The lighting of via Tornabuoni, the famous shopping street in the centre of Florence officially kicked off the Christmas celebrations, which will continue on Saturday 19 November with the inauguration of the Christmas market in Piazza Santa Croce. Even for the luxury shopping street it will be a Christmas full of fun, but with energy saving in mind. Choice of LED lights and shorter lighting cycles should help. The president of the local Business Council Confcommercio Toscana Aldo Cursano says:" It is a sober but beautiful set-up. We did not want to give up on Christmas and lighting, that's why we chose a more sustainable lighting approach". In total there are seven luminous trees - three 10 meters high and four 8 meters high - completely covered with warm white LED lights, with flashes in cold tones positioned at regular intervals along the entire via Tornabuoni. The shop owners are looking forward to a better season after the huge fall-out due to covid.
Via Tornabuoni of Florence's most famous luxury shopping street, featuring the Salvatore Ferragamo flagship store and Museum in the Spini-Feroni palace; but other brands which stand for Made in Italy. Via TornabuionFlanked by sumptuous mansions, which have housed the most illustrious families of the city since the fourteenth century, via Tornabuoni is home to the windows of the excellent brands of Italian fashion, starting with that of Gucci, the first store in the world of the Tuscan brand, and Ferragamo : just like Guccio Gucci, in fact, Salvatore Ferragamo, who returned to Italy from the United States, chose Florence for its vocation for beauty and the skill of its craftsmen.
The boutiques of Armani, Valentino, Fendi, Max Mara, Pucci, Versace, Prada, Roberto Cavalli and many other international luxury brands, such as Cartier and Hermès, alternate with prestigious workshops specializing above all in the Tuscan tradition of leather working, which their finely manufactured products contribute to making via Tornabuoni an open-air showcase of the highest expression of Made in Italy fashion and craftsmanship.
If you are tired after a long shopping spree along Via Tornabuoni, there are many fabulous spots for food and wine. One of the coolest places is the Obicà Mozzarella Bar, a casual and contemporary Italian restaurant and pizzeria right on Via de' Tornabuoni. Obicà offers the freshest Mozzarella di Bufala Campana DOP, pizza and traditional Italian dishes in a friendly welcoming atmosphere. Or Procacci Panini and Wine Bar offering Truffled panini with delectable ingredients; truffles and foie gras, butter and anchovies, prosciutto crudo mushroom cream and truffles, scrambled eggs and fresh truffles, smoked salmon with soft cheese and chives, brie and caramelized onions, and many other special fillings. Made with the finest ingredients, Procacci’s panini are paired with Marchesi Antinori’s fine wines.
Just opposite the Ferragamo Palazzo, the turreted palace of the Gianfigliazzi, and the Cambi Del Nero palace, now called Medici Tornaquinci. But it was the Renaissance that confirmed the street as a place of choice for the Florentine nobility, with the construction of Palazzo Antinori, Palazzo Tornabuoni and Palazzo Strozzi, among the most beautiful of the Florentine Renaissance. The famous porphyry column, which is the symbol of the street, was instead erected in 1565: at that time, also due to its breadth, via Tornabuoni was often crossed by parades and processions, enlivened by horse races and games. Palazzo Viviani della Robbia, the facades of Palazzo Giaconi and Palazzo della Commenda da Castiglione date back to the seventeenth century.
A curious plaque, on the corner with via della Spada, celebrates the invention of one of the most popular cocktails in the world: the Negroni. In fact, more than a century has passed since, in 1919, in the historic Caffè Casoni, which has now closed its doors, Count Negroni begged the bartender Fosco Scarselli to add a note of punch to his favorite cocktail, the Americano, replacing the seltzer with a touch of gin, in homage to recent London trips. Instead of the usual slice of lemon, Scarselli added one of orange and from that day on all Casoni patrons began ordering a "Negroni". While you are exploring Via Tornabuoni, why not enter one of the refined bars and toast with a Negroni.
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