No Eating Outdoors on Via de’ Neri

A new city ordinance has been approved on September 3 that prohibits eating while sitting or standing on the sidewalks and streets of four locations in Florence — via de’ Neri, piazzale degli Uffizi, piazza del Grano and via della Ninna — daily between noon and 3 pm and again between 6 and 10 pm.  Those caught in the act of eating a panino when on line for the Uffizi or outside a shop entrance in these areas will receive a fine from municipal police ranging from €150 to €500 payable immediately.

Stores in these neighborhoods are required to hang a poster detailing the new decree in Italian and English, which will be provided by city administration.

The new ordinance comes in the wake of the fact that many panino shops are concentrated in via de’ Neri, which has caused it to acquire the nickname “Borg’Unto” (greasy street).  Residents and shop owners still vividly remember the August 20, 2018 incident when a Spanish family sat down in front of a store to eat their panini and refused to move when the proprietor asked them to do so.  As demonstrated by surveillance cameras, the owner then emptied a bottle of water next to them. The tourists responded by kicking and punching him, with a finale of throwing their sandwiches at him and emptying their beverages inside the store.

To read more in Italian, visit Florence’s La Repubblica news site.