Florence for Two: Steaks, Sunsets, Steps
Skip the couples’ cooking class for a night and just order a steak you can’t finish. Florence’s best pairs activity isn’t a workshop, it’s a single enormous Chianina T-bone that forces two people to share, and everything else on this list is built around the same idea: things that work better with a second person than alone.
Bistecca alla Fiorentina, split two ways, is the centerpiece. It’s sold by weight, not by the plate, typically 45 to 85 EUR per kilogram, with a minimum cut of 800g to 1.2kg, so ordering “one steak” at a cellar trattoria like Buca Lapi, Trattoria Mario, or Buca Mario is already a meal built for a couple. It’s grilled rare over oak embers and served that way, al sangue, no matter how you ask, so go in wanting a properly bloody steak or order something else entirely; sending it back to be cooked further just gets you a puzzled look from the kitchen.
An evening stroll through Santo Spirito, on the Oltrarno side of the river, is the low-key follow-up. The piazza in front of Brunelleschi’s unadorned Basilica di Santo Spirito fills with locals at wine bars rather than tour groups, which makes it a better after-dinner walk than anywhere near the Duomo. Nothing here needs booking; just wander and sit wherever looks good.
Giotto’s Campanile at sunset is the view for two, and it’s a genuine climb: 414 steps, no elevator, roughly 20 EUR on the Giotto Pass. The payoff is a straight-on look at Brunelleschi’s dome from across the rooftops rather than the more distant view most photos show. Go up an hour before sunset; the stairwell is narrow and one-directional in sections, so a crowded slot slows everyone down.
Verdict: the tower climb is worth the 414 steps for the dome view alone, but book the earliest sunset slot you can get, since the light window is short and a late departure from the ticket counter can mean climbing into a view already past its best color.
One concrete tip: reserve the steak dinner, not just the table. Kitchens at these trattorias often need advance notice to have a large enough cut ready, and walking in unannounced can mean a smaller steak or a long wait.
Pair the evening with a proper look at the skyline you’ll be climbing toward; see the sightseeing guide for the dome and bridge views by daylight.