A Month In Venice

Eating out in Venice or Italy can be daunting if you do not want to get cheated. To get a truly Italian experience it is always best to eat where the locals eat. This means that the menu will be written only in Italian and you are expected to know what all of these items are on the menu. If you have special dietary concerns then this will be even more of a struggle if you do not understand some of the common items on the menu.

Fortunately I have gathered some of the most common terms for you and translated them so that it should be much easier to understand when you to out. I am seriously considering a Italian word of the day email to help my readers learn Italian. Or perhaps I could find a sponsor that has this that will be of service to those that read my blog regularly.

Here are some of the more common dishes used.

Antipasti – Appetizer
Antipasto misto – a mix of appetizers
Carcifi – This is some sort of artichoke dish served in oil
Gamberi el fagloli – shrimp and white beans
Prosciutto – this is a cured ham that is normally served with melons but can be used in any appetizer dish

Minestre (Soups) and Pasta
Cacciucco – this is a spicy fish soup
Cappelletti – Small ravioli with a light broth
Frittata – An Italian omelet
Minestrone – This is a beef soup with vegetables and pasta
Panzerotti – This is ra avioli filled with mozzarella, anchovies and an egg mixture
Polenta – This is a cake made of corn
Spaghetti alle vongole – This is a pasta dish with a clam sauce

Meat Dishes (carne)
Abbacchio – milk fed lamb
Agnello – lamb
Anatra – duck
Arista – Pork loin
Cervo – Venison
Cinghiale – boar
Coniglio – rabbit
Fagiano – pheasant
Lingua – tongue
Lombo di malate – pork loin
Ragu – meat sauce
Vitello – veal

Fish (Pesce)
Aragosta – lobster
Aringa – herring
Baccala – dried salt cod
Branzino – sea bass
Brodetto – fish stew
Calamari – squid
Gamberetto – shrimp
Gamberi – prawns
Gamberi di flume – crayfish
Granchia – Crab
Sogliola – sole
Squadron – monkfish
Tonna – tuna
Vongola  - small clams

This is just a small sample of what is available. Perhaps I could include a new word with each new post so as to help us all learn the Italian language. I am really kicking around some ideas here and hopefully soon I should have something in the works. Well I hope this helped someone out there.

Sometimes even though you might be on a budget when visiting Venice it is good to indulge yourself and others in some really fine dining. With this city’s reputation of being one of the most romantic cities in the whole of Europe it just stands to reason that spending a romantic evening with the one you love to be a right of passage and something that all couples should do while here.

With this in mind I have gathered a few of the more indulgent places to eat to tickle your senses and hopefully spark the mood for a wonderful evening. Now just as a bit of warning these restaurants are not cheap and that is by Venice standards which is about 15% higher then the whole of Europe so please plan accordingly. Also since most of these restaurants are known for their high quality it is a good idea to make reservations well ahead of time so as to not embarrass yourself.

The Met
Hotel Metropole
041-520-5044
http://www.hotelmetropole.com
This is the only Michelin starred restaurant in the whole of Venice. So obviously the quality of the food is not in doubt and the elegant surroundings match the city and the food that they serve. Please keep in mind that the specialties center around the fresh seafood so if you do not like seafood I would stay away from this restaurant.

Da Flore
+39 41 72 1308
Considered by some of the locals of Venice to be one of the finest dining experiences in the city. A serious atmosphere pervades the restaurant as the food is taken very seriously here. They are famous for their scallops in penne or even their bigoli in salsa which is handmade spaghetti in a sauce of mixed anchovies and onions.

Harry’s Bar
041-528-5777
Discussed previously in this blog Harry’s Bar is by far one of the most famous destinations for American tourists. This restaurant is known for its relationship with Ernest Hemingway and other notable stars of the past and present. The food here can be a bit pricey and you must have reservations but the experience is second to none.

Harry’s Dolci
041-522-4844
This restaurant is more of a trattoria then a fine dining experience. Serving much of the same food as Harry’s bar with much less expensive prices. This is well worth a visit as the atmosphere alone can capture your heart and imagination. This restaurant is in the same family as Harry’s bar but since it is not as famous you can still get the experience of eating in a good restaurant without such a high price.

There are many more restaurants to share and I will in later posts. However if you are planning a trip to Venice in the near future I would really look into these restaurants. You can really wow someone you care about by taking them to one or all of these places.

Harry’s Bar is perhaps one of the most famous of Venice’s landmarks and it is certainly one of Italy’s most famous restaurants in the country. The service at this cultural institution is outstanding and the food unparalleled in its quality. What has made this bar so famous was the generous mention of Ernest Hemingway in his book Across the River and into the Trees and following this many other notable people have walked through the doors of this establishment. If you are going to eat out in Venice and choose to splurge a bit I would definitely drop by this place as it is well worth it. Of course I would be sure to check to see if you need reservations beforehand as you will most likely will need to do so.

This is the bar where the famous Bellini drink was first made. Also the drink the Montgomery cocktail was also invented here as well. World renowned for its cooking the bar has its own cookbooks that you can pick up in any well stocked book store or Amazon.com.

This one bar has spawned an entire line of restaurants all throughout the world. From this bar the bars Harry Cipriani, Cipriani 42nd Street and Manhattan’s famous Rainbow Room as well as a catering company. As well the Cipriani’s, the owners of Harry’s Bar, have a line of their own olive oils, cook books and kitchenware.

Now it has been said that this is an over-hyped landmark with well overpriced food but you can say that about any restaurant in your own town. If you do choose to visit this bar I w ould be sure to sit upstairs as the view is far better and you look upon the Chiesa di Santa Maria della Salute and I am sure that this view is not easily matched anywhere else. Besides do you not want to go to a place visited by some of the most famous people who have walked this Earth?

If you want to eat in Venice on a budget then you must be a bit creative. As I have stated many times in this blog Venice is an expensive place. Many Italians will scoff at your idea of trying to survive in that city on a small budget. They should know as they are the experts in their hometown. However it is possible to save at least some money when trying to see all that Venice has to offer.

Here are some few tips and tricks to save money while in Venice. First be sure to visit the various baccari that are all throughout the city. These are the wine bars that serve what would be approximate to Spanish Tapas. If you want to find a good wine bar I would ask a local that you trust. If you can tell ahead of time if the restaurant you want to go is a pizzeria, a trattoria or ristorante then this will surely save you some money. The least expensive of the three is the pizzeria and the most expensive is the ristorante while a trattoria fits somewhere in the middle of the three classifications. There is really no sure way to tell from the outside but it is a safe bet that if there is linens on the tables then that is most certainly a ristorante and if you are on a budget I would only go to those sparingly.

Fortunately I did find a few good recommendations of some more notable restaurants to eat in Venice that will not break your bank account or cause you to open a second mortgage.

The first restaurant that I would recommend would be Rosticceria Teatro Goldoni which is perhaps one of the best examples of classical Venetian fast food. It is a cafeteria style establishment that is well known for their fresh salads that seem to be the favorite to the American crowd.

Secondly I would visit Osteria a la Campana which is quite a find in Venice. The fine wood paneling of the place does not match the inexpensive yet high quality meals that are served here. There is no menu as the waiters come to your table and tell you what is available for the day. It is a real experience that a traveler should experience and hopefully the tourists will keep away from as that would surely wreck the place.

Lastly the final restaurant I would recommend Vini da Pinto which is best known for its fresh seafood. This place is just right off the fish market so it should be easy to spot but overlooked by many tourists. If you enjoy seafood at all I would definitely go here to experience what would be a real Venetian lunch with the locals.

There are a few more restaurant recommendations I could give but this should keep you busy on your stay in Venice. Not spending an enormous amount of money in Venice can be difficult but with the help of some locals you are sure to find the gems that this city has to offer.

In Venice eating out can be a bit expensive, just like everything else in that city. However there are some things you should know before you venture out. For instance a good rule of thumb on how to spot a tourist restaurant is by the prices of their wines. A local house wine will be relatively inexpensive which means no more than 7 Euros. If the restaurant lists wines in the 15 euro range and above then I would avoid this place at all costs. The best advice I can give is to find a trusted local and go to where he or she eats. Some good advice can be found online at International Living or other online travel forums.

Now in regards to the typical Italian meal it consists of many courses. The first course is the appetizer or antipasto this is then followed by a pasta dish or primo piatto believe it or not this is then followed by a second course or secondo piatto which consists of either fish or some meat and then if the customer is not completely overwhelmed there is a dish of vegetables or salad which is called a controno and who could forget dessert or dolce to end it all. How a typical Italian can eat this is a mystery to most Americans because in American the portions are much bigger and we do not spend as much time eating as most Europeans do. However I would like to point out that in Venice that the typical Venetian is not as obsessed with food as the other Italians are. In fact you will see many Venetians eating quick bites at small bars.

Tipping is another point of contention for many foreigners in Europe. In America it is customary to tip anywhere between 15-20 percent of the ticket while in Europe it is their custom to only tip a few Euros per person as there is an already included cover charge added to most bills. This cover charge usually consists of a 12% addition to the bill plus a charge for the bread and linens which should only be a few Euros added to the bill.

For vegetarians Europe is actually quite accommodating. I guess they do not have as much hang-ups with eating meat at each meal as some other countries do. However you may find that some Venetian restaurants do not offer anything for a vegetarian. This is when a solid understanding of some basic Italian dishes come in handy. Most places will be willing to serve some vegetarian pastas and it would behoove you to learn to name these dishes by heart as you may end up ordering something special for yourself if you can not find anything on the menu.

Hopefully in the future I will have a series on some of the better places to eat in Venice that are known for their quality and for their local flair as well. I know no one wants to be ripped off when on vacation and if I can prevent this I will.