Mercato Centrale
Mercato Centrale
4.5
Points of Interest & LandmarksFlea & Street Markets
About
If you're a food lover, you can't miss this historic food market in Florence. As part of the San Lorenzo Market, this food market showcases some of Tuscany's finest products, from farm-fresh produce to cured meats and cheeses. Many travelers get truffle oil, honey, and aged balsamic vinegar for souvenirs—which you can try before buying. Swing upstairs to grab a quick lunch, and wander through the outdoor market for more shopping. Join a walking food tour to experience the best food spots in Florence, which often includes a stop at Mercato Centrale. Visit earlier in the day for fewer crowds. – Tripadvisor
Duration: < 1 hour
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The area
Address
Neighborhood: Florence Historic Center
How to get there
  • Alamanni-Stazione Santa Maria Novella • 7 min walk
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See what travelers are saying
  • TomerShalmon
    Israel300 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A great market for market lovers
    A great market built on 2 levels: the lower selling products such as cheeses, wines, sausages, meat and more. The upper part is mainly food stalls and restaurants. A great and very tasty experience
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 21, 2023
  • Shasha
    Chino Valley, Arizona395 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Mercado Centrale What a wonder!
    Just minutes from the center, this glorious place offers every Florentine ingredient you'd want and more. We enjoyed browsing the stalls before heading to a cooking class and went back for supplies to hone our cooking skills. Everything is fresh and fabulous.
    Visited February 2023
    Written March 21, 2023
  • Jacqueline G
    Preston, United Kingdom179 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A great place to eat artisan food when in Florence.
    The Mercato Centrale is a key place to visit when in Florence. In the surrounding streets are lots of amazing market stalls selling leather goods. Inside on the ground floor is a traditional food market selling fresh produce. Upstairs is a floor full of artisan Street food vendors. This place has an amazing vibe and the food choice is extensive and delicious. A definite must do to put on your visit list!
    Visited March 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 29, 2023
  • Clochette15
    Switzerland153 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Italian food court - worth the visit and more
    There are two floors : on the first floor you have the traditional market, where you can buy fresh fruits. We bought Italian strawberries, but I’m not sure that we paid a fair price. We don’t care, they were so delicious. On the second floor, it’s like a food court with many options for eating, even vegetarian. The advantage is that you see what you can eat. It’s really crowded at lunch time, but it was OK from 2pm. On Sundays, the market on the first floor is closed, but the « food court » remains open. So find the entrance and take the steps up.
    Visited April 2023
    Written April 17, 2023
  • Iaancat
    Cork, Ireland1,208 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Amazing Variety of Fresh Produce
    We visited late morning and spent an hour or so wandering around the stalls, shops and eateries. Great atmosphere. The smells are absolutely gorgeous. There are some fantastic produce to buy here from cheese, meats , fruit and vegetables to spices and chocolate. I love Venchi gianduia - which was €20 per kilo cheaper here than in their shop near duomo. It closes at 3pm so be sure to get there early
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written April 18, 2023
  • Erico2709
    Singapore, Singapore2,401 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Nice vibe
    The food court above has a good mix of different food which is exciting to see. We had lunch but I will say the prices will be higher than your usual food court for sure. Outside the market are rows of stalls pretty much selling the same things.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written April 23, 2023
  • Shanelle
    Santa Monica, California2,806 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Central market good for quick bites
    Multilevel market with various vendors. Came here for dinner on a Wednesday evening and tried the lampredotto (cow’s stomach), pastas, and wonton soup (from three different vendors). My dad loved the lampredotto and it’s a quick option if you’re looking for something more unique. The pastas we had were the wild boar ravioli and the tartufo - both were tasty. The wonton soup did include tiny shrimps, so keep that in mind if you’re allergic. You can order drinks separately from the bar. Credit cards accepted. There’s more seating upstairs if you can’t find any seats on the first level. There are big screen TVs, and a soccer match was playing while we were there. Restrooms are available.
    Visited April 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written May 10, 2023
  • Jan B
    9 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Bussiest place ever
    Bussiest place you'll ever do your shopping but awesome energy. As an UK residents, we were just blown away with the variety of produce you could buy. There is pretty much anythign and everythiung you might want to buy, from frozen octopuss to leather jackets. A must visit when in Florence.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 22, 2023
  • Andrew G
    Sheffield, United Kingdom7 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great choice of food and drink in one place
    Excellent place. We ate here for breakfast a couple of times and were spoilt for choice of food. Also had an evening here, buying a bottle of wine from an excellent wine shop and picking up some food from one of the many different food sellers within the market. Such a great concept to have so much choice in one place.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written May 23, 2023
  • AK8397
    Ontario, Canada885 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    In the market for a good time?
    The Mercato Centrale is a huge marketplace that takes up 2 floors and spills out into the local streets. You can buy flowers, vegetables, meats, fish, pasta, all your market needs in one place. On the second floor, you will find restaurants and cafes with plenty of seating. This is a terrific place for lunch or to just poke around. Very popular and often bustling, this market is a great experience.
    Visited May 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written June 7, 2023
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

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Popular mentions

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tmmsshep
St. Augustine, FL146 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2019
My wife and I went here twice for lunch. We tried different food both times. Unfortunately, I could tell you which vendors they were. We had a cheese and meat platter with olives and of course wine. We also ate pizza, gnocchi, fresh mozzarella, rice balls. Everything was delicious. It is very crowed, and you may have to wait for a seat, communal seating is common.
Written March 23, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Brian50Edmonton
Edmonton, Canada190 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2022
Staying in Florence in apartment with cooking facilities so decided to try out the Mercato Centrale. Has lots of butcher shops, produce kiosks and many places to eat on main floor but particularly on the 2nd and 3rd floor. We purchased meat twice from 2 different butchers ( yes they actually do cut the meat right there) at reasonable prices. Produce was ok, seemed to be a bit on the expensive side but was ok where we purchased - lettuce, radicchio, grapes and tomato's. Outside the market are many many street vendors mostly all selling the same things, leather goods, scarves etc. The market was fairly busy all the t ime, but very busy in the mornings....opens at 10 a.m. and closes at around 2 I think, at least for the indoor vendors, food / eating areas may stay open later...not sure.
Written May 7, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Marek V
Bratislava, Slovakia6 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2021 • Solo
It is necessary to recommend visiting the Mercato Centrale if you want to eat a delicious food (pizza in my case) for an affordable prices. Staff have been very nice and polite and have spoken english quite fluently which is an huge advantage. It is in walking distance from Cappelle Medicee and train station Santa Maria Novella.
Written September 3, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Robert B
Saratoga Springs, NY984 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Oct 2019
Mercato Central is a huge building with local vendors on one floor(closed when we visited) and a jam packed food court. Outside there are numerous vendors creating a middle eastern bazaar like atmosphere. Having visited superb traditional markets in Valencia, Salamanca and elsewhere in Europe the Mercato Central was a disappointment! It is more a tourist trap than dispenser of local culinary delights! Few locals were observed here! Nice to visit for less than 30 minutes and take a few pictures, but that is it!
Written January 28, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Paradise179849
Houston, TX5 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2021
This is two stories. Upstairs is the "fast food" section and is expensive I thought. But DOWNSTAIRS you will find every fresh food item you can imagine as well as some prepared food spots. I cannot recommend Pasta Fresca enough. For 5 Euro, made to order right in front of me, I received a pasta that was light, and delicious. Choose your pasta and your sauce. The fresh pasta itself is made right there. It could not have been better. A tour guide near by said that this company produces pasta for restaurants in the city as well and for Christmas made somewhere near 2 tons of fresh pasta to supply individuals and businesses. I'd say this is a "must eat" location. No seating though, just counters to stand and eat. I'd go back in a heartbeat!
Written January 10, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

marco c
Whittier, CA4 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Jun 2022
The different pizza focaccia on the second floor is fantastic, the pastries on the second floor are delicious as well. I also drank very good wine by the glass and bottle at the wine room/counter on the second floor next to the stairs.
The coffee booth as you enter the first floor from the leather market street is great for a quick cappuccino and panini. We ate breakfast everyday for a week at Mercato Centrale. You can have dinner at 9pm and after with no problem. Busy with tourist traffic who have gotten the word that you can eat well and avoid the ridiculous Cuperto charge at most if not all restaurants in Florence.
Written June 30, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

PurpleRoseFlower
Portland, OR16 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2019 • Family
Stumbled upon this place walking back to our hotel one night. It's really unassuming and I would've never known what was in the huge warehouse if I wasn't curious why there was an escalator. The usual stalls of leather goods and tshirts litter the street so knowing this gem is "hidden" is a great find. Upstairs is a large food court with an Eatily and my family could split up to select preferred dining choices. Downs8is a large fresh market. I only wish we were told to visit here by the hotel when they "recommended" practically everything else to do in the city.
Written January 10, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Madeline
Oxford, UK29 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2022
Beautiful and so full of life. Markets are a great way to experience life inside a city and this one was no different. Though the inside of the market was mostly food, the outside is lined with more touristy merchants. It was a great place to buy gifts as you can definitely argue on price. Good candied Cumquats.
Written April 17, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

rosiedreams
Trumbull, CT58 contributions
3.0 of 5 bubbles
Jul 2022
Big change in the past 25 years. This market used to be much more thriving and lively when I last visited, although I realize so much has happened these last few years.
We visited late morning. About 1/3 of the stalls were closed. I don't know if it was due to the time of day or due to Covid, etc.
Typical butcher and produce shops. We grabbed a quick bite to eat from a deli style stall before we came upon a stall offering a variety of fresh pasta with a topping of choice. It looked amazing and was extremely busy. I recommend this anyone looking for a bite to eat in the market.
All along the outside of the building were vendors selling clothing/scarves/leather goods/trinkets/etc... All very repetitive and you can pretty much negotiate a bargain with any of the vendors. Some are more flexible than others. If you don't like the price offered by one vendor, just go to the next :-)
Written August 12, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

texascamps
Denver, CO47 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2022
Though it seems a bit dirty and you have to go through the dirty streets, once inside you will see that it's pretty clean. We purchased food to cook here and used the upstairs food court.

Food is not less expensive than in the stores but there is a greater selection.

Upstairs at the food court, you will find varied food options. Not everyone in our party wanted the same food, so we came here multiple times so we could all get what we wanted. Each vendor has its own counter and pricing. Everything was good (not great) but adequate for meal time. The music was loud so we milled around until we found a table away from the loudest speakers. The bathrooms were disgusting. Be ready with your own soap and toilet paper.

Also, there are often not enough tables so be prepared to wait for a spot. Grab your spot first and then send out food parties to retrieve food.

Oh, and after the market part downstairs closes, you can still use the stairs to get to the food court in the evening.
Written May 12, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Mercato Centrale - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

Frequently Asked Questions about Mercato Centrale