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- Top Rated in Florence
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Brac Libreria di Arte Contemporanea
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Vegetarian
Vegan-friendly
Lacto
Italian
Organic
Juice bar
This spot is a library, cafe and restaurant with vegan menu as well. Uses organic vegetable. Reservation suggested for Friday and Saturday nights. NOTE: Reported to be unreliable with bookings. Open Mon-Sat 12:00-15:00, Mon-Sun 19:00-00:00.
327 Reviews
First Review by Vesanto
wyrd
Points +3524
Great food and atmosphere - Edit
I've been at the Libreria Brac tonight with my girlfriend. We had booked in advance, and got a table for two in the room full of books, so we had the chances to browse a few books on art (basically exhibition catalogues) while we were waiting for the food to arrive after we placed the order. Nice.
Read moreWe opted for the "piatto unico" option, which is a pizza-side dish with one salad, one pasta (I got tortelli with arugola pesto), and one "pane carasau" (it is a flat bread typical of Sardinia) with cheese/ricotta. Everything was really tasty, and portions are generous.
We also had a couple of Menabrea beers, bread, and cakes (one yummy chocolate cake with no flour, and one delicious apple tart).
What can I say? It is a great place, the music was good (David Bowie, Coldplay, Crosby Stills Nash and Young...), the food was extremely nice, the staff was kind... we had a great evening.
And we paid 43 euro in total (including one coffee). Certainly fair.
We'll go back there!
Pros: Great food, Nice atmosphere, Friendly staff
Cons: None
Guest
borovnica
Points +34
Very cosy - Edit
Very nice place, I visited in the evening- it was cosy with the candles lit on. The staff was friendly, food really good- I had vegan lasagna. It wasn't too expensive. They had three dessert options- one was vegan.
Read moreThe location was good too- very central- near Ponte Vecchio.
All in all I liked it a lot.
Pros: Central, Ok prices, Atmosphere
Guest
tarchi
Points +28
The best choice in Florence - Edit
Brac is probably the best one of the many vegetarian restaurants I visited around the world. And it is in the city where I usually live! I discovered it only some months ago, thanks to a colleague; in fact I ignored that this bookshop situated in the heart of the popular and artistic Santa Croce district was not only a bookshop. Now, after tasting various dishes of its menu, I can say that, besides the unique athmosphere of the place, Brac offers an excellent and very original kitchen. The "mixed plate" is rich, very well-cooked and creative, but if you decide to choose a first course or a main course made on the basis of the Carasau Sardinian bread, I think that you will not deceived. Desserts and wine are of the same level. For a complete dinner, you will spend 25 (without wine)-35 euros.
Read morePros: Creative kitchen, Unique athmosphere (art bookshop), Correct price
Guest
Unaban
Points +44
A Treasure - Edit
We were in Florence for a month and I had intended to visit all the vegan-friendly places, but then we found this little beauty and couldn't get enough of it! The food was excellent prepared by a passionate and imaginative chef-fresh vegan pasta with many interesting stuffings and sauce was addictive.
Read moreIt is easy to pass by the entrance as it is not obvious that it is a restaurant, but persevere. Booking is advisable as this is a very popular place. A word of warning about Sunday lunchtime, when the lack of vegan choices was disappointing. We are going back to Florence and wil make a beeline for Libreria Brac!
Updated from previous review on Friday June 14, 2013
Pros: Terrific food, Quirky surroundings, A gem of a chef
Cons: Sunday lunchtime lack of vegan choices
Guest
DyannaCsaposs
Points +20
Loved it - Edit
This restaurant is so good. The chef and staff was all very friendly. The food had some indian influence which was a nice change after eating only italian food for a month. They offer a tasting menu of sorts for 12€. Tons of yummy food for a great price. The house red wine is a good choice. Can't wait to go back. A must if you are vegetairan or vegan. There are more options if you eat cheese, but don't worry my vegan friends, there's some great food for you too. Like the curry pasta. Buon Appetito!
Read moreGuest
etka
Points +73
good and popular - make reservation for evening - Edit
I agree with the previous reviews - good food and reasonable prices (for Florence). It is best to get the mixed platter. Make a reservation if you want to come in the evening because they fill up quickly (it is a small restaurant). The staff were nice - we didn't have a reservation but they suggested that we wait around and eventually got a table. They also translate the menu for you. Beware - the waiting area/room in-between the bar and the restaurant is a smokers paradise - or a non-smokers nightmare. It seems that here vegetarian does not go along with non-smoking.
Read morePros: good food, reasonable prices, firendly staff
Cons: waiting area allows smoking
Guest
priya108
Points +120
Mmmmm yummy - Edit
A hidden jewel. Quite literally as they do not have a sign or name anywhere visible outside. We just got lucky really with how easy we found it.
Read moreThe food lived up to its Italian name.It was truly delicious and great portions for the price.
Also, small note, they didn't have an English menu which is unusual in the heart of Florence, but the staff speak English.
Definitely worth a trip or two ;)
Pros: Great food, Great Portions, Nice ambiance
Cons: Can be hard to find, No English Menu, Menu fragile, & will charge for damage
Guest
Eike
Points +198
Nice Restaurant in the Heart of Florence - Edit
While the décor and library/gallery ambience is a little unconventional for an eating place, don't be deterred. Tucked away in a quiet street in Florence and perhaps a little difficult to find, this vegetarian restaurant also has several delicious vegan dishes. The atmosphere buzzed with lunch-time diners while we enjoyed our vegan Tortellini and fresh salad. Definitely worth a visit.
Read moreGuest
JesseWaugh
Points +415
Pretentious Misery - Edit
Italy is a happy place but not here. Like other reviewers have stated they forgot our reservation - why we needed a reservation in the first place is beyond me. The hostess and "waiter" were absurdly rude and miserable. The menu consists of about eight choices, none of which include any vegan protein (tofu, beans, etc.). We ended up getting two plates of rice with vegetables and a bottle of water and paying €23 for the privilege of eating in this wanna-be 'artsy' palace of pretense. I felt like I was trapped in Bjork's kitchen.
Read moreCons: Pretentious , Miserable
Guest
vegegiraffe
Points +27
Great place - Edit
Thanks to other reviewers on Happy Cow we found this restaurant. Still no exterior signage that it is one. Dropped in at lunch time and were able to book for the evening. delicious food (though where are the pulses?) Full of diners but very quiet and restrained atmosphere for an Italian venue. we had interesting combination plates. recommended, would definitely go back.
Read moreGuest
veg.dan
Points +124
brilliant. - Edit
This is one of the best veggie restaurants I've been to. The menu is varied, lots of options and the food is awesome. I had the sampler plate. I left very content and the owner is very welcoming. The atmosphere and fit out is cool but be sure to book. I was lucky to get in as a walk-in. Highly recommended.
Read morePros: food., atmosphere.
Guest
ncvhappycow
Points +8
Brilliant Food - Edit
After a few days in Rome where I was tired of overcharged pasta and pizza, I was glad to find this place via happycow. Excellent selection of beautifully prepared food. The platter to share is to die for. Coming back tonight.
Read morePros: cost, fresh, atmosphere
Cons: none
Guest
beavers
Points +102
If at first you don't succeed.. - Edit
This was the best of the three veggy places we ate at in our short holiday in Florence, yet we nearly didn't make it. We made a beeline here on the first night (a Sunday) but could find no sign of it in the dark little back street it was supposed to be in (which is not even shown on some maps). We had another attempt for lunch on the day we left, and even in the daylight nearly missed it. It has no obvious signage and looks like a small bookshop - only when you get in do you see that beyond the small bar, with tempting cakes, there are too more rooms. In the first of these we ran into a English student who said the place was her little secret and gave some advice on what to pick. The waitress, however, was very helpful anyway, translating the menu and guiding us through. We went for two 12-euro platters, on each of which you could select three of the main items on the menu. The choice, colour and flavours of what arrived was eye-popping - and they filled two huge plates. Helpfully the menu makes it clear which items were vegan (probably half the options). As well as doing great food Brac is a magical place in itself - a cross between a library and an art gallery with sofas to relax in over coffee. An exciting and memorable eating experience.
Read morePros: Imaginative choices, Helpful staff, Atmosphere
Cons: Hard to find
Guest
hirundinidae
Points +28
wonderful food and art bookstore - Edit
A real find - delicious food and very friendly staff. I'd highly recommend this to anyone wanting to try innovative italian food in a unique arts bookshop. I'd heard it gets busy in the evenings but I went for lunch and was able to walk in and sit at the counter. The service was excellent and the waitress chatted about the various alternative arts scenes in Florence.
Read moreGuest
TofuCelt
Points +230
Rubbish - Edit
We found the road to this restuarant quite easy, but not the restuarant. It wasn't until an old man outside the building asked us what we were looking for that he told us we were outside it. We went to this restuarant three times but we were not notified of having to make a reservation until the second time we went. Some of the staff, especially the owner, were not all that friendly, which was an immediate turn-off for us. The service was quite slow, but that is usually okay with us, because after a days sight-seeing, we just wanted to sit down with our glass of wine and wait to have our food served to us. When we finally got our food, the proportions were quite small and lacked imagination. As with everywhere in Italy, the food was extremely expensive. Our stomachs just about got filled as our pockets rapidly emptied. The best thing I can say about this restuarant was the wine we had. Once again, another vegetarian restaurant that lacks imagination and creates quite bland foods. Why are so many vegan/vegatarian restaurants so lacking in imagination? A lot of improvment needed here.
Read morePros: Quite central
Cons: Expensive, Lacks imagination, Service
Guest
Riontra
Points +20
Quiet gem in the middle of a hectic town - Edit
We found this using the search in Happy Cow, otherwise we would never have found it, it's hidden and the sign could be larger. It's really not far from the city center. What a wonderfully peaceful atmosphere, specially in the inner courtyard where you find a small art library. Without a reservation on a Friday evening we were placed on the bar which was quite okay. The food was excellent, I don't really remember what we had, but it was vegan and tasty and not very expensive. The second time we made a reservation and got a table in the back which is not really that cozy but the food was still very good and creative. Very much recommended!
Read morePros: Food, Price, Atmosphere
Cons: Hard to find
Guest
Signal
Points +61
Best Tortellini Ever - Edit
Very hard to find, we passed it several times before thinking this may just be the place. Glad we persevered as it had some of the best food I have tasted in Italy. It was a bit slow to serve and it was more quality than quantity, but the staff were friendly enough and I found the decor interesting and comfortable.
Read moreWould definitely go there again if I were in Florence, if only for the tortellini which was magnificent.
Pros: Tasty food, Relaxed
Cons: Hard to locate
Guest
Jonathan Smith
Points +170
Creative cuisine - Edit
I've been to BRAC a few times now and although it can be busy there is a comfortable waiting area between the two dining areas. I found the staff very friendly, chatty and good humoured. The food is creative - try pasta with curry pesto. Sounds odd but it's delicious. Also had an amazing fennel & orange main course salad with almonds, raisins and olives which was the bees knees. It's very central location makes it probably the most convient veggie option in Firenze.
Read morePros: Good vegan choices, Location , Friendly
Cons: Extremely busy!
Guest
Zmeika
Points +281
Wonderful experience - Edit
When I read that there are only a few tables to eat, I sent them an email in advance, asking for the reservation. But everything was already taken, so we went there to eat at the bar area....When we arrived we were asked to wait 40 min, but is was worth it. We just went to drink a coffee in another bar (Il Volume).
Read moreSo even my bf, who is usually not very generous to the compliments, said that our meal was delicious. We took "Piatto unico" - which is a choice of few items for a very fair price of 12 euros......To be honest, I was really surprised when I just saw my plate. Beautifuly presented! And the taste was just WOW. The staff was friendly and helpfull. We talked a bit with Sasha, their chef.
I would definitelly recommend "Brac" as place to go for a dinner, even you can only seat in the bar )))
Pros: food, Price, Atmosphere
Cons: Only few tables
Guest
SP
Points +1455
recommend - Edit
The dish I ordered was only average but the free bread was delicious. If I could go back again I would, and try different dishes. The place itself was packed with locals, which to me means it's a good place. I must've been the only 'tourist' there, and it was really nice to be close enough to the tourist areas, yet not in a touristy place. In addition to WiFi, they also had two iMacs available for use to customers for free :) Overall, I recommend this place!
Read moreGuest
Joyatri
Points +600
Best meal in Florence - Edit
We went to Libreria Brac for lunch in May. We showed up the day before and arrived too late for lunch. Dinner was booked for that evening so we made a reservation for lunch for the next day.
Read moreThe atmosphere, service, menu and food were all outstanding. We started with the Insalata Siciliana which was a lovely mix of fennel, olives, oranges, raisins and almonds. Our entrees were tagliatelle with seitan ragu and tagliatelle with artichokes and spinach (see photos above). Both were very well seasoned and scrumptious.
We finished the meal with an apple and strawberry crumble, which was nice, but not as good as the entrees and salad.
Updated from previous review on Monday June 13, 2011
Pros: delicious food, friendly staff, pleasant atmosphere
Cons: hard to find
Guest
MarcGabel
Points +15
Quiet, unique, and fantastic food - Edit
We arrived as Lunch was over, but the owner and her Chef son still took care of us, cooking unique, very italian yet fully veggie creative dihes. Atmosphere was open air and closed in, books, cafe area, and totally nice staff. A fine place to eat in Florence. And you might even find a good book to buy!
Read morePros: excellent food, great relaxed atmosphere, nice folk
Guest
Alessandro
Points +518
Strongly positive first impression - Edit
This small restaurant offers a relaxing and fascinating atmosphere inside a contemporary art bookshop. I went for lunch at Brac a couple of days ago and I found creative, delicious and reasonably priced dishes.
Read morePros: Soft music and free internet , Excellent quality , Helpful staff
Guest
earthdave
Points +133
Spectacular - Edit
Hard to find, with no obvious sign. But once there, it was so outstanding.
Read moreThe decor is fascinating, with a courtyard in the middle of the place decorated with hanging coloured ribbons. The back seating area has a wall of art books for sale.
The dishes were so impressive, delicately flavoured, Italian dishes we had never had. Given time, we would have gone back again to try other dishes. Too bad we had no space for dessert of soy lattes!
You must go if in Florence. This is not the heavy Italian food you get everywhere else.
Pros: light inventive fare, wonderful surroundings, intimate
Cons: you must search it out, check when it's open, we found it closed
Guest
sshssh
Points +76
good food, good location - Edit
The food was very good, prices very reasonable. BUT I also had a chocolate cake that wasn't really good. After finishing it I asked if they prepared this cake themselves and the answer was NO. so I don't know - the cakes they don't prepare there might contain animal fat, a common thing in Italy (strutto = lard). Anyway - good location and the place is very known in Florence among young people!
Read moreGuest
giorgio
Points +41
Happy to have such a nice restaurant in florence! - Edit
Yes I'm happy to have such a nice restaurant in florence. I'm not going to talk about his culture aspect which is really appreciated by many but about deliciuos and healthy food served there. I went there with my wife a friday evening without reservation but fortunately they offer me two seats at the bench and we were served a dish with three preparations: tortellini stuffed with topinambur,dumplings stuffed with spinach and tofu and salad with walnuts: simply wonderful I devoured everything forgetting the good habit to chew food properly but fully satisfied and happy for vegan! Really quite cheap in a such friendly atmosphere!
Read moreGuest
bkoffman
Points +40
Hidden Gem - Edit
This easy to miss restaurant has a delightful atmosphere full of fun original art and great art books, but it is the great and flavorful food that is the real delight. A wonderful variety of fresh tasty treats that change depending on what is in the market. Make the effort to find this small restaurant and you will be rewarded with a great taste of Italy, even without cheese or meat. Service was very friendly and efficient. Our best meals and meal experience in Italy.
Read morePros: Fresh tasty food, Wonderful staff, Good value
Cons: Hard to find
Guest
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