid voor drankjes en ‘aperitivo’.
21:00 Dineer in een ander Florentijns kelderrestaurant, Buca
dell’Orafo (28r Via de’ Girolami), dat in een smal steegje verscholen
ligt. Reserveren is aangeraden…
Brussels Airlines b.there! magazine
March 2010
Clockwise from left:
Buy modern Florentine
furniture at Flair;
Established after
WWII, the Scuola
del Cuoio is the place
for artisan leather;
Florence’s great and
good are buried in
the Renaissance
Santa Croce church
table, where American students like
to hang out with their laptops.
14:30 Just across the road, you must
visit the church of Santa Croce (Piazza
Santa Croce). This is where most of
the Medici family are buried, along
with the likes of Michelangelo, Galileo
and Machiavelli.
15:30 While you’re in Santa Croce,
seek out the leather school and shop
Scuola del Cuoio (tel. +39 055 244534,
scuoladelcuoio.com) inside the church,
occupying the old dormitory of the
novice monks. Designed by the Medici’s
architect Michelozzo, it features
frescoes by members of Ghirlandaio’s
school. It’s another very Florentine,
high-quality artisan outfit, and the
best place to buy leather.
17:00 In a tiny square on the Oltrarno
is one of my favourite shops, Flair (2r
Piazza Scarlatti, tel. +39 055 267
0154, flair.it). It sells furniture – but
contemporary classics rather than the
usual antiques you see in Florence.
19:00 The Fusion Bar at the Gallery
Hotel Art (5 Vicolo dell’Oro, tel. +39
055 27263, lungarnohotels.com) is
a sophisticated and chic place for drinks
and aperitivo, with a Far East theme.
It’s not one of mine, but I wish it was.
21:00 Dine at another of Florence’s
cellar restaurants, Buca dell’Orafo (28r
Via de’ Girolami, tel. +39 055 213619),
hidden in a tiny alley on the north side
of the Ponte Vecchio. It’s small and
popular, so you should book. The food
is made from seasonal ingredients
and the atmosphere is raucous…
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