Venice Restaurants: Reviews & Recommendations

[Beachfan]

Ai Covo

campiello della Pescaria 3968

52 23 812

A well know restaurant in American circles as it's owned by an Italian chef and his Texan wife, who is your hostess. And it delivers a great combination of fresh, fresh Northern (Italian) seafood and Southern (US) hosptitality. Black pasta in cuttlefish ink was particularly memorable. Venetian cuisine, a restaurant as opposed to a trattoria.

Unfortunately, not good for vegetarians last time I was there (99). If I return again (I'll be there in Sepetember) it will be on one of my wife's food nights off.

PS This phone number, as are all of the last 4, are dated. Please let me know if you have more recent ones.

Edited March 24, 2003 by Beachfan (log)

[wgallois]

Agli Alboretti

Accademia 884

Tel: 523 0058 Fax: 521 0158

Great idea Craig. I recommended this restaurant in an earlier Venice thread, having eaten there in 2001. Had a wonderful white truffle risotto and some good cheese. It is a member of a group of restaurants devoted to the promotion of local ingredients and recipes, but I'm afraid I can't recall the name of the group. Very good service and prices not much higher than some of the 'photos of the food outside' brigade mentioned earlier.

[Alex F]

Osteria del Fiore

I went there last year (2002) and it's still one of the most amazing experiences I've had ... with food!

I went there for lunch, because I couldn't get a table in the evening. We were given the table in the bay window overlooking the canal, if you're booking ask for this table specifically.

My starter was a Torta de Parmigiano with White Asparagus, which I've tried many times to make and have failed every time.

As a Prima I had the Risotto of Porcini Mushrooms and Prawns - Fantastic!

Then I had the Soft Shell Crabs - I can't describe this dish but go there and have it.

[coachboy]

From visits the past two summers:

Al Covo: Avoid. Full of tourists (only heard English and Japanese). Food was OK, but not worth tariff.

Da Fiore: Great food. Lovely ambiance. Terrific Service. Really EXPENSIVE, though. Entrees between $40-50.

Vino al Gigo (sp?) - lovely spot in Canareggio. Superb wine list. Good, simple seafood. For Venice, inexpensive/moderate.

Alla Testiere: Tiny, two seatings a night. Friendly, young staff. Superb seafood - among best I've had in Italy. Excellent deserts too. Interesting, well priced wine list. Pricey, about $150 for two with $20 wine.

Ponte del Diavolo - Nice restaurant on Torcello. Lovely outdoor area, full of Italian families on a Sunday afternoon. About $45pp.

Ciao.

Coachboy

[menton1]

Yes, unfortunately, unlike the rest of Italy, Venezia is a difficult place to find a good meal. However, these are 2 places that we stumbled on and had very good experiences:

Osteria Alberto, 5401 calle Giacinto Gallina, in Canneregio-- right over a bridge. (Addresses can be confusing in Venice) A wonderful little place with terrific food and no tourists. Off the beaten track in the "interior" Canneregio, just on the border of San Polo. Went a couple of times on different trips and it was great. Lots of appetizers to choose from and point to in the front before you sit down. (Has pasta and Secondi piatti as well)

Al Mascaron, 5525 Calle lunga Santa Maria Formosa, in Castello, but not very far from San Marco. Just far enough to attract locals-- very popular, so stop by in the afternoon and reserve for the evening. Expect to sit with other people, but this makes for fun and good conversation as well. Wonderful peasant dishes, great pasta in squid ink, a typical Venetian dish. Great atmosphere as well.

P.S. Recommend staying away from Al Covo-- mentioned in every Venice tourist guide ever printed, also heard negatives from people that have gone there-- we never did.

Also recommend staying away from a highly touted Wine Bar, Vino Vino. The food and snacks were mediocre, expensive, and the employee there even said a dish was turkey when it was actually pork!! Spent almost as much as a nice dinner elsewhere in this Wine Bar.

Edited March 24, 2003 by menton1 (log)

[JJS]

Al Covo is to be avoided. Arrogant, overpriced, and rather dull. Try Corte Sconta or Testierre instead.

[Paul Bell]

Alle Testiere and Da Fiori without a doubt our two favourite restaurants in Venice. da Fiori is expensive for Italy but not compared to most other countries especially for what is delivered.

Similarly I would not recommend Al Covo.

Tentatively I would suggest Il Sole sulla Vecia Cavana - Rio Tera' SS Apostoli 4624 (http://www.veciacavana.it). Nice space, friendly staff a wide ranging menu of traditional venetian dishes plus those with some more modern touches/ingredients, plus good desserts.

Plus two traditional standbys the Poste Vecchia despite looking like a tourist trap it is a really nice old restaurant that does surprisingly good black rissotto and fritto misto at a good price.

and

Fischeteria Toscana decent menu of venetian fish dishes, despite being in all the guide books the last couple of times we have been it has been full of Italians.

Paul

[R.G. Diamond]

Just got back from Venice yesterday, guys! It was a third trip, and I can finally enjoy this city properly, now that I know to stay away from San Marco (as far as food & accomodations go). I agree wholeheartedly about Alle Testiere (my favorite all-around, casual atmosphere & the best, freshest & most creative seafood), and Al Covo, which we tried the year before and got that "maybe-it-was-a-good-restaurant-once-but-certainly-not-now" vibe.

Da Fiore is too expensive, even for what you get.

Agree with earlier posts about Vini di Gigio -- good all around restaurant.

Check out "Shannon's restaurant list" on the Slow Travelers web site, which is infallable. She's currently compiling a (recently researched) book, which I suggest we all buy.

R.G.

[wgallois]

Osteria La Zucca

San Giacomo dell'Orio 1762 Santa Croce-Venezia-Tel.041-524-1570

Super place. Originally a vegetarian restaurant, which is now a restaurant which respects vegetables and serves all sorts of meat (there was horse on the menu the day we were there). Daily changing menu with the emphasis on seasonality. We had a gorgeous tomato salad with tzatziki, pasta with gorgonzola and pine nuts (which were cooked to perfection), a zucchini and tomato flan, and a caprese salad. Everything was delicious, and all the above, with a 500ml carafe of house wine and water was 33 Euros at lunch. I think this represents very good value for Venice.

And thanks Beachfan: Pizzeria San Toma is very good, and the mozarella and gorgonzola is a real winner. Note: there are three dining options - in the square, inside, and in the courtyard garden, the first of which would seem to be the best bet.

[WHS]

Ai Gondolieri, next to the Guggenheim, was wonderful last September on a rainy day with the canal overflowing. The panelled room up the stairs was almost empty, had the feel of a library or ship's cabin. I remember the fried quail eggs with white truffle shavings, and the duck breast preparation was very good. Lunch for two was $183.

We stayed with a friend on the Lido--there's a good seafood restaurant over there called La Favorita. Also, the best meal we had in Venice was actually in Padua--we made a day trip there to see the Scrovegni Chapel (Giotto murals) and had lunch in a hosteria in the old part of town (name eludes me). Zucchini risotto, rabbit in balsamic vinegar, lamb shank with raisins, dessert, coffee, wine, all for $57 for two.

[therese]

Agli Alboretti

Very good food, nice blend of traditional and innovative, attentive service, nice linens, etc. Less expensive than you'd expect, particularly for Venice.

Ae Oche

Very popular pizza place (though Venetian standards like fegato and seppie also available) with a student feel. Go at night, as no view. Both smoking and non-smoking rooms (entirely separate).

Al Nono Risorto

Very much a hang out for locals, with respectable basics and pizza, inexpensive. "Circolo scacchi" (chess club) a couple of times a week in a back room.

Osteria alla Zucca

All girl show (staff-wise), with small kitchen entirely on view (you can see it all if you sit at one of the three or four tables in the front room). Rustic interior, with some bench seating and no table linens.

Trattoria San Trovaso

Ai Cugnai

Either is fine in a pinch, but don't waste precious meals if you've got a better alternative.

[russ parsons]

three recommendations, two enthusiastic, one less-so:

1) i'm surprised no one has mentioned do mori, which is about my gold standard for a wine bar. really good hearty venetian cichetti, great variety of wines by the glass. on an alley just off rialto.

2) i'm not surprised no one has mentioned osteria al portego. i'm not sure i could find my way back. this is one of those venetian places you stumble into totally lost and find something amazing. here, it's the array of seafood cichetti: the best i've found in my admittedly limited ramblings. look for it between santa maria formosa and santa marina.

3) fiaschetteria toscana. i've eaten here several times with very mixed results. the first time it was august, everyplace was closed, it was hot, venice was full of germans and i was crabby. my wife and i sat down and i told the waiter (a little rudely, i'm afraid), that we were only going to eat light because we weren't very hungry. i think he took it as a personal challenge. the first dish he brought out was a perfect little plate of crab meat with just a little lemon and a drizzle of very good olive oil. the second was just as good. i called him back over and apologized profusely. we put ourselves in his hands, told him to bring whatever food and whatever wine he thought we would like. it was pure venetian and one of the best meals i've had. so good we made reservations and went back the next night for a repeat performance. almost as good, probably just as good allowing for hte lack of surprise. a couple of years later i went back, called in advance, let them know we wanted a real venetian meal and we got the total tourist treatment. rushed waiter couldn't take care of us, kept trying to push us to white truffles (we'd just come from torino, so we weren't biting). the food was good but the experience was not the same. so, caveat emptor.

[rshorens]

I've eaten twice at Ristorante Riviera, Dorsoduro 1473 (phone041 5227621)

It's a little off the beaten track near the Zattere but easily reached by walking or by vaporetto. Excellent bacala, pasta with black squid, the usual assortment of excellent Venetian seafood delicacies. The restaurant is small, non-touristy, cordial service. Other diners were Venetians. If they're in the right mood, you may get complimentary prosecco or limoncello, a taste of typical Venetian appetizers. Also, a short walk to the best gelato place in venice(I forget the name but it's just a little east down the same street along the grand Canal) Lunch for 2 cost 128,000 Lire in 2000($60 or so)

Roz

[Schneier]

Trattoria alla Modonna

Calledella Modonna, near Rialto

041-5223824

Classic Venetian cuisine at good prices. It's touristy--they have menus in English and Japanese, and probably in other languages as well--but don't let that fool you. This is good food: lots of seafood choices, pastas, and some meat.

On our visit we had polpette all'olio e limone, marinated baby octopus in lemon and oil. (This was on the Italian menu, but not on the English menu. Peeking over someone's shoulder, I saw it on the Japanese menu. Interesting....) The octopus was tender, not chewy, and very flavorful.

Both pastas were delicious: the spaghetti with clams and red sauce, and the spaghetti with cuttlefish and squid ink. The latter was seriously yum; squid ink looks so heavy and tastes so light. (Remember that the ink is water soluble, so you can easily get the black spots out of your clothes.)

Finally, we had a grilled orata, or sea bream. Like many restaurants, fish is sold by weight. The waiter will show you your fish before cooking it, and you can ask for a larger or smaller one. I like small fish, and this one came nicely grilled.

I think this is one of the best Venetian values for local cuisine.

(Last visited: October 2003)

[Schneier]

Da Romano

Via Galuppi, near Piazza Galuppi

Burano

Eating at a random restaurant in Venice is always a crap shoot. It could be a great Venetian eatery, or it could cater to tourists. Service could be good, or service could be terrible. We came to Venice armed with all of the restaurant web postings we could find. None of them talked about eating on the outlying islands.

Da Romano is in the island of Burano, near one end of the main street. We wandered up and down the street, looking at every restaurant, before we sat down. This one looked good. We took the chance.

The food was good. Lots of traditional Venetian dishes. We had prosciutto with melon, shrimp with polenta, spaghetti with crab (oddly translated on the menu as "thin noodles to the thornback"--tagliolini alla Grancevola)--and grilled eel: anguilla alla griglia. Reasonable prices. Friendly service. English-language menu. For a lunch on Burano, you can't go wrong here.

We sat outside, although the restaurant is very pretty inside. And it's big, too. Da Romano is a tourist restaurant, but we were happy with our choice. We definitely could have done a lot worse.

(Last visited: October 2003)

[Schneier]

Trattoria Antiche Carampane

Filli Bortoluzzi

041-5240165

There's a sign outside this restaurant: "No Lasagne. No Pizza. No Menu Turistico." For that alone we had to eat there.

Not that it was easy to find. It's on a street that doesn't appear on any of our maps, near streets that also doesn't appear on any of our maps. We followed a convoluted trail to get there.

It gets worse. There's no menu. Your waiter will tell you what food they have that night. And there's no English; your waiter will tell you in Italian.

If you can handle all of that--if you are good at following a treasure map, if you have an Italian speaker in your party, and if you're willing to put yourself in the restaurant's hands--you're in for an excellent meal.

Our meal started with an array of raw fish: tiny Venetian shrimp (schie), tuna, and a large crayfish-like shrimp, and lightly breaded and baked scallops. Then we had pasta: crab linguini, spaghetti with fish sauce (described by our server as a "brutish fish"--I forget the name), seafood risotto. All delicious.

The secondi, on the other hand, were less extraordinary. We ordered a John Dory, which was a little greasy, and a baked branzino, which was fine but no better than elsewhere.

Dessert was sgroppini (lemon sorbet, prosecco, and a splash of vodka) and a piece of chocolate cake to share.

They have an interesting wine list of local wines (yes, they have a menu). And they seem to have different options available depending on how much they like you. We got an amuse bouche (called the degustativo in Italian) of fried zucchini, were able to order a bottle of wine that was marked "No" on the wine list, and received one more glass of sgroppini than we ordered. Having a gregarious Italian-speaker with you has its advantages. (The server also knew what we should eat. When one of us wanted our fish grilled, she told us that it would come baked.)

This is not a cheap restaurant. The bill came to 60 euros a person, including wine. It's also a small restaurant. Call ahead to make a reservation, and then leave yourself plenty of time to find the place.

That’s because these are the directions (found on a website linked from slowfood.com), starting from the Campo San Polo: "Take Sottoportago de la Madoneta at the rear of the campo (on the right side coming from Chiesa). Turn left at Building #1414. Enter Calle dei Cavalli. Cross Ponte Furatola and take Sottoportago de la Furatola. This Sottoportago becomes Sottoportago San Tamossi and then Sottoportago del Banco Salviati. Going towards Carampane, the canal will be on your right. After Sottoportago ends, you will be on Fondamenta del Banco Salviati. There will be a small canal on your right, and you will pass an elementary school on the left. Before you get to the next bridge, turn left onto Calle del Tamossi. You will pass a house with a large courtyard. Then go right onto Ramo del Tamossi. Make a left onto Rio Tera de la Carampane--the restaurant is about one block on the right. If you reach the signs for Fondamente da la Stua, Parrochia S. Cassan and Ponte Tetti, you have passed Carampane."

No kidding. Those are straightforward directions. Makes getting there part of the fun.

Addendum: In the Donna Leon novel Death at La Fenice, the main character eats a fine meal at Carampane (Chapter 20). The fictional server is much like the one who served us. If you don't voice your opinions fast enough, she'll decide what you want to eat. I think that would be just fine.

(Last visited: October 2003)

Edited October 13, 2003 by Schneier (log)

[Schneier]

Da Fiore

S. Polo--Calle del Scaleter

041-721232 (yes, that's one fewer digit than normal)

http://www.dafiore.com

A lot as been written about the only Michelin starred restaurant in Venice: some of it good and some of it not so good. To those who write that it's no different or better than other good restaurants in Venice that charge half the price, I can only say you must have ordered wrong. Everything we had was different, and better, than any other meal we've had in Venice. Da Fiore is a splurge, and a big splurge. You might not want to spend the money, but if you're willing to there's no better food on the island.

It's not traditional Venetian cuisine. It's interesting twists on Venetian staples.

For a degustativo we got a plate of fried schie (those tiny gray shrimps), fried zucchini, and soupy white polenta. Absolutely fantastic: about as perfect as you can make something this simple, and a perfect peek into the meal to come.

Antipasti:

Scampi nostrani marinati all'arancia con sedano e sorbetto di pomodoro. These were raw shrimp served with mild celery shreds and bits of orange, and a flavored sorbet that felt a whole lot like frozen tapanade. A perfect dish.

Saor di orata alla Marco Polo. Salted sea bream with onions, pine nuts, and raisins, served with grilled polenta. Another delicious dish; the flavors just worked.

See the pattern? The sea bream is based on the traditional dish, but "revised" (waiter's words). The fish is different, as is the saor. The shrimp: same. You'll see raw shrimp elsewhere in Venice, but not with these accompaniments. The first pasta dish, below, same.

Primi Piatti:

Bigoli in salsa alla veneziana. This was a salted fish pasta dish. This was also delicious, but very strong and salty.

Risotto di zucca e tartufo bianco d'Alba. What can you possibly say about a white truffle risotto? It was fantastic. It was better than fantastic. There were about a million dollars worth of truffles shaved on top. It was perfect. It was better than perfect. Okay, the portion was too large and I filled up on it, making it impossible for me to finish my next course.

Secondi Piatti:

Coda di rospo all mediterranea. My dictionary translated rospo as "toad," but it was monkfish. It came grilled with olive oil and surrounded by olives, capers, tiny tomatoes, and bits of basil. Of the three fish dishes, this was the most basic. The fish was the star, and the accompaniments didn't overshadow it. It was also the most perfect piece of fish I've had in a long time.

Filetti di triglie con fichi e mentha. Triglie is red mullet, according to the dictionary I had. In any case, this was two perfectly grilled pieces of fish served with figs and bits of fresh mint and tomato. Surprising, and delicious. Definitely not what you'd find elsewhere on the island.

Filetto di branzino all'aceto balsamico. This was a piece of sea bass wrapped in spinach leaves and baked, and then served drizzled with vinegar and surrounded by baked apples. Again, a new and interesting presentation of a Venetian staple.

Everything is as you'd expect from a Michelin starred restaurant: beautiful presentations, expert service, pretty dining room. It's a small cozy room, reminiscent of a boat's galley, and a tad too loud. (And much of what we heard wafting across the room were conversations in English.) The menus are in Italian, but the waiters are more than willing to translate it all for you, explain ingredients you're curious about, and help you choose wine. (We were the first customers who sat down--at 7:30--which may explain the attention we got.) Women get their menus without prices, which--depending on your point of view--is either charming or appalling.

I've read some of the bad reviews on chowhound and elsewhere, and I'm hard pressed to explain it. Ugly Americans get ugly service, but foodies are generally the nicest patrons at restaurants like this. And bad service does not survive Michelin. A Michelin review isn't a New York Times review, which a restaurant can coast on for years. It isn't even a Zagat's ranking, which often remains high long after a restaurant has declined. Michelin visits their starred restaurants repeatedly, every year. It’s no small feat to get one, and there's no resting on laurels either.

Maybe the restaurant has off nights. Maybe the patrons have off nights? My best guess is that people who leave Da Fiore unimpressed order wrong. The trick is not to order the Venetian staples. I'm sure they're excellent, but so much of Venetian cooking is simple ingredients prepared simply that it's likely to be almost as good elsewhere. Da Fiore shines when they're doing something different: nouveau Venetian.

The prices are serious. Dinner was 80 euros a person without drinks (our white truffle primi cost twice as much as any other primi), and 110 euros with the addition of wine (two bottles divided among three people), water, and coffee. The wine list is extensive, and filled with good local white wines at prices ranging from 25-40 euros. The meal is expensive for a one-star restaurant, but Venice is an expensive city. You can argue about whether the meal is worth it, but I don't think you can argue about the food.

Reservations are essential, far in advance. You can make them on the web; I made mine by fax and confirmed by phone once I arrived.

(Last visited: October 2003)

Edited October 13, 2003 by Schneier (log)

[Schneier]

La Zucca

S Croce 1762 (S. Gaicomo dall'Orio)

041-5241570

Everyone mentions this restaurant. The Lonely Planet mentions this restaurant. A book called Chow! Venice mentions this restaurant. Internet guide to eating in Venice after Internet guide to eating in Venice mentions this restaurant. We have a book of maps of Venice; a mere dozen restaurants are mentioned--including this one. Posters above mention it. Everyone can't possibly be wrong.

La Zucca was once a vegetarian restaurant. Now it serves meat with its vegetables. Interestingly enough, they don't do much fish. Everyone else does fish, so they do meat. And they do it with a twist; La Zucca has the most imaginative menu I've seen in all of Venice. They serve traditional Venetian ingredients, but the preparations are anything but traditional.

Zucca is "pumpkin" in Italian, and we started with two pumpkin dishes. The first was zuppa di zucca e porri: pumpkin soup with potato, carrots, onions, leeks, and some really delicious seasoning. It was delicious, but even better was the flan di zucca con ricotta stagionato: a slice of savory pumpkin flan covered in ricotta shavings.

Our three main courses were lamb with tzatziki, roast beef with guacamole, and duck with prunes. All competently done, and all welcome changes from the fish we had been eating all week. But the real stars of the meal were the vegetable side dishes. These are all large, and suitable for sharing. But they're so good--and only 4 euros each--that you should order as many as you can just to try them. The fagioli beans in red sauce (fagioli all'uccelletto), the cipolline onions sauteed in prosecco, the slices of fresh fennel in olive oil: all delicious.

Like many restaurants in Venice, the primi dishes are much better than the secondi options.

Zucca is far from the tourist areas, and can be hard to find. It's a small restaurant: a half dozen tables in back, one in front, and a few on the street. Call to make a reservation, because if you get there late it will be filled with locals and you won't get in. Cost is about 35 euros a person, and worth much more.

(Last visited October 2003)

Edited October 13, 2003 by Schneier (log)

[Schneier]

Osteria Bancogiro

Campo San Giacometto

0141-5231051

This is the best bar in Venice. I may find a better one next visit, but until then this is the best bar in Venice. It's not a bad place for dinner, either.

Bancogiro is in the Campo San Giacometto, right near the Rialto Bridge. It's next door to my Internet cafe, the only one that doesn't check IDs and lets me plug my laptop directly into their network. It looks like a random bar, albeit one with a nice list of wines by the glass, but in the back there are tables right on the Grand Canal, and upstairs there are some inside tables.

The menu is small, and completely lacking in pastas. We started with a cheese plate. It was a nice selection of Italian and French cheeses, and more than enough for three people to share. Then three fish dishes. The fillet of John Dory came with the fresh orange mushrooms we saw in the market and bits of rosemary. The Mediterranean swordfish came with tomato, basil, chives, and dill. The only odd dish was the squid, which was served with radiccio and paprika, and was a little too bitter.

We also ordered two side dishes to share. The pumpkin with onions, raisins, and pine nuts was absolutely fantastic. The fresh porcini with parmigano was delicious.

Dinner was cheap, and the setting was beautiful. An excellent value in Venice.

(Last visited: October 2003)

[Schneier]

Cafe Florian

Piazza San Marco

Sitting outside in the Piazza San Marco can be an exciting experience, especially when the bill arrives.

Yes, it's that bad. A Coke costs 7 euros. A dish of gelato: 11 euros. Cover charge on top of whatever you order: 4.50 euros.

Just remember that you're not paying for the food, you're paying for the location, a ringside seat in Europe's drawing room. And that once you order something, you can sit undisturbed all day without ever ordering anything again. I think it's worth it.

Cafe Florian opened in 1720, and is one of the oldest restaurants in Europe. Even so, it's only the second oldest restaurant in the square.

(Last visited: October 2003)

Edited October 13, 2003 by Schneier (log)

[Joe H]

da Fiore

Avogoria

I dsagree with the above about da Fiore. We have been six or seven times over the past ten years and it has simply priced itself out of consideration. This is an excellent restaurant that Patricia Wells once called the best restaurant in Italy. It has been written up in every tourist book, raved about by Michelin (but not Gambero Rosso) and profited from the incredible popularity as a result. But today, with a rate of exchange of $1.18 to the Euro, with a medium priced bottle of wine (very high markup, even for Italy), this is now a $300+ meal for two. In 1992 it was $150 for two on our first visit when we fell in love with it. With entrees that are 45 to 50 Euros ($55 to $60) I have a different standard than when they are $25 or $30. For $300+ I would strongly suggest going to the three Michelin starred Le Calandre outside of Rubano which has the youngest three star chef ever. A prix fixe of 125 Euros, this restaurant is simply far superior to da Fiore in style and in taste. You'll also have about ten to twelve courses for this. At da Fiore several of the our meals have not lived up to the earlier ones. At the prices they are NOW (emphasize NOW, this is a restaurant whose prices have dramatically escalated as their reputation has risen) charging there is no room for error. da Fiore was once the best of Venice, one of the best of Italy. Now, we find it to be inconsistent and sadly overpriced regardless of the rate of exchange.

Avogaria is the 1992 da Fiore of 2003.

I would second/third the recommendations for Alle Testiere.

[sandra]

Trattoria Antica Bessetta

1395 S. CROCE

041-721687

Great meat and fish dishes - great spaghetti all'aragosta - mostly Italian clientele (of course they coud have be tourists also!)

Also a very very small resto, it was brand new at the time (2001) just across the Ponte Guglie, off Rio Terra S. Leonardo, to the right, a little tiny street, can't remember the name, the sign for the resto is white with the outline fo a blue dove - it's all blonde wood inside, very modern, great food - If I remember name, I will post...

[DaleJ]

My first posting.

I stumbled on Avogoria last March. Its at Dorsoduro 1629 (of course, a worthless address). Walking from Accademia toward Campo Santa Margherita, you take a hard left after crossing the bridge into Campo San Barnaba. Proceed on that calle until you cross another bridge. Avogoria will be on your left in a couple of hundred feet.

The interior and furnishings are extremely modern. Concrete floors, brick walls, a glassed in courtyard and one vibrant blue dividing wall.

I found the service, food, wine and ambiance wonderful. Someone in charge is, apparently, from Puglia because the menu and wine selections are tilted that way.

I took my wife there a couple of months ago and the place earned raves from her. (Not an easy achievement.)

BTW, I haven't seen a tourist there yet.

[DaleJ]

I'm on a roll. Here's one that is a challenge to find, but in its own way, worthwhile.

Osteria Vini Padovani is at Calle dei Cercheri, 1280 (another worthless address). Walking from Accademia toward Campo Sant Margherita cross the little bridge on your right before you cross the bridge to Campo San Barnaba. Take the left and follow it to the right a few feet. There is no sign, just a little light over the door.

The place seats about twenty. There is a bar, from which eminates everything. This is a lunch place, although you can get cichetti and drinks until about seven PM. Most food is in front of you under glass (sort of like Vino Vino) and is, if warmed, microwaved. If you order pasta it will come from the lady across the street.

I guarantee no tourists here. (BTW, no reviews for Vino Vino?)

Last March I asked the owner where I could get the heavy glass Cynar glasses. He told me he got them in Maestre by the dozen. When I told him I only wanted two, he simply wrapped two in brown paper and handed them to me. That kind of place.

[docsconz]

Osteria dei Assassini

website

San Marco 3695-30124

041.5287986

This was a recommendation by our hotel concierge for the evening of our arrival in Venice (myself and my 12yo son). It is a small, interesting slightly out of the way restaurant with good albeit not phenomenal food. My son had the un-Venetian penne ala putanesca, while I opened with a delicious ravioli with gorgonzola and radicchio. We then shared a tasty bollito misto, although sausage in my portion was undercooked. The bollito featured turkey, veal tongue, beef, parmigiano mashed potatoes and black beans all served with a variety of sauces. I had an inexpensive, but good local red wine - shoot me, I don't remember what kind!

Dessert was an excellent classic tiramisu.

Not the best restaurant in Venice, but certainly very far from the worst. Worth dining at if looking for a place in San Marco.