Enoteca La Torre

Roman fine dining in an elegant setting 

Red tuna, estragon, sour cream and fermented roots

Out of all the 1 Michelin star restaurants in Rome, Enoteca La Torre is perhaps the one with the most elegant, beautiful and romantic dining room. Located in the Northern part of the capital, Enoteca La Torre is what glamour fine dining is all about, headed up by chef Domenico Stile, the food offering is contemporary, sophisticated with stunning presentation.  To finish off my Rome trip with a bang, I opted for the tasting menu "A journey with eyes closed", which is a 7-course menu selected by the chef, mostly taken from its a la carte menu. I always feel tasting menu usually is better value for money than a la carte anyway, as you get to try more dishes at a cost of 10- 20 more euro.

Armando al Pantheon

Classic Roman cuisine

Spaghetti, alla grioia

Armando al Pantheon is perhaps really high on the to visit list for many people when they travel to Rome, highly recommended on many leading travel sites, from Time Out to Eater. The restaurant is renown for its traditional Roman cuisine, in a simple, casual setting. Located next to the Rome landmark Pantheon, the menu format is your classic Italian 4 course affair, starting from a selection of starters, to pasta and mains, before finishing with dessert. Most dish cost around 10 - 20 Euro mark, along with a strong wine list that almost entirely based on Italian wines.

La Bottega del Buon Caffè

Top quality refined Tuscan cuisine in Florence

Risotto creamed with 36 months aged parmesan cheese, fennels cream, burnt leek, radishes

Located not far from the Florence city center, overlooking river Arno, is the Michelin starred La Bottega del Buon Caffè, many rated as one of the very best restaurants Florence has to offer. The stylish restaurant has its own farm in Tuscany, supplying fresh herbs, vegetables, and fruit to its kitchen. The restaurant cooking concept is local Tuscan in essence, and use prime ingredients depending on the season. At weekday lunchtime, the restaurant offers an 80 Euro lunch menu, this might sound expensive at first, but all the dishes are actually taken from its tasting menu, to ensure the quality of the dishes is just as good as in dinner service. 

Borgo San Jacopo

Innovative Italian fine dining in Florence

Red salad quinoa, cauliflower, beetroot, sprouts, lovage mayo

On my trip to Florence, sampling local fine dining cuisine is on top of my agenda. After all, classic, casual Tuscan cuisine is already amazing, I was wondering if a fine dining treatment can take it to another level? Does fancy, innovative cooking techniques, combining with prime ingredients really make an impact? To put it to the test, I visited Borgo San Jacopo, a 1 Michelin starred hotel restaurant in the heart of Florence. Headed up by Peter Brunel, the chef is renown for his forward-thinking, outside of the box ideas to create dishes that are unusual, creative, while staying true to the Italian root. 

La Leggenda dei Frati

Tuscan style elegant fine dining 

 Snapper, broccoli, capers

To round off my Florence trip in style, I opted for fine dining, Tuscan style Italian fine dining experience. I was looking for a restaurant that has a good view, classy decor with fine food, and it appears La Leggenda dei Frati fits all of my needs, the Michelin starred restaurant is located on a small hill just outside of the Florence city center, overlooking the beautiful Piazzale Michelangelo site. The restaurant has no more than 10 tables within 2 dining area, all the tables are well spread out with plenty of space. The menu is modern Tuscan style, using mostly local ingredients. To fully experience what the restaurant is capable of, I opted for its 9-course tasting menu.