Cuisine in Tuscany

As well as the beautiful rolling hills, vast green vineyards, azure blue seas and some of the most spectacular mediaeval buildings in all of Italy, Tuscany is also a region famed for its cuisine. From the rich and creamy vegetable soups that use the freshest of local ingredients, through to the Tuscan crostini, one of its most famous exports and an appetiser that can be found in the most rustic restaurants through to Michelin starred one, it is still always the simplicity of these dishes that has visitors returning year after year. Pappa al pomodoro, a tasty dish made from the world's simplest ingredients, bread, tomato, extra virgin olive oil, garlic and basil is the perfect accompaniment taken alongside Bistecca alla Fiorentina, a steak 3-4 cm in thickness and cooked rare. If seafood is desired Cacciucco is a typical Tuscan fish dish. There are several varieties, but the best known are 'alla livornese' and 'alla viareggina'. It is a traditional fish soup, with crustaceans and molluscs, usually octopus, cuttlefish, cicadas, or scorpion fish, with the addition of tomato sauce and wine. There is certainly something to suit every palate and taste all washed down with a beautiful and world renowned glass of chianti.

Sightseeing in Tuscany

Every city of art in Tuscany is home to works by renowned artists, with museums housing unique masterpieces, monuments, historic villas, cathedrals and several sites recognised as UNESCO World Heritage sites. Among the most enchanting are Florence, San Gimignano, Volterra, Pisa, Siena, Lucca, Arezzo, Livorno, Pistoia and Prato, many of which have made the region famous on the silver screen. Florence in itself is known worldwide for its artistic treasures from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance. A visit to the city includes admiring works that are beyond incredible in their beauty. Some of the timeless masterpieces of Dante Alighieri's hometown are Palazzo Vecchio and the Uffizi, the Duomo with Brunelleschi's dome and the Galleria dell'Accademia housing David. At the Uffizi, one of the most important museums in the world, one can admire masterpieces by Michelangelo, Raphael, Leonardo da Vinci, Titian, Piero della Francesca, Tiepolo, Caravaggio and many other world-famous artists, as well as antique sculptures and tapestries from the Medici collections. This is only one city in a region full of wonder and beauty leaving visitors in awe and uniquely inspired to create their very own works of art.

JRE Montpelier Chefs

The masterpieces do not end on the walls of galleries and museums however. With such a wealth of fresh local ingredients, the art continues from the kitchen to the table and JRE are very proud to be working with some of the region's most exciting up and coming chefs, all of whom wish to be remembered in the annals of time.

Filippo Saporito of La Leggenda dei Frati fame is bringing the human touch to his kitchen. His joie de vivre and sympathetic nature have all who work with him and visit, returning time and again. He is as passionate about his ingredients as he is about the team that works the magic beside him, discovering new technologies and developing new unique ideas. 

Two Michelin starred Gaetano Trovato, spent many years in France and Switzerland honing his culinary craft, before returning to his home country of Italy and opening his own fine dining restaurant, Arnolfo, set in the beautiful Tuscan surroundings of the town of Colle di Val D’Elsa.

Situated on a stunning beach in San Vicenzo, Deborah Corsi’s La Perla del Mare, is just that, The Pearl of the Sea. Having started cooking before she could properly walk, her delicate and elegant dishes speak of the very character at the heart of their inception. Her spicy meatballs that she used to make for her father are still the stuff of legend.

Stefano Pinciaroli’s PS Ristorante is well known for being one of the finest restaurants serving local Tuscan cuisine in the region. It is always Stefano’s greatest pleasure to give a modern twist to an ancient recipe and he spends much of his time searching in the archives for the jewel in the crown that he can restore and add his own expressive flair to.

Filippo Baroni puts nature at the heart of everything he does. Mater Restaurant, located in the Casentinesi Forests National Park, is influenced by the sights, scents and sounds of everything around it. Filippo has spent many years understanding and researching the land that surrounds the restaurant allowing forest and cuisine to work in harmony together.