Mercatale Steak Championship

The Mercatale Steak Championship

In the heart of the Florentine Chianti, in Mercatale Val di Pesa, a village in the municipality of San Casciano in Val di Pesa (Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany), one of the region's most cherished gastronomic festivals takes place every year: the Steak Championship. For two evenings, Piazza Vittorio Veneto fills with glowing charcoal grills, the aroma of meat, and long tables that gather thousands of people around the queen of Tuscan cuisine, the bistecca alla fiorentina.

How the festival works

The formula is simple and authentic, which is the secret to its success. Visitors purchase their steak directly from the local butcher shops participating in the initiative (Macelleria Tozzetti and Macelleria Coop, in Piazza Vittorio Veneto), then hand it over to the Chianti Master Grillers, who cook it to perfection over the coals. At the entrance cash points, guests pay for the cover charge and choose appetizers and side dishes, while the San Casciano Classico producers' association provides local wines.

Music, demonstrations, and tradition

Beyond the grand barbecue, the Championship is a true village festival: live music, dancing, and singing enliven both evenings, while master grillers reveal the secrets of charcoal grilling to aspiring cooks. The event is organized by volunteers from Mercatale together with the Pro Loco and the Municipality of San Casciano in Val di Pesa, involving about a hundred young volunteers.

The Florentine steak towards UNESCO

In recent years, the event has also taken on cultural significance: it collaborates with the Accademia della Fiorentina and supports the bid to have the bistecca alla fiorentina recognized as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage, a process initiated with a protocol by the Chianti Municipal Union. Among the most recent innovations, a real sensory panel has been introduced to evaluate and award the various cuts of meat prepared by local butchers.

An unmissable event in Chianti

With over three thousand participants per night and constant growth from one edition to the next, the Mercatale Steak Championship is now a classic of the Tuscan food and wine summer, capable of uniting a passion for good food, the identity of Chianti, and the community spirit of an entire village.