Ponte Vecchio
Trattoria Italiana
Our Story
Ponte Vecchio is a family run trattoria with a small local feel. Aided by a tiny team, we are a husband + wife team, with Leonardo running the front of house and Alice hiding in the heat of the kitchen.
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Positioned in the historic heart of Hereford, between the Cathedral + the Old Bridge, we consider ourselves an important, longstanding part of Hereford's vibrant food scene. We offer a selection of traditional Italian meals, coupled with more modern plates that show off Italian ingredients in an exciting, creative manner. Our menu changes frequently, celebrating the best local + Italian produce that we can source.
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Ordinarily, we welcome walk ins + bookings. Our party menu also changes with the seasons + is available by preorder to parties of 8 or more. We are really looking forward to when our dining area can re open to its old capacity + to entertain you + your guests.
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We aim to recreate the passion of the Italian family table, and the charm, intimacy + atmosphere of our favourite venues in our beloved Firenze.
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Our doors officially opened on 30th November 2007, but our story goes back much further than that; to Leo's parents' pizzeria Firenze, on Commercial Road, which Leo started managing in 1992. Alice took her first job as a kitchen porter there in 2001, and a restaurant romance began a few years later. We married in 2008 + have 2 children: Maddalena + Raffaele, who are often on site with us, begging for cioccolato caldo + gelato.
Our connection to Italy may not be immediately obvious to those who don't know us, but Leo was born just a mile from the Ponte Vecchio in Firenze, to Bruno, a native Florentine + English mother Diane. The Pavi Degl'Innocenti family moved to England when Leo was small, but have always returned home to their apartment in central Firenze as often as possible to spend time with family + friends who live all over the country, from Milan down to Naples.
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Alice is proud to be from Oxford, but her spiritual home is definitely Italy - the Monti district of Rome to be precise; sorry Leo. Her love of Italian cuisine, history + language means she never fails to get overexcited by trips to her adopted homeland. Gelato is her passion and her cooking is unpretentious, with bold flavours that let seasonal vegetables shine.
