Venice

I recently traveled to Venice for work and stayed over the weekend.  It is a very touristy place but there's such a laid-back culture that even as a tourists, I had a lot of fun getting lost in trying to locate the restaurants that were recommended by friends.   Here's a list of ones that I tried and loved:

caffè centrale http://www.caffecentralevenezia.com/en/ it is close to La Fenice theatre

 Here are some advice and tips from my good friend, Anna

the local thing to do is to eat "cicchetti". I looked at his article and I agree with All'Arco but I really don't like Alla Vedova.I'd add Al Sacro & Profano to the list of good cicchetti.(My advice: However, places are really hard to find and I end up just randomly walking into pubs. I tried to find the following places but again, addresses and locations are are hard to find on map even with Google Map.)

Our favorite restaurants:Osteria La Bottega Ai Sposi Promessi Osteria Antico GiardinettoOsteria alla StaffaCoVino


Reservations are a MUST!


Word of advice: if you just wanna grab one of the delicious sandwiches most bars offer, stear away from the ones near the train station. They're not good and I got a crazy allergic reaction once. The local breakfast is cappuccino with a "cornetto alla crema" (cream-filled croissant) and most cafés will have this.

The BEST ice cream in Venice is GROM no matter what Tripadvisor says LOL. They use zero preservatives, zero artificial flavoring, zero artificial coloring, just real wholesome fresh ingredients. GROM is also loved in Paris and known for being really natural and just deeelish!


Oh yeah, if you're planning to go on a gondola ride, you have to try bargaining. You'll be surprised...especially if the weather's not that great.


For an amazing view of San Marco take the ferry from San Zaccaria (next to Piazza San Marco) to Isola di San Giorgio Maggiore. Go up the Campanile at the Chiesa di San Giorgio (5€) and you’ll be happy that I told you to go(I did this and the view was truly gorgeous and amazing!! A photographer's dream)


Out of the restaurants above, I did end up eating at the following places:Osertia La Bottega Ai Sposi Promessi: I tried to walk in the first time and learned the hard way that reservation is a must! I went back a few nights later on my last night in Venice and got things that I had not tried in the other restaurants. The Fried shrimps was interesting as they are small and paired with balsamic vinegar, and spaghetti with clams is pretty typical except there's a ton of small clams.


Osteria Antico Giardinetto: my favorite restaurant out of the bunch because the pumpkin gnocchi is to die for (I still think about it and it's been 6 months after the trip!), the cuttlefish in black ink is authentic and homemade tiramisu. It's very touristy, especially with the Asian crowd but well worth the walk.


CoVino - I went here for lunch and got lost along the way as it's pretty easy to miss this place. Menu is prix fixe with ability to try 3, 4 or 5 dishes. I end up trying 3 and loved every one of them. Dishes were very creative, fresh, and tasted great. Well worth the visit if you can find it!


And Anna was right about the GROM gelato. It truly beats out the rest, hands down. I would be happy eating it all day every day. Ingredients are fresh, fresh, fresh!

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