Venice Restaurants

Venice is a great city - pity about the food. Venice visitors quickly find out that restaurants are outrageously expensive, meals are mediocre, portions tiny and prices exorbitant. There are exceptions, but only well away from the tourist hotspots.

Piazza San Marco is the most notorious area for restaurant overcharging, with examples of €43 for two ice creams and €56 for plain grilled fish. It's a rule of thumb that sitting in a restaurant within 200m of Piazza San Marco is an invitation to get ripped off. The endless stream of gullible tourists results not only in pernicious prices but also in abrupt, indifferent service and bad food.

Venice cuisine

Venetian cuisine also has little to recommend it. There is virtually no trace of the spices that were once traded in Venice's market. Venetian food is noted for its plain, some say boring simplicity, with pepper and salt used sparingly to spice up a meal.

Seafood dominates in restaurants and is served plain with a simple dressing of olive oil and lemon. Risotto is also common, usually incorporating fish and vegetables. Polenta - maize flour cooked in salted water - is another favourite and of course there are the usual pizzas and pastas that you will find everywhere in Italy.

Venetian pastries are also widely sold with cinnamon flavoured bussolai a favourite, as is the nougat and almonds toffee known as mandalato.

Venice menus

All Venetian menus follow roughly the same layout. They start with antipasto (starters) followed by the primo (first course) of soup, rice or pasta then a secondo (main course) of meat or fish served with contorni (vegetables) or insalata (salad) which cost extra. To finish there is frutta (fruit), dolce (pudding), gelati (ice cream) or formaggio (cheese).
The main Venetian dishes you will come across are:
Brodo di Pesce - a classic Venetian fish soup.
Rise e Bisi - a soft risotto made with fresh peas and bacon.
Grilled polenta - made from maize flour and salted water and usually served with a tomato sauce.
Insalata mista - a mixed summer salad of young leaves.
Tiramisu - coffee laced sponge cake with mascarpone cheese.

Some restaurants offer a set price menu turistico which usually comprises three or four very basic dishes although you will probably be more satisfied with a basic pasta dish. Nearly all restaurants have a cover charge and many add a 10% service charge to the bill.

Venetians tend to eat early and restaurants will routinely close if business is slack, so it's not a good idea to turn up after 9pm. Restaurants must close at least one day a week and this is usually Monday, but it does vary so there should always be a restaurant open somewhere nearby.

Our highly commended Venice restaurants include:

Taverna San Trovaso
Fondamenta Priuli, Dorsoduro 1016
041 520 3703
This moderately priced restaurant is five minutes from Accademia in the Dorsoduro, near the San Trovaso boatyard. A wide choice and large portions and a fixed price menu turistica make this a must visit choice. It's best to book.

Da Sandro
Campiello Meloni, San Polo 1473
014 11 1412
Da Sandro is about five minutes walk south of the Rialto Bridge. The restaurant has outside tables on one side of the alley and a tiny indoor pizzeria on the other. Meals are moderately priced.