Villa Fioriamo is exceptionally well-located: wonderfully rural, set among vineyards, olive groves, and woodland, yet very central. We are situated between Florence and Siena, and particularly close to the center of Greve in Chianti, just 2.3 kilometers away. Furthermore, we are surrounded by excellent restaurants. Our website features a list of recommended restaurants, and we also enjoy sharing more about specific locations from time to time. This time, we are taking you to the restaurant where our dream actually began: Cantinetta di Rignana, located 4 kilometers from Villa Fioriamo.
About 4.5 years ago, we decided we wanted to move to Italy, specifically to Tuscany, to run a place for tourists. We put our house up for sale and began our search. It is worth noting that Tuscany is a region consisting of several provinces, making it a considerably large area.
We both already knew Tuscany from previous holidays. In the past, Bart mainly visited the coast with his family and had explored various parts of Tuscany from there. He had been there many times. I, Esther, had also visited Tuscany several times, including Montepulciano, Arezzo, the coast, and Chianti, though less frequently than Bart.
And so our search began. We looked at everything: the area around Lucca, the province of Maremma near Grosseto, the region around Montepulciano, the vicinity of Cecina, and much more. From place to place, from appointment to appointment. It was a wonderful journey of discovery, but after 2.5 weeks, it also became quite intensive.
Near the end of that journey, I asked Bart: “Would you consider driving back north via my favorite restaurant?” We had booked two more nights in Piedmont before heading home. “Of course,” was Bart’s reply. He is always up for good food. It was only about a 130-kilometer drive, so it was perfectly feasible and hardly a detour.
I called, made a reservation, and we headed that way, to Cantinetta di Rignana. It was a place where I had always enjoyed dining and where the region had stolen my heart. I felt so at home there. And that was exactly the feeling I had missed in all the places we had visited until then. I wanted to see if it still felt the same.
We arrived at dusk. It was already later in September, and we hadn’t booked anything for the night yet, so we arranged that on the spot. Bart hadn’t been able to see the surroundings properly yet; it was already too dark for that.
The food was once again delicious. Cantinetta di Rignana has an extensive menu with exquisite dishes. Our accommodation was not far away: a few kilometers further, via an unpaved road. We arrived there in the dark.
The next morning, Bart opened the doors of our accommodation and was deeply impressed by the view and the surroundings. “Gosh, it’s so beautiful here!” I also felt intensely happy to be back at my spot. It felt so right here. And so it happened: we returned three more times and, just to be sure, also looked in a wide circle around this location. But ultimately, we ended up just 4 kilometers from Cantinetta di Rignana. Through the trees, we can even see the place where we stayed back then. Cantinetta di Rignana is therefore not only a fantastic restaurant but also holds a special place in our hearts. And we still visit regularly.