Not the last time

I'd been wandering the streets of Firenze, Italy. The Pitti Palace and its gardens, Uffizi Gallery, Duomo, its cobbled streets lined with lovely old buildings and the Ponte Vecchio and more. My first trip to Firenze and the Tuscan region surrounding it is something I'll never forget.

I'd walked out of Officina Profumo - Farmaceutica di Santa Maria Novella, situated on Via della Scala, an incredibly beautiful perfumery (originally founded by Dominican friars around 1221) and was wandering towards Piazza della Signoria to find a café to sit for a while. There were several piazzas in which I could have stopped but was headed back to the Uffizi Gallery and Piazza della Signoria was on the way, just over ten minutes walk away.

I saw Rivoire right away on arriving there, its commanding corner position sitting directly opposite the Palazzo Vecchio and it looked lovely. I didn't have to work too hard to convince my guy we had to explore it and only minutes later was in chocolate heaven.

Rivoire was founded in 1872 by Enrico Rivoire, a man who sought excellence in his craft, making chocolate, and since then Rivoire has continued that proud tradition...A cup of chocolate here is...it's...I can't describe it; you'll have to try it for yourself.

When thinking about a beautiful café experience Rivoire comes immediately to mind as it was such a beautiful one; the café itself and the setting.

After looking inside we took a small table facing the piazza and waited for our order, a cup of chocolate to drink each...and a few chocolates to share. They serve other things too, I just wanted chocolate though because...well, I don't need a reason.

There, we sat watching the world go by and, as time took the afternoon away, the moment nestled itself indelibly within my memory; above is an image taken that day, that's me...the blur on the left side, not the bald guy who looked remarkably like the actor Stanley Tucci.

It was a lovely afternoon and the very one on which I fell in love with Rivoire.

That was not the last time I was there. I've been to Firenze quite a few times and on every occasion have spent time at Rivoire, the café, shop, bar and restaurant. It's become somewhat of a tradition of ours...one we keep alive as keenly and diligently as the owners of the establishment have done since 1872.

Becca 💗