La Cova, shop front

©Nardia Plumridge/Lonely Planet

La Cova

Oltrarno

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This Spanish tapas bar by Palazzo Pitti offers a flavoursome alternative to Italian cuisine. Small-bite tapas dishes to share include lightly battered calamari, piquillo peppers stuffed with codfish, meatballs sautéed in tangy tomato sauce, and Andalusian spiced-spinach and chickpeas. The wine selection is imported directly from the Iberian Peninsula, making a refreshing change from the Tuscan norm.

Lunchtime cooks up a good-value €15 menu comprising two pintxos (savoury nibbles on a cocktail stick), two tapas dishes, water and coffee.

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