Years ago, someone told me that Venice has so many amazing restaurants that is hard to recommend only a handful. And after visiting Venice over five times, I fully agree. There are so many incredible restaurants in Venice, serving the most delicious typical Venetian food, that it would be impossible to list them all in one article. Among them, there are some tourist traps as well, and I’m not ashamed to admit that I once fell for one of them. So, today, I want to tell you about my favourite places to eat in Venice, the restaurants that left a mark on my palette, the ones to which I will return again in a heartbeat. I am not going to say that these are the best restaurants in Venice, because that wouldn’t be fair, but I promise you, no matter which one you choose, you will have a wonderful culinary experience.
I included on this list a few cafes, as well as a couple of bacaris that serve exceptional chichetti – also known as Venetian tapas. A bacaro is a typical Venetian bar, with limited space inside, where patrons enjoy drinks standing up, often outside, in front of it. They are known for being very inexpensive and popular among locals.
You will notice that most of my favourite restaurants in Venice are somehow away from Piazza San Marco. And this is because I found that here is where most of the tourist traps are concentrated – mediocre food and very high prices.
So, without any more rambling, here is the list of my choices on where to eat in Venice for a memorable experience.
Where to Eat in Venice:
Majer
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Majer is a chain of pastry shops with a few locations around Venice. It opens in the morning for coffee and stays open all day long for lunch and dinner. Even if it’s a chain, I highly recommend it because their products are so good and very affordable. If you are on a budget and are looking for some cheap eats in Venice, then Majer is one of your best choices. They sell slices of pizza, mozzarella in carrozza, fried rice balls with different fillings inside, as well as fresh bread, pastries, and a lot of cakes. You can also order a glass of wine or prosecco for less than 3 euros.
If you have a sweet tooth, I highly recommend trying their chocolate and amarena cherries cake – it’s so indulgent!
Rosa Salva
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Rosa Salva is one of the oldest cafes in Venice. Originally opened in Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo, over the years it expanded to another location and more recently, a hotel as well. I discovered them a long time ago, on my first or second visit to Venice, and have returned every since at least once a trip, for breakfast. They have a large selection of pastries and sandwiches, which you can either have at the bar or on their lovely terrace overlooking the piazza. As everywhere in Italy though, if you choose to sit down at a table, you will be charged more than if you would drink your coffee at the bar.
When it comes to food, I highly recommend their savoury croissants, as well as their pistachio pastries.
Rosa Salva also has a small gelateria, where they sell gelato artigianale made in house.
Imagina
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Imagina is a small café which I discovered on my most recent trip to Venice. I’ve passed by it a few times, as it was located very close to my apartment, so one day I stepped in for breakfast. It has a modern décor, it displays works of art on the walls, and it is quite spacious.
I liked that they had soy milk as an alternative for people with lactose intolerances. Their croissants were also pretty unique, filled with unique jams such as elderflower with raspberry.
Dolce Vita Venezia
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Dolce Vita Venezia is a great place open all day long, from breakfast time to cocktails in the evening. It’s always full of locals so if you find a free table here, consider yourself lucky. I tried Dolce Vita for breakfast only, and it didn’t disappoint. I ordered both a savoury and a sweet option: the ham and cheese-filled croissant, and the pistachio cornetto.
The cornetto was cut in half and filled with pistachio cream up to the brim, in front of me. I am not going to lie, it was messy to eat. But so, so good! The savoury croissant was soft and tasty, with each bite almost melting in my mouth.
Antico Forno
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I was so happy when I stumbled upon Antico Forno. Despite being on one of the main alleys connecting the bus station to Rialto Bridge, you can easily pass by this eatery as it’s pretty small and easy to miss. Which on one side is good, as the tourists didn’t ruin it yet. I took shelter from the rain here, for a bit of lunch, to keep my hunger at bay.
What makes Antico Forno special is that they are making pizzaccias – a combination between a pizza and a focaccia. I eyed the vegetarian one – not because I am vegetarian but because it looked so good – so I ordered it. The focaccia base was topped with tomato sauce, melting mozzarella, red onions, olives, ricotta cheese, peppers and slices of jalapenos. Spicyyy! I chose to order a glass of prosecco with my lunch, because, when in Venice, you order prosecco. The price for the entire lunch came to less than 10 euros.
Estro
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Estro is an experience rather than just a simple restaurant. I had dinner here by accident – literally! I was quite hungry, heading towards another restaurant. But something made me stop and go inside Estro. I was lucky that they had one table unreserved, and was invited to sit down, even though I was definitely not dressed for the occasion.
The food was exceptional! They are serving a modern Venetian menu, focused on local in-season ingredients, and wines from the Veneto region. The menu is very small and each dish is cooked to perfection. I started with an amuse en bouche courtesy of the chef, consisting of a cream of potato volute with a deep-fried sage leaf, and a slice of focaccia arrabiatta, with chilli butter. For the starter I chose the selection of Venetian antipasti: baccalà mantecato with polenta chips, grilled octopus with potatoes cream and celeriac, and scampi in saor. Every course was the chef’s take on a classic. The salt cod cream was served with crunchy puffed corn chips rather than the classic polenta. The octopus was grilled to perfection, served in a smoky potato cream, alongside cubes of celeriac – who knew I liked celeriac if it’s cooked right? Sarde in saor was another classic with a twist: instead of the classic anchovies, this dish was made with pink shrimp.
For the main course, I chose the typical Venetian bigoli pasta in the traditional Cassopipa seafood sauce. Every mouthful was packed with flavour and texture, from the small bits of seafood in the sauce, and the pasta cooked perfectly al dente. I finished dinner at Estro with a very light tiramisu, which had rum added to it.
La Colonna
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I passed by La Colonna many times, always stopping to take photos of the cats who linger outside of the restaurant. On my most recent trip to Venice, I decided to stop here for lunch and enjoy the sunshine this beautiful day in March was treating me with.
After studying the menu for a while, I decided to indulge in the fish soup, washed with a glass of house white. Now, the fish soup in Venice is not your usual watery broth with a couple of pieces of fish. Oh no! The Venetian fish soup consists of a large bowl of thick tomato broth, filled with different types of fish and seafood. I think I had about half a kilo of seafood in my bowl. Topped with an entire langoustine, the fish soup was served alongside toasted bread and a secondary bowl, for the mussel and clam shells. It was delicious and enough to fill me up for the rest of the day.
Ristorante Hostaria al Cavallo
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I had lunch at Ristorante Hostaria al Cavallo, on a beautiful, sunny day. I chose to sit on their terrace, overlooking the pretty Campo Santi Giovanni e Paolo, in Castello. I ordered an Aperol Spritz and glanced over the menu, trying to decide on one dish. I chose the spaghetti alla Busara, a typical Venetian dish which consists of pasta with langoustines in a rich, spicy tomato sauce. The waiter nodded with approval whilst taking my order, so I knew I made a great selection.
When the bowl of pasta arrived, I couldn’t help but notice the massive langoustines carefully placed on top, one over the other. The spaghetti was cooked to perfection, al dente. The sauce was simple but tasted divine: vine-grown cherry tomatoes – I wouldn’t have expected anything else from Italy -, fresh prawns, garlic galore, and a hint of chilly. Pretty sure there was white wine in there too, which together with the extra virgin olive oil and the fresh parsley sprinkled over the pasta, brought the dish together. This is what I love about Italian food, it uses very few but high-quality ingredients which together release the most deep, delicious, flavours.
Garden Bistrot
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Garden Bistrot is a new restaurant in Venice that opened in Campo Santa Margherita. I ended up here for lunch after my flight landed early and I couldn’t get the key to my apartment, which was nearby, until 3 pm.
I started with a selection of seared scallops and Pilgrim scallops cooked in an aromatic brandy sauce. For the main, I chose the sea bass filled ravioli with prawns, courgette and cherry tomatoes, which was outstanding. The sauce was so good that I mopped the plate clean, with a slice of bread from the basket brought complimentary at the beginning of the meal.
As the food was so delectable, I decided to pick a dessert as well, and I chose the berry pana cotta dusted with coconut flakes. It was the perfect light finish to an exceptional lunch.
La Lanterna da Gas
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La Lanterna da Gas is a small restaurant with a nice terrace in summer, overlooking a small square. It’s on a side street with a dead end, which hides it from the main touristy track. This is one of the more affordable restaurants in Venice that serves exceptional food.
I had dinner here, and couldn’t resist ordering their seafood platter which included swordfish, branzino, prawns, calamari, and a langoustine. The fish is grilled on a griddle, which gives it a slightly charred, smoky flavour. Not knowing how big this platter is, I also ordered the duck ragu and orange zest tagliatelle. The portion was generous, with a perfect balance between the richness of the duck and the zingy of the orange.
The desserts made in-house looked amazing as well, but unfortunately, I had no more space for them. I had to just let my eyes enjoy them when the family at the next table ordered one of each.
1000 Gourmet
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If you are looking for a good pizza, check out 1000 Gourmet. Close to Piazza San Marco, this pizzeria came as a recommendation, so I had to go check it out. I like that they are quite adventurous with their pizzas, and besides the classic margarita, marinara, capriciosa or ortolana pizzas, they also have their own signature creations. They are using local Italian ingredients to make their pizzas and pasta, many of which have the protected designation of origin status.
Being so close to San Marco, the restaurant was packed. The waitress did offer me a seat on their street terrace, in the back of the restaurant, which was very quiet. She also put the heating on, as it was quite chilly. It took me a while to decide on only one pizza, as quite a few spoke to me. In the end, I set on the “La morte del pistachio”, which translates close to “Death by pistachio”. I liked that!
The pizza had a typical Napoletan crust and it was topped with straw-smoked buffalo provola cheese, mortadella from Bologna, Bronte pistachio pesto, chopped pistachio nuts, and lemon zest, which brought the so-needed flavour balance. The pizza was finished with cold-pressed extra virgin olive oil. I truly enjoyed this pizza, eating almost all of it – as it was quite big.
Ristorante Santa Maria Formosa
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Restaurants in Venice are usually much more expensive than anywhere else in Italy. But, for lunch, there is always a good idea to choose the daily menu. For 15-20 euros you will get an appetiser (usually a pasta dish), a main, and sometimes either a dessert or coffee at the end of the meal. Whilst the portions are smaller than the a la carte choices, many restaurants focus on typical Venetian dishes, so, if you want to taste some, this is a great opportunity.
I chose the menu of the day when I lunched at Ristorante Santa Maria Formosa, in the square with the same name. I was intrigued by the choices, so I chose the fish carbonara as the appetiser and the grilled cuttlefish with roast potatoes as the main. The fish carbonara was spectacular. It was creamy, with such a bold flavour. The cuttlefish was grilled whole, to perfection.
I rated this restaurant so highly for their amazing food only. Unfortunately, the staff wasn’t of the same calibre. Whilst they were nice to me as I spoke to them in Italian, they kept mocking a solo Japanese traveller dining next to me. And that wasn’t appropriate at all.
Osteria Al Ponte La Patatina
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I started researching the typical cuisine of Venice a few years ago and became fascinated with how different it is from the rest of Italy. Which shouldn’t have surprised me, as each region in Italy has its typical dishes. I started my journey into the gastronomical specialities of the city with a visit to Osteria Al Ponte la Patatina, in San Polo, because of their typical local menu.
For the starter, I chose the most famous Venetian fish dish, the baccalà mantecato with polenta. The dish consists of whipped salt cold spread which is served alongside toasted bites of polenta. The idea is to spread the creamed cod on the hard polenta and eat it as a sandwich. I liked the taste of the dish, a bit sweet rather than fishy. For the main course, I chose the spaghetti alle vongole – pasta with clams. The portion was on the small side but the taste was very good, with pasta cooked al dente. To finish, I ordered the classic tiramisu. Did you know that tiramisu is a traditional Venetian dessert, and it was born in the early 1970s just outside of the city, in Treviso.
Ristorante da Raffaele
Directions | Menu | $$$
Da Rafelle is one of those restaurants where you pay a little bit extra for the location, just along a quiet canal. From time to time, gondoliers pass by with their clients. The restaurant was first opened over 60 years ago, and it is still family-run by a local Venetian restauranteur. It is a more expensive place to eat in Venice but the food, however, doesn’t disappoint. This was actually the first posh restaurant I dined at in Venice, on my second trip to the city. I had such an amazing time here that I made friends with the guests at the nearby table and by the end of the evening, we were drinking limoncello and grappa together. We pretty much closed the restaurant. Now, I don’t want to remember the next day’s pain, only the great food I had here.
I started with a cold antipasto, with local cheeses and cold cuts, accompanied by a glass of red wine from Veneto. For the main course, I chose the John Dory fillet cooked “all’Isolana”, in a Mediterranean tomato, olives, capers and lemon sauce. The fish was so delicately cooked, firm but flaky enough not to need a knife to cut it. The lemon sauce complimented the sweet-like taste of the John Dory without overpowering it, in a perfect equilibrium of savours.
La Bella Pollastrella
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La Bella Pollastrella is a restaurant tucked away on a side canal close to the Jewish Quarter, in Cannaregio. I came here for a late lunch, after finishing a tour around the less touristy parts of the city. I started with the classic tomato bruschetta, which was very good.
Then, for the main, as I was pretty much famished by this point, I ordered a classic capriciosa pizza. I was surprised at how big the pizza was, topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, artichokes, ham and mushrooms. Finished with a drizzle of olive oil, it was everything I needed. Delicious!
Conclusion
I hope this article about the best places to eat in Venice will help you plan an unforgettable culinary adventure in the city of love. The more I travel to Venice, the more I will update this food guide with my most recent finds, to always give you options for mouthwatering experiences. I already have my eyes on a newly opened restaurant which has an incredible-looking tasting menu. Until then, if you have stumbled upon other fantastic restaurants in Venice, please let me know in the comments below and I will add it to my list of new places to try.
For more articles about Venice, check out my recommendations below:
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The food looks amazing. Happy to know there are a lot of restaurant/shop options in Venice. So far, I keen to visit Antico Forno and try their pizzaccias. It looks so delicious plus I rarefully find this pizza and focaccia combination.
By the way, I had no idea that you get charged more if you sit down at a table than simply drinking at the bar. I definitely learned something new today. 🙂
I have always associated Venice with the canals and romantic rides. Never really thought about the food! Your post made me realise the important aspect as well–gastronomy! I would love to try the pizzaccias at Antico Forno. I am vegetarian, so the toppings appealed to me. The idea of a pistachio pastry is also tempting. Of course, pizzas would be high on my list too.
Ooooh!!! I was in Venice a couple months back and I remember the amazing food we had there. I’m always in love with Italian food; absolutely delicious. A croissant with Elderflower and Raspberry jam? Yummm. I’d love to try that. I’d also love to try that pistachio cornetto at Dolce Vita. La Lanterna de Gas sounds interesting too.