Food · Venice · Italy
What to eat in Venice
The dishes, drinks and food experiences that define Venice, and where locals actually eat them.
Updated By the AMZBooking editorial team
Photo: kallerna, CC BY-SA 4.0
Quick answer
Start with Cicchetti, Sarde in saor and Baccalà mantecato. Go from bacaro to bacaro in the early evening, having one or two cicchetti and an ombra of wine or a spritz in each, around the Rialto or along the Cannaregio fondamente. Restaurants charge a cover (coperto) per person, and some add a service charge; check the menu so the bill is not a surprise.
Key facts
- Signature dish
- Cicchetti
- Vegetarian-friendly picks
- 4
- Tipping
- A cover charge is standard and service may be included.
- Food experiences
- 4
12 foods to try
Snack
1.Cicchetti
Venice's bar snacks: small crostini topped with salt cod, sardines or cured meats, fried meatballs (polpette), stuffed olives and seafood bites, eaten standing with a small glass of wine (an 'ombra').
Where: Bacari around the Rialto, along Fondamenta della Misericordia in Cannaregio and near Campo Santa Margherita in Dorsoduro.
Dish
2.Sarde in saor
Fried sardines layered with slow-cooked sweet-and-sour onions, vinegar, pine nuts and raisins, a preserving method from the days of long sea voyages. Served cold as a starter or cicchetto.
Where: Bacari and traditional trattorie across the city.
Snack
3.Baccalà mantecato
Dried cod soaked, poached and whipped with olive oil into a silky cream, spread on crostini or grilled polenta.
Where: Almost every bacaro; it is the most classic Venetian cicchetto.
Dish
4.Squid-ink pasta (Spaghetti al nero di seppia)
Pasta in a glossy black sauce made with cuttlefish and its ink, with a deep taste of the sea. Risotto al nero is the rice version.
Where: Seafood trattorie throughout Venice, especially in Castello and Cannaregio.
Dish
5.Bigoli in salsa
Thick wholewheat spaghetti-like pasta in a sauce of onions slowly cooked with anchovies or sardines. Simple, traditional and once a fasting-day dish.
Where: Traditional trattorie and osterie.
Dish
6.Fegato alla veneziana
Thin strips of calf's liver cooked quickly with lots of soft white onion and served with polenta — Venice's best-known meat dish.
Where: Traditional osterie and trattorie.
Dish
7.Risi e bisi
A thick spring dish of rice and young peas cooked in broth made from the pea pods, somewhere between a risotto and a soup. Traditionally served to the doge on St Mark's Day.
Where: Restaurants serving traditional Venetian cooking, mostly in spring.
Snack
8.Tramezzini
Soft, crustless triangular sandwiches stuffed generously with fillings such as tuna and egg, prawns or ham and mushroom, eaten at the bar with a coffee or spritz.
Where: Cafés and bars across the city, especially around Campo San Luca and the Rialto.
Drink · Vegetarian
9.Spritz
The Venetian aperitivo of white wine or prosecco, soda and a bitter liqueur — Aperol, Campari or the Venetian Select — with an olive and a slice of orange.
Where: Every bacaro and bar, especially in Campo Santa Margherita, the Rialto area and Cannaregio.
Drink · Vegetarian
10.Bellini
White peach purée topped with prosecco, invented at Harry's Bar in Venice in the 1940s. It is best in summer when white peaches are in season.
Where: Harry's Bar near St Mark's and many bars across the city.
Dessert · Vegetarian
11.Fritole
Small fried doughnuts studded with raisins and pine nuts, sometimes filled with custard or zabaione, made for Carnival.
Where: Pastry shops (pasticcerie) across Venice in the weeks before and during Carnival.
Dessert · Vegetarian
12.Tiramisù
Layers of coffee-soaked biscuits and mascarpone cream dusted with cocoa. The dessert is claimed by the Veneto region, and Venetian versions are often made fresh each day.
Where: Pasticcerie and restaurants throughout the city.
Food experiences
Bacaro crawl
Go from bacaro to bacaro in the early evening, having one or two cicchetti and an ombra of wine or a spritz in each, around the Rialto or along the Cannaregio fondamente.
Rialto Market morning
Watch fishmongers lay out lagoon fish, soft-shell crabs and cuttlefish in the Pescheria and vegetable stalls selling produce from the lagoon island of Sant'Erasmo, before the day-trippers arrive.
Lagoon seafood lunch
Trattorie on Burano and Torcello serve risotto made with lagoon fish, fried seafood and grilled fish at long lunches away from the crowds.
Coffee at the bar
Drinking an espresso standing at a bar costs a fraction of sitting at a café on St Mark's Square; save the famous cafés for one splurge.
Quick bites and street food
- Cicchetti — Bacari around the Rialto, along Fondamenta della Misericordia in Cannaregio and near Campo Santa Margherita in Dorsoduro.
- Baccalà mantecato — Almost every bacaro; it is the most classic Venetian cicchetto.
- Tramezzini — Cafés and bars across the city, especially around Campo San Luca and the Rialto.
Vegetarian options
Of the 12 foods in this guide, 4 are usually vegetarian: Spritz, Bellini, Fritole and Tiramisù. Check preparation with staff, as stocks and fats vary.
Eating out: tips and etiquette
- Restaurants charge a cover (coperto) per person, and some add a service charge; check the menu so the bill is not a surprise.
- Avoid restaurants with touts and picture menus near St Mark's and the Rialto; walk a few lanes away for better food and prices.
- Bacari are often busiest from about 6pm to 8pm, and many close early in the evening.
- Fish priced 'per etto' is charged per 100 grams; ask for the total before ordering.
- Book dinner at good trattorie, especially on weekends and during Carnival and the Biennale.
Tipping
A cover charge is standard and service may be included. Rounding up or leaving a few euros for good service is appreciated but not expected; gondoliers and water-taxi drivers do not expect a tip on the official fare.
| Phrase | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Buongiorno | Good morning / hello |
| Grazie | Thank you |
| Il conto, per favore | The bill, please |
| Un'ombra | A small glass of wine (Venetian) |
| Permesso | Excuse me (to pass) |
| Quanto costa? | How much is it? |
Questions travellers ask
+What food is Venice famous for?
Cicchetti, Sarde in saor, Baccalà mantecato and Squid-ink pasta. Venice's bar snacks: small crostini topped with salt cod, sardines or cured meats, fried meatballs (polpette), stuffed olives and seafood bites, eaten standing with a small glass of wine (an 'ombra').
+Is Venice good for vegetarians?
Several local staples are meat-free, including Spritz, Bellini and Fritole.
+Do you tip in restaurants in Venice?
A cover charge is standard and service may be included. Rounding up or leaving a few euros for good service is appreciated but not expected; gondoliers and water-taxi drivers do not expect a tip on the official fare.