Scenic Tuscan Restaurant for a Group
May 16th, 2015, 08:07 AM
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Scenic Tuscan Restaurant for a Group
We are part of a group staying in Tavarnelle val d'Pesa, about 30 minutes south of Florence. I want to book a lunch in a restaurant overlooking the countryside in the Chianti area, Val d'Elsa or somewhere else that is under an hours drive. We will have days in both Siena and Florence, so I'd like to go somewhere other than these big cities. We've spent time in the Val d'Orcia, Montepulciano, etc. but not much time in this area. We LOVE La Porte in Montechiello and the restaurant in Gargonza - this is the kind of place I'm looking for. Does anyone have some favorites that we might be able to book ahead of time? Thanks for any help you can give!
May 16th, 2015, 08:13 AM
#2
Not too far from where you are staying. How big is your group?
http://ristorodilamole.it/en/photo-gallery/panoramic/
http://ristorodilamole.it/en/photo-gallery/panoramic/
May 16th, 2015, 08:34 AM
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kybourbon - We will be 10-14 people. Thanks for the link - we haven't done much traveling in the Chianti region. Looks like lots of pretty villages for us to explore. We'd also look for a vineyard that might provide lunch as part of their "tour". We did that at Aviongesi near Montelpulciano and really enjoyed it. Looking forward to learning about Chianti wines.
May 16th, 2015, 03:07 PM
#5
Here's a couple of comments about it. This from Skiphudgins:
***Sept 13--arrive Greve. (Two suggestions if you are not sure about your hotel. Villa Vignamaggio for higher end or Le Centinelle for B & B). Attend wine festival that afternoon evening. We had some much "fun" eating and drinking all afternoon that we cancelled dinner plans. Also nightly events at the Festival.
Sept 14--drive around Chianti area. Make a winery stop like Volpaia or Castello di Ama.
Check out Badia Coltibuono for lunch and their wine shop. Visit Radda or Panzano. See Dario the butcher in Panzano. (Alternatively drive just a little and do hot air ballon).Eat dinner at Ristoro Lamole in Lamole. Best in Tuscany, not just my opinion but most other sites agree like Tripadvisor. Filippo and his partner will take care of you for food and the view is exquisite on the top of a mountain about 7 km above Greve. Lamole di Lamole Chianti Classico Riserva is perfect wine for the setting.***
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...in-tuscany.cfm
And from another thread (sorry the posts are so long, but they might have several places mentioned that you would be interested in):
***Chianti--We stayed 4 nights at a small B and B about 3 miles up a dirt road above Greve--Le Cetinelle. First time we stayed there. Won't be our last. So good it gets a separate writeup. Visited Greve, Radda, Panzano, San Donato, Barberino, Tavernelle, Castellini, Volpaia, and numerous small villages. Views while driving remain some of the best, if not the best in Italy. Visited Castello D'Abola and Casa Sola for wine tours and tasting. Had some great meals including two of our favorite places where we try to eat on each visit to Chianti--(1)La Toppa in San Donato. Luigi and his father are great cooks and better hosts. You feel like you are eating in their house. Great fresh pastas, perfectly cooked meats. Best thing on the menu is onion soup. Their house bottled Chianti is excellent. Never seen a printed menu. Luigi just tells what he has made for the day. He was kind enough at the end of the meal to not only give us a discount as a returning customer, but a bottle of their La Toppa wine; and (2) Ristoro Lamole is even better. Filippo is the owner and grand marshall of the dining floor. Charming, funny gentleman who loves his job and takes time to talk to everyone. Restaurant full with a mix of tourists and wine producers. Onion flan with truffles, pear and ricotta ravioli, guinea fowl in an apricot sauce, fennel au gratin. Easy to understand their top rating with TA. (Also by chance had a cooking class at our B and B with his beautiful wife Kalinka.) Lamole is 5 miles up a secondary road from Greve. Beautiful drive. The restaurant faces west for magnificent sunsets.
Other good restaurants in Greve included La Cantina for pizza, Enoteca Fiorpiazza (and its fun manager Luca) and Verrazano. In Panzano we ate at new restaurant--Cantinetta Sassolini. Very good. Panzano has 2 larger than life characters--Dario the butcher near the main road and Stefano the wine professor located in the old town near the church. No stop in Panzano is complete without a visit to both. As usual the Chianti Classico Riserva wines were great. ****
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...tober-2013.cfm
Another thread:
***raincitygirl on Feb 8, 15 at 3:57pm
Ristoro di Lamole in Tuscany. Sitting on their patio looking out at the distant hill towns and their towers.***
http://www.fodors.com/community/fodo...er-tonight.cfm
***Sept 13--arrive Greve. (Two suggestions if you are not sure about your hotel. Villa Vignamaggio for higher end or Le Centinelle for B & B). Attend wine festival that afternoon evening. We had some much "fun" eating and drinking all afternoon that we cancelled dinner plans. Also nightly events at the Festival.
Sept 14--drive around Chianti area. Make a winery stop like Volpaia or Castello di Ama.
Check out Badia Coltibuono for lunch and their wine shop. Visit Radda or Panzano. See Dario the butcher in Panzano. (Alternatively drive just a little and do hot air ballon).Eat dinner at Ristoro Lamole in Lamole. Best in Tuscany, not just my opinion but most other sites agree like Tripadvisor. Filippo and his partner will take care of you for food and the view is exquisite on the top of a mountain about 7 km above Greve. Lamole di Lamole Chianti Classico Riserva is perfect wine for the setting.***
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...in-tuscany.cfm
And from another thread (sorry the posts are so long, but they might have several places mentioned that you would be interested in):
***Chianti--We stayed 4 nights at a small B and B about 3 miles up a dirt road above Greve--Le Cetinelle. First time we stayed there. Won't be our last. So good it gets a separate writeup. Visited Greve, Radda, Panzano, San Donato, Barberino, Tavernelle, Castellini, Volpaia, and numerous small villages. Views while driving remain some of the best, if not the best in Italy. Visited Castello D'Abola and Casa Sola for wine tours and tasting. Had some great meals including two of our favorite places where we try to eat on each visit to Chianti--(1)La Toppa in San Donato. Luigi and his father are great cooks and better hosts. You feel like you are eating in their house. Great fresh pastas, perfectly cooked meats. Best thing on the menu is onion soup. Their house bottled Chianti is excellent. Never seen a printed menu. Luigi just tells what he has made for the day. He was kind enough at the end of the meal to not only give us a discount as a returning customer, but a bottle of their La Toppa wine; and (2) Ristoro Lamole is even better. Filippo is the owner and grand marshall of the dining floor. Charming, funny gentleman who loves his job and takes time to talk to everyone. Restaurant full with a mix of tourists and wine producers. Onion flan with truffles, pear and ricotta ravioli, guinea fowl in an apricot sauce, fennel au gratin. Easy to understand their top rating with TA. (Also by chance had a cooking class at our B and B with his beautiful wife Kalinka.) Lamole is 5 miles up a secondary road from Greve. Beautiful drive. The restaurant faces west for magnificent sunsets.
Other good restaurants in Greve included La Cantina for pizza, Enoteca Fiorpiazza (and its fun manager Luca) and Verrazano. In Panzano we ate at new restaurant--Cantinetta Sassolini. Very good. Panzano has 2 larger than life characters--Dario the butcher near the main road and Stefano the wine professor located in the old town near the church. No stop in Panzano is complete without a visit to both. As usual the Chianti Classico Riserva wines were great. ****
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...tober-2013.cfm
Another thread:
***raincitygirl on Feb 8, 15 at 3:57pm
Ristoro di Lamole in Tuscany. Sitting on their patio looking out at the distant hill towns and their towers.***
http://www.fodors.com/community/fodo...er-tonight.cfm
May 17th, 2015, 07:51 AM
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kybourbon - THANK YOU so much for this!! I had done a quick search on some of this here and absolutely missed these. This is going to give me so much to look at and research. Each couple on this trip is going to be responsible for planning a day and I think I've got mine planned out for me with a cut & paste!
May 17th, 2015, 08:03 AM
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I second kybourbon's suggestion of Ristoro di Lamole. (as you can see from the thread above!)
One of our best dining experiences in Italy (and there have been a more than a few). Delicious food, lovely friendly service and just gorgeous views. A bit of a windy road to get up there, but well worth it.
Enjoy!
One of our best dining experiences in Italy (and there have been a more than a few). Delicious food, lovely friendly service and just gorgeous views. A bit of a windy road to get up there, but well worth it.
Enjoy!
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