In Italy, every restaurant serves pasta, pizza and cocktails. Though my taste buds love those options, the waistband on my pants doesn’t. Enter: Le Vespe Café, a Canadian-Florentine kitchen that whips up healthy breakfast and lunch options for under ten euros. The best part? Its female owned.
Le Vespe Café was recommended to me by a trusted friend after she heard me complain about the amount of pasta I had eaten lately. I love pasta – who doesn’t? But, after the first week of counting pasta as a “wholesome meal” my body started to feel sluggish. This café is the perfect remedy, with healthy options for vegans, vegetarians and omnivores, everyone has a plate waiting for them at Le Vespe.
As I walked into the restaurant, there was an overwhelming sense of coziness and energy. The brightly colored tiles, chalkboard menus and alternative rock music within the restaurant made me feel as if I had stepped out of Florence and back into America.
I was seated behind two women who were talking to each other intently while working on their computers. On their table was a mass of spreadsheets, business cards and stickers. These two women were Gaia and Selena, the owners of Le Vespe.
I perused the menu and was elated at the amount of healthy options that Le Vespe has to offer. Ingredients like avocado, quinoa, Tahini and lentils made my mouth water and my stomach grumble.
I selected “Via Del Leone” which is described as a “chicken wrap with cheese, avocado, brown rice, caramelized onions and vegan chipotle mayo.” In addition to the wrap, my meal came with a small side salad of mixed greens topped with ginger puree dressing and a handful of crispy, seasoned potato wedges.
As I waited for my food, I turned around on my leopard-print upholstered ottoman to get to ask Selena and Gaia about the inspiration behind this hip café.
In 2013, Gaia, a Canadian-turned-Florentine-resident met Selena, a Canadian art student studying in Florence, through a mutual friend. They both discussed their love for healthy food and the lack of options for health food in Florence and decided to open a café together. Gaia had experience in the food industry through a previous job she had at an Italian restaurant in Canada, and Selena had always dreamed of opening a café.
The café was designed by Selena and includes a lot of her art on the walls.
When asked about expanding their restaurant to new locations, Gaia eagerly told me that she hopes to open one in either Rome or Milan, but not in another country – especially not anytime soon.
“Keeping our restaurant in Italy is important for us because we are so close to the sea and to the countryside which is a good place to be for good ingredients,” Gaia said.
One of the facets of their restaurant that they are the proudest of is how eco-friendly it is. The straws at the restaurant are made from compostable paper and are only served by request, the water is free and served to guests in glass containers that are filled by a filtration system in the restaurant, and the to-go containers are compostable and served with wooden utensils.
“We understand that our customer cares about their impact on the environment, just like we do.” Selena said.
Not only do they care about the environment, but they care about their customer’s dietary needs. The menu is purposefully filled with items that are vegan or vegetarian.
“In Italy, there is a deep culture of meat and cheese. I personally don’t love meat too much but I’m not vegan or vegetarian. Every once in a while I like to go without meat because I know veggies are better for my body.” Gaia said, as Selena enthusiastically nodded in agreement.
Not only do Gaia and Selena know that their ideal customer cares about the environment, but they’re pretty sure they cater to adults who use social media. In the restaurant, there is a pillar that has the name of the restaurant’s social media page, as well as a prize that a guest could win for having the most liked post. This week’s prize was a free smoothie.
In addition to having weekly contests, they sell a few items for customers wanting to take a little taste of Le Vespe home with them.
One of the items for sale is a mug with a tattooed woman wearing boxing gloves on it. The father of Gaia’s child is a tattoo artist and designed the logo specifically for the café.
In addition to mugs, Le Vespe sells a variety of health food items in compostable packaging such as spirulina, vegan protein powder and kale chips.
Aside from selling healthy breakfasts, lunches and products, Le Vespe knows how to keep their customers pleased.
A quick trip to their TripAdvisor and Yelp! pages reveal that they rank above average, at 4.5 stars. Le Vespe is even rated as number 3 out of 100 for coffee and tea in Florence, and number 159 out of 2,463 places to eat in Florence.
Le Vespe Café is the perfect place for the hungry traveler in search of healthy options in Florence. The hardest part about your decision to eat there will be deciding whether to eat inside or on the patio.
Buon appetito!