Gucci Garden, a Combination Restaurant, Museum, Shop, Opens in Florence

The fashion world is known more for skipping lunches than indulging in them -- but it might make an exception for a new restaurant opened by Italian designer Gucci. Gucci Osteria, in the Italian city of Florence, is a marriage of minds between Michelin-starred chef Massimo Bottura and Gucci creative director Alessandro Michele. The restaurant is part of the new Gucci Garden complex, the renovated Gucci Museo next to Florence's Palazzo Vecchio that includes a store selling exclusive Gucci goods. It serves up Bottura's eccentric takes on classic Italian dishes in a spectacular, patterned space -- without a designer price tag. Main dishes are priced from 20 to 30 euros ($24-$36) each—this is Gucci, after all. “Haute couture and haute cuisine are a recipe made in heaven,” Bottura told reporters. Not for nothing, Gucci Chief Executive Officer Marco Bizzarri and Bottura are childhood friends as well. Bottura is the dynamic mastermind behind the three-Michelin-starred eatery Osteria F...