Babbo Inglese

Man. I'm bummed that your experience there was...

2011-01-29T00:17:32.111+01:00

Man. I'm bummed that your experience there was so bad. I still look back fondly on that meal.

Thanks for attributing the photo. Too many people see 'CC' or really any photo on Flickr and ignore the 'attribution' bit. :)

Hi 'anonymous' thanks for your lengthy co...

2010-12-12T14:09:19.459+01:00

Hi 'anonymous'

thanks for your lengthy comment. Let me begin by saying that I do not doubt that you have had some great meals there. As I pointed out in my review, someone whose judgement (and knowledge of Florentine food) I trust implicitly. However, the experience was not good for us.

I will take issue with a couple of your points though:

"your blog gives a false impression of Cibreo and is unfair"
No, my blog gives *my* impression of the restaurant. There are countless other opinions listed on the web and in guidebooks.

"And no one– no Florentine– has your sense of urgency about a glass of wine."
I can't speak for Florentines. But I have never waited that long in a 'serious' restaurant to be asked if I would like a drink.

My point is really this: if you want to charge that kind of money for that kind of food, then give me something for it. The food didn't deliver it and the service likewise. I would have been less bothered by this had I been at the trattoria next door paying half the price.

I wasn't there, and must take your description...

2010-12-09T18:41:25.482+01:00

I wasn't there, and must take your description of your experience for what it is. But it seems to me that much of your displeasure was caused by your preconceptions of what a dining experience should be. I can't argue with your personal palate, or your sense of time, but having enjoyed some of the most extraordinary meals of my life at Cibreo I can tell you that you might not have entered the premises in the spirit of the place. Our family and friends have never had the problem of empty minutes a tavola, as we are very active conversationalists, and we find the unhurried atmosphere and unobtrusive staff a respite. As for the food, the menu is very serious about its adherence to very pure, very characteristic Florentine dishes, and I advise everyone that this isn't for everybody. I mean no offense to you, or discredit to your experience, but your blog gives a false impression of Cibreo and is unfair. Lukewarm food is done on purpose, room temperature assures the fullest flavor for most dishes. Pauses of a quarter hour might well be deliberate, too, as well as friendly admonishing to use one's fingers or conjoin dishes, etc. And no one– no Florentine– has your sense of urgency about a glass of wine.
Or maybe it was an "off" night.

Looking forward to your triumphant return to the E...

2010-07-16T09:34:17.914+02:00

Looking forward to your triumphant return to the English social scene

I take it you have tried speaking loudly and slowl...

2010-07-08T22:38:32.327+02:00

I take it you have tried speaking loudly and slowly in English. Also adding an O or A to the end of an English word can help.

Are you coming back soon then old boy? I'll be...

2010-06-22T11:11:01.198+02:00

Are you coming back soon then old boy? I'll be over in Livorno in July if you are still there J x

Cheers English friends! Pt 2 will of course apport...

2010-06-21T15:56:30.528+02:00

Cheers English friends! Pt 2 will of course apportion the blame a little more fairly.

Birthday Curry! :-) (not from Barack Obama, the Q...

2010-06-21T14:34:49.027+02:00

Birthday Curry! :-)

(not from Barack Obama, the Queen Mum, Louis Armstrong, or Lee Mack)

Well, we're looking forward to having you back...

2010-06-21T10:36:26.821+02:00

Well, we're looking forward to having you back!

missing it already...

2010-06-15T20:34:46.554+02:00

missing it already...

THE BEST ONE IS RIVARENO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-06-10T18:27:00.240+02:00

THE BEST ONE IS RIVARENO!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Ti invidio!

2010-06-01T23:03:50.101+02:00

Ti invidio!

Thanks for all the comments everyone. I agree that...

2010-06-01T20:38:39.621+02:00

Thanks for all the comments everyone. I agree that the best places I have eaten in Italy are the small trattorias. But that is not least because the price is so low. With a low price you are happy with good food and a good service. Anything else is a bonus. Stick a high price on your meal and you better make sure you provide commensurate food and service.

Great, balanced review, and very helpful for those...

2010-05-31T19:02:12.150+02:00

Great, balanced review, and very helpful for those of us who might have been planning a visit! I included it my Top 10 this week over at www.italytutto.com

Thanks for sharing this. We've eaten at Cibrei...

2010-05-31T17:10:01.418+02:00

Thanks for sharing this. We've eaten at Cibreino, and Teatro del Sale. I think we'll cross Il Cibreo off the list.

I find the best places to eat in Italy are the sma...

2010-05-30T17:32:00.889+02:00

I find the best places to eat in Italy are the small trattoria's with the family cooking in the kitchen, usually 'la nonna'! Real food and cheaper...

Sounds like an, expensive, nightmare. For 300+ Eur...

2010-05-30T16:31:39.134+02:00

Sounds like an, expensive, nightmare. For 300+ Euros I'd have expected impeccable service and equally impeccable food and everything else.

A restaurant to be avoided. Well done for having written about it - it might get them to buck their ideas up.

And I agree with madonnadelpiatto - simple Italian restaurants, from my experience often serve the best food, and have pretty good service, and wine, too. Each restaurant owner should treat every customer as if he or she where a blogger.

Will Tweet this.

Best,

Alex

A really useful, balanced review. Thanks. I'...

2010-05-30T15:54:56.624+02:00

A really useful, balanced review. Thanks. I've included it in my top 10 posts this week from the bloggers in Italy on www.italytutto.com

I see that this does not only happens to me. The b...

2010-05-26T15:03:23.920+02:00

I see that this does not only happens to me. The best food in Italy is always in the simple restaurants. Fancy places tend to be a disappointment in one or another way. If I look back there is no special occasion in he last few years that has not been ruined by a so called "better place". May be I should stop and stick to the trattoria!

OH just in case you need MORE input re: TASTE in F...

2010-03-19T00:00:29.169+01:00

OH just in case you need MORE input re: TASTE in Florence this year;) here (the link should work... its scheduled to post today): http://www.talkoftomatoes.com/2010/03/19/fuori-taste-florence

what no gold leaf? Wasn't that a hoot! What a ...

2010-03-18T23:56:45.098+01:00

what no gold leaf? Wasn't that a hoot! What a great show---so wish I had run into you there, though my kiddos were tucked away in school so I roamed freely with my very broken Italian... sounds like english with a few italian words thrown in. I liked the beer with the numbers on front, darn cannot remember the name. And skipped buying the extra glass---I snagged a plastic glass and everyone filled it just fine;). I brought home dessert wines, bcheese-parmesan, a to-die for olive tapenade, a few gelatinas and a jar of fantastic tomatoes...

Janelle, thanks for visiting. I only had one day a...

2010-03-17T19:53:53.624+01:00

Janelle, thanks for visiting. I only had one day at Taste and I too am trying to write it up... When/if it'll appear I don't know. I found that the best things I tasted had all sold out by the time I got to the shop :( though. Should've gone early.

Fantastic! I am supposed to be making my kiddos lu...

2010-03-17T12:20:42.999+01:00

Fantastic! I am supposed to be making my kiddos lunch and here I am instead reading about PIGS. We adore pigs! I loved the Florence TASTE event---still writing my post about it (with a million links since I met so many vendors!!). I assume you tasted a lot of meat? I really should have gone more than just one day...

Grazie, ti ricordo anche Bambi, figlio di trippaio...

2010-02-15T10:23:48.830+01:00

Grazie, ti ricordo anche Bambi, figlio di trippaio, sulla Via Pisana prima del vecchio Ponte sulla Greve, ottimo lampredotto e anche trippa in gelatina con sottaceti che taglia a fette, buonissima nei mesi estivi.

Hi Dan! do you remember when you and I ate tripe t...

2010-02-15T09:37:22.945+01:00

Hi Dan!
do you remember when you and I ate tripe together?
Simon was there... oriana of tuscanycious.com