If you’re looking for fast healthy food in the Santa Croce/piazza Beccaria neighbourhood, Insalateria Original (borgo La Croce 27R) serves salads, wraps and green juices galore.
The brainchild of Jacopo Vettori, a young Florentine sports science graduate who previously worked for Red Bull, this small salad bar has big ambitions. “Insalateria Original wants to debunk a couple of myths: that salads are sad and that fast food is always unhealthy…This is our first outlet, but our aim is to become a franchise and have salad bars all over Italy in stations and airports. We also want to go into schools and educate the next generation about healthy, balanced eating.”
Perfectly positioned for the lunch hour and after-work bites (open every day, except Sunday, from 11.30am to 9.30pm), Insalateria Original certainly stands out on the Florentine thoroughfare with its magenta and lime branding. Made from ingredients sourced for the most part from Novoli’s fruit and vegetable market, at the press preview we enjoy flavourful Caesar and vegan salads alongside freshly pressed apple and kiwi juices, plus a filling banana, mango and coconut milk smoothie. Wraps and avocado toasts are also on the menu, which is available in English and clearly states the calorie counts. Sustainability has been studied down to the last detail: from aluminum cans for water to biodegradable bowls.
