Venice

[sutcher]

Going to Venizia this weekend. I have two dinners and one lunch that I am looking to find places for. My list thus far is narrowed down to these restaurants. What do you think?

Alla Botte
Antica Adelaide
Ca'D'Oro Detta Alla Vedova
Dalla Marisa
La Bitta

Also
Cavatappi
La Mascareta
and
Al Prosecco.

Thanks in advance,
Saul

[PBSF]

Since you have such a little time in Venice, 1 lunch and two dinners that falls on a weekend (from your post?), I would do a little more research to find what exactly you are looking for. Some places close on Sundays. Dalla Marisa has odd days of closing. Most barcari are closed Sundays and some Saturday middays. Depend on your budget, there are some wonderful seafood restaurant in Venice. Keep in mind that most traditional cooking is simple preparation of seafood from the lagoon and the Adriatic. Even at most expensive places, don't expect a lot of fancy preparations but for the freshness, precise preparation and rarity of the product. You have so little time, it might be better to pick the midday meal where you might be sightseeing. Cavatappi is a modern bacari where the emphasis is on wines and some good ciccheti, whereas alla Vedova is typical Venetian with simple wines but some very good cicchetti. Both good but quite different. There have been a couple of earlier posts on dining in Venice on Sundays.

[PBSF]

Alla Botte and Alla Vedova are fine for simple places. Dalla Marisa and La Bitta are very good; no menu at Marisa and no seafood at La Bitta. The second list is all bacari. Cavatappi is one of my favorites with excellent wines. La Mascareta open evenings only. Al Prosecco is good for late afternoon in the charming Campo San Giacomo da l'Orio; the cicchetti are very simple.

[jen kalb]

there was some less enthusiastic comment a couple of years ago about lunch at Dalla Marisa during the winter - that it did not present the place at its best (served a simple workman's lunch only)

wondering if there has been any recent experience with Dalla Marisa?

[PBSF]

At Dalla Marisa, lunch and dinner are quite different. Though both offer only one set menu, lunch is very basic and for working Venetians. Evening is much more elaborate and I forgot to mention to the poster that the menu, depending on the day, can be all seafood or all non-seafood. Call ahead to and ask when making reservation. I last ate there about 3 years ago and the all-seafood menu was good and for 30E not badly priced. Though the osteria has it's quirks, it compares favorable to many medium priced places in Venice. I have not heard any changes since that time.

[sutcher]

Thank you both for your replies. Dalla Marisa looks like the place to go for one of the nights. Thank you PBSF for differentiating between the two sets of restaurants. It was unclear in the book Osterie d'Italia by slow food the differences between their two lists. I think we will definitely have to check out Cavatappi as well. What is La Bitta like?

[jen kalb]

La Bitta is a restaurant not a wine bar. like Dalla Marisa (half the time) it is one of the rare venetian meat specialists. Its small and in Dorsoduro, right at Piazza San Barnaba. Right around there are several other places, including Da Sandro (Osteria San Barnaba) which also has some meat dishes and where we enjoyed a good lunch cooked by the proprietor's wife, but they have quick bar meals in front too, and 4 Feri, another small seafood specialist (formerly in the Osteria guide).

You shouldnt go away from Venice without sampling their special seafood from the lagoon!

[sutcher]

Yeah, a meat specialist is definitely not what I am looking for in venice, there is enough of that in Rome. In terms of places that are amazing for fish (which is something I am deprived of here in Rome) you think that Dalla Marisa (during one of their meat days) for dinner and 4 feri for lunch are good choices?

[missmasala]

We were in Venice a couple of weeks ago and tried to go to 4 feri a couple of times over several days and they were closed.
So you might want to check and see if they are open before heading there.