Pack Your Bags: Venice (Restaurants)



As I mentioned previously,
I love Venice
for a myriad of reasons...
but their local cuisine has never been one of them.

Perhaps it was our own fault,
but we have always struck out
when venturing out for food in the sinking city.

This past time,
on our babymoon,
we were determined to do better.

Luckily, we went with our friends Tyler & Amber
and they helped us source some really decent places to eat...

In fact, 
they were more than decent.

They were delicious.

If you head to any of these places,
you'll be in for a guaranteed treat.


________________


Osteria Con Cucina

Calle Cavalli 4081
San Marco, 30124 Venezia
+39 041 522 8945


This place opened in 1936
and has apparently been awesome for a long time.





We went for "aperitivi,"
basically pre-dinner drinks & food...
which is one of the best kept secrets of Italy.

In Northern Italy
{specifically Venice!},
you can't go through early evening
without seeing slews of locals drinking
the pre-dinner drink, a "Spritz,"
which is a bright orange concoction consisting of
Aperol, white wine or prosecco, club soda & an orange slice.









In most local bars,
these cost about €2.50-4 
and are served with some delicious salty snacks
and nibbles like marinated artichokes and small sandwiches.

{Editor's Note: Don't worry, this pregnant lady passed on the booze
and concentrated her efforts on some calorie consumption outside of the liquid form.}





Enoteca Al Volto gets this time of day down perfectly.

The prices are ridiculously low,
the food & drink are fantastic,
and the ambiance is perfect.

Yes, the most expensive glass of wine is €5. Prosecco is €2 a glass.



Please, please go when you are in Venice...
and tell me how much you loved it.

{Because I'm fairly sure you will.... especially those artichokes. Yum!}


____________________




Calle Vallaresso, 1323
30124 Venezia (San Marco)
+39 041 528 5777

This place is a legend.

Literally, it's an actual historical landmark.

The three things you need to know about it:

1. It's the birthplace of the Bellini.

2. Hemingway hung out here.

3. It's super expensive
so be prepared to shell out some cash.





You won't be able to see from the frosted windows 
lining this tiny establishment,
but the interior is really low key.

{It almost reminds me of the interior of a boat?}

The staff is decked out in crisp white coats
and are ready to field any orders for Bellinis.

Look around,
it's what almost everyone else is drinking in there.








While the glass may initially seem small,
just consider what it would look like in a champagne flute
and you'll realized that actually-
it's about the right size.


A Classic Bellini is €16.50
If you opt for a pregnant-friendly version, it's €11.50

Yeah, it's a splurge
but you kinda have to do it 
when you're in Venice.

And hey, 
at least the Olives are free!




Amber & Tyler. Thanks for the Bellini, Amber!





Bottoms Up!

*No need for a reservation
if you're just stopping in for drinks.


___________________




Trattoria Pizzeria

Calle Stagneri 5251
San Marco, 30124 Venezia
+39 041 523 6583


There are many terrible places to eat in Venice.

Pretty much every place that has pictures on their menu
or plasters multiple translations of the menu to their windows
with flags indicating the language
should be completely avoided...

But in a town like Venice
that is so... "tourist friendly"
{read: tourist trap},
you can find yourself with few options
other than some really expensive options...
unless you go to Da Mamo.

This is a great pizzeria and trattoria.

Think delicious pasta and pizza...
and incredible dessert.



You have to try it to believe it,
but the strawberries & marscapone drizzled with balsamic
will change your life.

We didn't have reservations
and eventually got a table after a brief wait...
but it was also January and raining.

I think you'd be smart to have your hotel call ahead
and save a table for you to avoid getting stuck without one...
or book ahead through their website.



_________________



Calle Larga San Marco 404
San Marco, 30124 Venezia
+39 041 283 4939


Our concierge recommended this pizzeria to us
late upon our arrival to Venice.
Tired and happy to hear of a place nearby,
we went...
and remarked how there is also a ROSSOPOMODORO
near my offices in London.

Well, come to find out...
it's the same restaurant.

Okay, obviously not the same,
but it's part of a chain
originating out of Naples.

Tyler was slightly devastated,
but we both agreed
that had we not known there were others
we would really loved it.

{Does that make us hipsters or something?}

The food is great- especially the pizza,
 the prices are more than fair,
the decor is cool, the staff is great with Americans/tourists, 
& the location near St. Marks Square is a win.

Honestly, it was really tasty and I'd swallow my pride
and totally eat there again...
which is why I'm adding it on my list of recommendations.


________________


AT YOUR RECOMMENDATION...

Here are a few places recommended by fellow readers
that made their time in Venice special... and delicious.


Osteria La Zucca
Santa Croce 1762
30135 Venice (San Marco)

"... beautiful canal side setting and I highly recommend the pumpkin flan."
-Jeff & April




Calle dei Morti 2253
Santa Croce, 30135 Venice (San Marco)

"It's a hidden gem, but worth the search. I would ABSOLUTELY call ahead-
we have been to Venice three times and were only able to get in two of the times."
-Stephanie Lane



*all images original to Aspiring Kennedy

25 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh, Lauren, these places look AMAZING!
    I have avoided ever returning to Venice because I had such terrible food the first time I was there. I have told people who were thinking of going that they shouldn't spend too much time there because they would be starving!
    I am ready to eat (eesh - that is terrible but I couldn't help it) my words.
    THANK YOU!!!!

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  2. I'm booking marking this post! I've only ever had 1 decent meal in Venice and it was $$$! Thank you! xx

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  3. It's too bad that Venice is so full of touristy food choices. I'm glad you guys found a few good options! The pictures look delicious.

    My husband and I are heading to London in about two months, and I'm going to comb your blog for ideas before we go. So fun!

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  4. Thanks to your Venice posts, I think I MUST go. I consider you an arbiter of good taste and take your recommendations very seriously. :)

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  5. Yummy! Venice is one of my favorite places. We actually had pretty good food from what I remember...but, we'd always go way off the beaten path and eat somewhere where no spoke English and you weren't 100% sure what you were ordering. We were only there for three days. Two of those days we ate at the same pizza type joint because it was so good. We stayed on one of the little islands off from the main land though.
    I'd love to go back one day!

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  6. Ohhh, those Spritz'es are divine (for a drink, ha ha)!! I loved that they were so cheap over there.. In Germany we used to pay up to 7 EUR for one of those...

    Such good restaurant advice! It is quite difficult to find a decent place where the food is good without the usual tourist rip off!

    Love,
    Svenja

    Happybluebird

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  7. It's like you knew I was headed o Venice today!! I'll check a few of these out but I have a feeling they may be out of my price range. :(

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  9. Thanks for sharing Lauren, I look forward to returning to Venice to try those places out. I've been many times growing up, but I think the last time was back in 10th grade for a theatre competition I attended in Vincenza. I look forward to showing the husband the beauty of Venezia.

    ps. those artichokes look so delizioso!

    xx
    Bonnie Rose
    The Compass Rose

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  10. Never been to Venice, but it's certainly on my 'go to' list. Now I'm soooo hungry after reading this post! Yum and those strawberries sound amazing!

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  11. I'm salivating - oh, it looks so delicious!

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  12. Ok, now I'm hungry! Its 8am & I want to go eat some Italian cuisine! :)

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  13. Aaah! Looks delicious. Oh Italy--how I love the things you "cook up". :)

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  14. oh heavens, this looks too good to be true.. i'm already planning my european extravaganza next year - food's on the top of the list.

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  15. This makes me want to go back to Venice so badly. How in heaven's name did I not know about Harry's Bar?? I did not do enough research obviously. However, we stumbled upon da Mamo's for dinner one night, got seated in 10 minutes, and had one of our favorite meals of our entire trip. Totally not a reason to go, but I loved their big, fun, wine glasses. I'm a sucker for a wine glass that is large with extremely thin glass. I want to go back!

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  16. These reviews are amazing! I'll be pinning this post so I can go back to it, because darn it, we will make it to Venice one day. Loved your photos and giving such detail!!!

    Thank you for taking the time to tell us all about these gems!

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  17. I am salivating! Looks delicious

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  18. GAH! how i would love to visit and eat my way through the city! lol

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  19. i love your travel posts, and i feel that you have a special place in your heart for italy. we're planning a trip in the next little while, and i will definitely check back for recommendations.

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  20. I'm BAAAAAACK....this time I'm writing all this in our itinerary. For Saturday. we leave Saturday!!!! Hop a Ryan Air over and meet us!!!

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  21. Thanks so much for the suggestions! My mom and I tried Enoteca Al Volto when we were there in April and oh. my. stars. was it good! It was our first cicchetti bar experience and the folks behind the counter were incredibly sweet helping us figure out the procedure and recommending some of their favorite bites. Definitely a good one!

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  22. Would you please tell us where you have stayed and/or recommend staying in Venice? Thank you!

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  23. Would you please tell us where you stayed and/or recommend staying while in Venice? Thank you!

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    Replies
    1. I've stayed in all types of places in Venice from high end (Londra Palace, Danieli, Ca Sagredo) to middle of the road (Best Western, Residenza Laguna) to AirBnB apartment entals. I've never really struck out. I would highly recommend Tablet Hotels website for good options, too! Hope that helps!

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