Gran Caffè Doney

It was originally located in the Palazzina Reale in the Cascine Park (19th century), then moved on Via Tornabuoni, near the British Consulate.

The Doney was favoured by aristocracy and upper middle-class, particularly by British citizens living in Florence, such as The Scorpioni.

When Benito Mussolini attacked Abyssinia (now Ethiopia), the British expressed their public disapproval.

The most famous customers of Gran Caffè Doney were socialite Violet Trefusis who was an acquaintance of Mussolini himself, and a group of elderly English ladies called The Scorpioni who resided in Florence between the World Wars.

Gran Caffè Doney is also one of the main settings in Franco Zeffirelli's autobiographical film Tea with Mussolini.