I am a little surprised. Quo Vadis has gotten some nice reviews elsewhere and made Nicolas Lander's list of the "best restaurants of 2012."

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/50c2facc-cc...

You really should spend 10-15 minutes scrolling thru the many, many threads & posts that are already here. Rome, Venice & Florence get discussed here almost daily and you can find dozens & dozens of helpful suggestions and recommendations already here for you to review.

Alternatively, you can go to the upper right-hand corner of this page and do searches for any of the towns & cities you are thinking of visiting. There have been threads discussing Cortona, Pienza, Montalcino, etc.

Many of the places on your list have been discussed here in the recent past. A place like Sostanza has been discussed (and recommended!) often.

If you go to the upper right-hand corner of this page, you can use the search feature to find what people have had to say about them. Just enter the name of each place that interests you.

VeniceFood -

If you do try any of the whiskies suggested, please be sure to let us know what you think of them and if any of them will give you what you are looking for.

You can also see if any of the merchants near you carry a line of whiskies from "Jon, Mark & Rabbo." They are independent bottlers and have a whisky called "The Peaty One" in their lineup. It should sell for around $30.

If you live near a Trader Joe's, see if they have Finlaggan malt whisky in stock. It is from Islay and sells for around $20. Try it and see what you think.

Here is Ralfy's review:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysNGV1...

Black Bottle is a blended Scotch whisky with some Islay whiskies in the mix and has some peaty-smokey taste to it.

There have been several excellent threads here on eating in Piemonte over the past 3 to 6 months. Be sure to check out the "Discussions You Might Also Like" box to the right of this page. Also, go to the upper right-hand corner of this page and do searches for Piemonte, Lange, Alba, Bra, etc.

You will find plenty of recommendations already here for you to review.

Yes, using the search function for specific topics is a very good idea. You can also take 5-10 minutes to scroll down thru the many threads here, as the questions you are asking get asked and answered here regularly.

Here is a recent thread that should be helpful:

http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/897212

If you are interested in British seafood, I suggest J. Sheekey, between the National Gallery and Covent Garden.

http://www.j-sheekey.co.uk/

Some say the Tamburini food shop has crossed over into becoming a tourist attraction, but it is certainly worth stopping in there for a look around. They have a large selection of cheeses.

I just got notice that GO will offer their wines at 20% off May 8-12.

The cities you are asking about get discussed here with great regularity. There are literally hundreds of recommendations already here for you to review.

It would be well worth you while to spend 15-20 minutes scrolling down thru the past threads that talk about these 3 cities. You can also go to the upper right-hand corner of this page and do a search for each city.

2 of the most popular spots in Florence are Sostanza (for bistecca and butter chicken) and Trattoria Mario. The Nerbone food stand in the Mercato Central serves a great boiled beef sandwich at lunch time.

Address?

Are you familiar with this blog? It will help you sort thru some of the wines at GO.

http://grossoutwine.wordpress.com/

I only had time for a quick look at the wine section. So much of the wine there is labeled with the names of "phantom" wineries, which makes it very hard to know which wines might be a good buy and which wines are to be avoided.

Yesterday in the South SF GO there were bright red 4.7oz bags of Ritter Sport assorted chocolate squares for $1.99. The bags contain eight 0.6oz squares in 3 or 4 varieties of milk & dark chocolate.

"Angel's Share," a movie by Ken Loach, has finally been released in the U.S. I got to see it (and enjoy it) last week in New York City.

The movie is about some of the good (single-malt whisky) and not so good (poverty & violence) aspects of life in Scotland.

I would hope that anyone with an interest in single-malt whisky would enjoy the film. The good news is there are subtitles. Otherwise some of the Glaswegian accents would be very hard to understand.

I question the notion that most of the dining spots on or around Fillmore Street "from Pine to Sacramento" Streets are "chains."

I hardly consider Florio, A16, Fresca, Troya, Jane, the Curbside Cafe, Dino's, Woodhouse to be "chain" restaurants. I could probably say the same about Harry's Bar, the Grove, Out the Door and Delfina Pizza.

Yes, some of these places are owned by groups that operate one or two other dining places. But that hardly constitutes being a "chain," at least in my mind.

While your views re: the Tadich Grill are well know to the regulars on this board, it should be noted that the Swedish Princess had the 16oz. Porterhouse for $24, not the 14oz. NY Steak on the regular menu.

I can't recall if anyone has mentioned the Tadich Grill, but they have a 14oz. Black Angus NY Steak on the menu for under $35 (last time I looked). They grill over mesquite.

Sorry, but can you tell me what "argine" means? Thanks!

Try Enoteca Cavour 313, a wine bar with good food, located at Via Cavour 313.

www.cavour313.it

You could try the brasserie that is on the ground floor of the Madarin Oriental Hotel. The entrance is on Sansome between Pine & California. I have not been there myself. I do not know how the prices compare to One Market.

http://www.mandarinoriental.com/sanfr...

I like Chez Fayala and go there once or twice a week, but it is a sandwich shop with an excellent hot & cold salad bar. It is hardly the place for a business lunch!

I have had the porterhouse for 2 (that feeds 3!) at Florio on Fillmore St. in San Francsisco. While not 3 inches thick, it is pretty good. However, I don't see it on the current menu.

http://www.floriosf.com/menu.html

Joe's of Westlake in Daly City also uses mesquite. The grill cooks there are very good.

Just for clarification, what is the difference between the terms "pastured" and "free-range?"

I was at the South SanFran GO yesterday.

They had small pineapples for $1.99, pints of Starbucks Double Chocolaty Chip Frappuccino ice cream for $1.99 and 14oz. Haagen-Dazs "midnight cookies & cream" ice cream also for $1.99.

There is an Indian restaurant on the south side of the Highway 1 bridge that crosses the Russian River, just south of Jenner.

I have no been there, but I recall hearing good things about it.

If you take 15-20 minutes to scroll down thru the recent and past posts, you will find many that discuss dining in Florence. There are dozens (if not hundreds) of suggestions and recommendations already here for you to review.

Florence is a relatively small city and you can walk just about any where from you hotel in 15 minutes.

Trattoria Mario is a favorite of many on this board.