Moody Late-Night Tuscan Bar The Florence Opens on Flinders Lane

In 2012, Matteo Bruno opened The Meatball & Wine Bar on Flinders Lane, serving food shaped by his Venetian and Piedmontese heritage. He lived nearby at the time and had long been drawn to the strip – especially the industrial brick building the restaurant occupies. “I said to the landlord a long time ago, if upstairs becomes available, let me know,” he says. In 2025, it finally did. Now, the former office space has been reworked into wine and cocktail bar The Florence.

During extensive renovations, Bruno and his team “stripped back the plaster walls and got rid of the ceiling and exposed these really beautiful, old brick archways”. The discovery reminded him of Pistoia, a town overlooking the Tuscan capital, Florence, that he used to visit on family trips, and sparked the direction for the space. 

That influence carries into the drinks list, which prioritises Tuscan wines alongside Australian expressions made with Italian varietals. There are about 250 bottles on offer. “If I had double the floor space, we’d maybe have a few more wines, but we’ve jammed every nook and cranny,” says Bruno, founder of Valarc Group (Ned’s Bake & Bistro, Tartine). “Tuscan wines – other than chiantis – are a little bit less known. We wanted to create a bit of education as well.”

The cocktail list, developed by bar manager Cameron Rogers, who lived in Pistoia for just shy of a year, leans into Florence, too. There are five changing styles of Negroni (believed to have originated in Florence), including a piccolo version. Plus, a blood orange and vermouth-spiked Spicy Margarita and a Pepperoncini Martini, a Dirty Martini that uses pepperoncini brine in place of olive brine.

Food is designed to be eaten with a drink in hand. Expect slow-braised beef croquettes, spanner crab blinis and a handheld take on vitello tonnato: “Easily my favourite dish that exists,” says Bruno. The latter riffs on the Piedmontese classic, layering tonnato sauce, pickled capers, fried caperberries and thinly sliced Wagyu in place of the typical veal into bread from Ned’s. There’ll always be a larger pasta. Currently, it’s ricotta gnocchi with gorgonzola, sage and pecorino, and will soon shift to tajarin, a Piedmontese egg pasta similar to tagliatelle.

The venue trades until 1am, with the kitchen running the full stretch – a late-night offering that’s becoming increasingly rare in the city. Earlier on, there’s a daily happy hour with $8 beers, $10 wines, $14 spritzes and a $10 mini Florence Negroni from 5pm to 6pm.

The Florence
Upstairs, 133 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
0401 998 512

Hours:
Daily 5pm to 1am

www.theflorence.com.au
@florencewinebar