My restaurants
These are the places I send my guests to. For dinner, always book.
- Antiche Carampane, San Polo: classic Venetian fish, in a calle near the Rialto you would never find by chance.
- Osteria La Zucca, Santa Croce: seasonal cooking with plenty of vegetables, near Campo San Giacomo dell’Orio. Good for vegetarians.
- Il Refettorio, San Polo: Venetian cooking in a restored space near San Rocco, two minutes from Fraivolti.
- Osteria Da Fiore, San Polo: refined Venetian seafood, for a special evening.
- Raro: one of my favourites. Ask me how to get there and what to order.
Bàcari and cicchetti
The most Venetian way to eat is to go from one bàcaro to the next. Bàcari are the old wine bars: at the counter you order cicchetti, small bites like creamed salt cod (baccalà mantecato) on bread or polenta, sardines in saor with sweet-and-sour onions, meatballs or small sandwiches, with an “ombra”, a small glass of wine. Two cicchetti, then on to the next one. They are busiest late in the morning and early in the evening.
The spritz
The spritz comes from the Veneto and is the drink of the Venetian aperitivo. Many bars here make it with Select, a bitter aperitif created in Venice in 1920, with a green olive. Have one in a campo at sunset.
Good to know
- Coffee at the counter. That is how Venetians drink it, and it costs much less than at a table, especially in St Mark’s Square.
- Coperto. A small cover charge per person is normal in restaurants. Tipping isn’t expected; rounding up for good service is appreciated.
- Dinner times. Venetians eat between 7:30 and 9:30 pm, and many kitchens close early.
- Tourist traps. Be wary of places with someone calling you in from the street and menus with photos in ten languages.
- Water. Tap water is good to drink, and so is the water from the public fountains.
- Rialto market. For fish, fruit and vegetables go in the morning, Tuesday to Saturday. It is ten minutes from Fraivolti.