Venice Restaurants

  1. Aciugheta Enoteca

    A strange design outgrowth of the classic trattoria Aciugheta next door, this is its antithesis. A spacious bar with sheet-glass frontage, exposed brick walls, low tables, angular furniture and a chilled feel, it's a great place from which to observe the zoo outside. The servings are fine wine and cicheti , notably the anchovy pizzas from which the place takes its name. Or you can opt for a full meal. (There's pizza too at around €8 to €14 .)

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  2. Ai Assassini

    This backstreet joint offers a glimpse into a fairly typical Venetian eating scene. Head through the Gothic doorway into a lowlit, cluttered (all those pots and pans hanging from the ceiling) and bustling ambience and pull up a pew at one of the long timber tables for simple Venetian fare. The food is not spectacular but the prices are reasonably under control and, wonder of wonders, even locals eat here.

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  3. Ai Rusteghi

    For a great range of mini- panini with all sorts of fillings, pop in to this cosy bar and eatery that is something of an institution around here. There's nothing better than an ombra or two and a couple of delicious panini as a quick lunchtime snack.

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  4. Ai Tre Scaini

    In this rambunctious and chaotic trattoria you can settle down with ebullient local families for copious pasta and seafood dishes (there are one or two meat options, too). Throaty wine comes from a couple of small barrels set up inside. You can eat in the garden as well.

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  5. Al Gatto Nero

    Noisy Venetian families pile into this off-the-beaten- calle trattoria in Burano. Sure, you could join the crowds in the cheaper places along the island's main drag, but the food is generally not the greatest. Here you pay a premium, but the quality is better.

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  7. Al Nono Risorto

    Stop in if only to luxuriate in the leafy, wisteria-filled canalside garden in summertime. In the cooler months, customers crowd inside the lofty, timber-lined dining area. Pizzas are the best bet.

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  8. Al Pesador

    The newest of the three incredibly popular spots housed in the Fabbriche Vecchie, this is great for snacks and wines from all over the country. The tendency is to simple fusion titbits, which most folks munch on canalside. They specialise in various fish carpaccio dishes and do a reasonable seafood couscous. Many just come for the drinking.

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  9. Al Portego

    Situated beneath the portico that gives this osteria its name, Al Portego is an inviting stop for cicheti and wine, along with some more robust meals. It's all timber in here and very cosy. Try the thick spaghetti-like pasta, bigoli , with whatever sauce it comes with, or perhaps a risotto.

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  10. Al Vecio Penasa

    This remains a good spot for its excellent selection of sandwiches and snacks at reasonable prices.

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  11. All'anfora

    Head out the back into the courtyard to indulge in an enormous choice of generous, tasty pizzas over a beer. Try the pizza all'Anfora, loaded up with various meats, artichokes and asparagus.

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  13. All'Arco

    For good value cicheti (snacks) and a quality glass of wine or two, this is one of the most authentic up-market osterie in the San Polo area. People gather around the bar or, on warmer days, huddle together on stools by little tables among the hubbub of the cramped lanes near the Rialto.

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  14. Alla Rivetta

    This is one of the few restaurants near Piazza San Marco that can be recommended. Surrounded by tourist traps, it has resisted the temptation to abandon all quality, and even gets a few locals in (including famished gondoliers) for its no-nonsense dishes (especially the fried-seafood options).

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  15. Anice Stellato

    Awaiting you in the guise of doorman is a huge damigiana (huge demijohn) by the entrance. Inside, the heavy timber tables and wooden chairs invite you to a chatty, convivial meal. In recent times it has swung back to more traditional local options. Try the misto di cicheti (mix of cicheti ) starter (around €12 ) or tagliatelle alla Buranella con sugo di crostacei e bescimella (tagliatelle with seafood and a béchamel sauce).

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  16. Antica Adelaide

    Nicely restored, with art hanging on the cream walls, the Ancient Adelaide was (under different names) in the food business as early as the 18th century. Drop by for tea or cicheti, or stick around for a good meal. Pasta comes in at around €8 and you can opt for fish or such oddities as arrosto di cuore (roast heart) as mains.

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  17. Antiche Carampane

    If you manage to navigate to this place in the heart of the one-time red-light district (the nearest bridge is Ponte delle Tette, or Tits Bridge), you could be forgiven for hesitating to enter. The handwritten sign declaims: 'No lasagne, no pizza, no tourist menu'. A tad tetchy? Never mind - for home-cooked fresh fish and vegetables, you have come to the right place.

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  19. Antico Panificio

    No-one comes to the 'old bakery' for bread, but for the generous, crispy pizzas that sail out of the wood-fired oven. It takes a little finding and gets busy, but it's streets ahead of the many pizza-slice takeaway joints in the vicinity.

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  20. Bacaro Risorto

    A box of a corner bar, this is another excellent new spot to sip on quality wines and munch on attractively presented cicheti . There's barely room to swing a deep-fried moeca in here but it's worth popping by, even if just for a glass and a couple of snacks before moving on. Unafraid of experiments, you find yourself on occasion surrounded by sushi.

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  21. Bar Ai Nomboli

    Francesco is the local king of the fresh tramezzino (sandwich triangle). His corner bar may not look like much, but all Venice knows that he makes the best, partly because he actually makes them with freshly cut bread, rather than having them delivered prefabricated and vacuum packed.

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  22. Cantina Do Mori

    Back in 1462 they started selling wine in this dark tavern near the Ponte di Rialto, and they've been doing it ever since (except for a few years in the 16th century when fire and plague wrought havoc). The place has operated as an osteria - offering a range of snacks - since the 1940s. Oozing history, it still attracts a lot of local custom in spite of rising prices. Don't bump your head on the pots hanging from the ceiling.

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  23. Da Fiore

    The unprepossessing shopfront appearance belies an Art Deco interior and traditional dishes, such as risotto di scampi (prawn risotto) and bigoli in salsa (thick pasta in tomato sauce), prepared with optimum care. They need to be. Once praised by Patricia Wells as one of the finest eateries in Italy and one of only two in Venice to have a Michelin star, Da Fiore risks all by pushing prices to the stars.

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  25. Da Marisa

    You may need to work up some Italian credentials to squeeze in (it's popular). If you get in, expect robust, no-nonsense meat-based cooking (Da Marisa is near the former abattoir but seems to have taken no notice of its demise). Duck, pheasant and lamb dishes take prominence. The occasional fish and seafood option is available.

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  26. Do Farai

    Hidden away on a calle (street) you are less likely to stumble upon, this busy seafood restaurant is compacted into a timber-panelled room where you can sample such delights as the tris di saor sarde, scampi e sogliole (sardines, prawns and sole in the typical Venetian saor sauce). Prices are a trifle elevated.

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  27. Enoteca Il Volto

    Near Campiello San Luca, this osteria (restaurant-bar, established 1936) has an excellent wine selection (more than 1000 labels according to one claim). Tipple in hand, proceed to choose from the tempting array of snacks, which no doubt will induce you to hang about for another glass.

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  28. Fiaschetteria Toscana

    A classic that has long maintained quality, the Fiaschetteria Toscana is about as Tuscan as a gondola. Here they serve up solid Venetian food, washed down with a choice of wines from an impressive national tippling list. The frittura della Serenissima , a mixed fried-seafood platter, is memorable. Leave room for Mariuccia's home-made desserts, especially the rovesciata, a rich upside-down apple-and-caramel concoction. If money is a consideration, drop by for the lunchtime specials.

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  29. La Palanca

    You'll be competing with locals on their lunch-break for a canalside table looking across to Dorsoduro at this very popular spot. First course of pasta (around €6 to around €8 ) might include tagliolini ai calamaretti (a narrow ribbon pasta with tiny calamari). Your host Andrea will make suggestions on the main course.

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