A compilation of the best restaurants in Venice according to the world's top gastronomy blogs.
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Vegetarians flock to La Zucca, a much-beloved, something-for-everyone sort of local favorite, to escape Venice’s fish overload, but the restaurant does more than that. The food is simple: just good honest cooking and a daily-changing menu—a tell-tale sign that everything served was bought that morning. The savory pumpkin flan is legendary, the pasta dishes (try the tagliatelle with artichokes and pecorino if it’s available) are excellent, and all the desserts are memorable.
Sestiere Santa Croce 1762, 30135 Venezia VE
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As of 2019, chef Enrico Bartolini racked up six Michelin stars across his five restaurants; GLAM, his Venice outpost (and presently the hottest dining ticket in the city) has one. Carrying through Bartolini’s contemporary culinary vision here is resident chef Donato Ascani. You can go with the seasonally shifting à la carte list, but tasting menus (from €120) are more exciting. Dishes reveal themselves to be beautifully balanced: substance and not just flashy presentation.
Calle Tron, 1961, 30135 Venezia VE
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Il Ridotto is located just east of St Mark’s on a plaza teeming with tourist traffic, but the restaurant emanates a calm elegance from its small, brick-clad premises. Tasting menus (of five, seven, or nine courses) are the thing to get here, offering the range of seafood and meaty creations of chef and owner Gianni Bonaccorsi. The beautifully plated dishes change seasonally but might include remarkably subtle renditions of risotto with yellow tomatoes and burrata, or pork cheek and belly with chamomile-flavored creamed potato and green apple.
Campiello, Campo Santi Filippo e Giacomo, 4509, 30122 Venezia VE
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In a sea of intimate (read: tiny) restaurants, the amount of airy space in the contemporary, pared-back Local comes as a shock. Chef Matteo Tagliapietra strayed for several years from his native Burano to work at Nobu, Noma, and a host of other gastronomic temples. He brought home Far Eastern influences that are unique in Venice, though his feet are firmly planted in the lagoon city. Each of his constantly changing dishes is a joy for the eye. This is a venue for serious food lovers.
Salizzada dei Greci, 3303, 30122 Venezia VE
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When bearded brothers Dario and Alberto Spezzamonte opened Estro in 2014, Venice offered little in the way of food-forward wine bars with a hipster edge. Estro filled the gap and still sets a high bar; the food always impresses, the locale is stylish, and the vibe, though young, feels welcoming to all. Though sharp, industrial-chic style is definitely a factor here, it’s the wide selection of natural wines and the carefully crafted fare—Venetian-inspired but imaginative—that are the important players.
Dorsoduro 3778 Crosera, Calle S. Pantalon
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Ai Artisti, a welcoming little place serving remarkably good food, has a few little tables alongside a quiet canal and a handful more in a compact dining room. Ingredients are mostly local and very fresh. But unusual things happen to old favorites here with delicious results; say, the secoe (veal cartilage, a Venetian tradition) made into a salad with beans and sesame seeds, and the pasta with sausage and green peppers.
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Ai Mercanti pulls off that difficult trick of being dark, grown-up, playful, and warm—all at once. The restaurant bills itself as a gastrosteria, and delivers with experimentation firmly rooted in Venetian tradition, and a light touch with dishes for all appetites. Some combinations here—marinated sardines with nachos; pea and cuttlefish risotto with ginger—come as a surprise in gastronomically staid Venice, but they work. You can taste the freshness of the raw ingredients in a menu that changes with great regularity.
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Chef Cesare Benelli and his Texan wife Diane have been running Al Covo, a much-loved Venetian restaurant, since 1987, with dedication and charm. The cooking here, studied without being pretentious, is very closely tied to the territory, with produce coming from local producers and Slow Food presidiums. There are tables outside the simple osteria-style façade, and more in a grown-up interior with dark brick and cream walls, wooden fittings, and eclectic art. You can order a la carte, but there are also tasting menus for both lunch and dinner.
Campiello de la Pescaria, 3968
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Corte Sconta is a long-running Venetian stalwart that's much loved for its outside seating in a charming courtyard. The restaurant gives off the air of an upmarket local trattoria, but is, in fact, a favorite with sophisticated international travelers. The Corte Sconta classic is the seafood antipasto—a procession of super-fresh offerings, both raw and cooked—which in itself will sate all but the biggest appetites. If that doesn’t suffice, a competently prepared pasta al nero di seppia (squid ink) with mussels, a fresh, grilled fish, or a delicious tiramisu will set you right.
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Da Fiore has long held a Michelin star thanks to chef Mara Martin, whose accomplished, dependable creations are comfortingly old-fashioned, which fits the classic vibe of the houseboat-like dining room. Some dishes are legends that have drawn devotees for decades: crispy fried oysters on a bed of savoury zabaione; ultra-trad bigoli in salsa (pasta with anchovies and onions); perfectly cooked soft-shelled moeche crabs. But expect solid rather than pyrotechnic, with an emphasis on comfort.
Osteria Enoteca San Marco (San Marco)
€€ | Wine Bar | Venetian Comfort Food | Great Atmosphere
Osteria Enoteca San Marco is one of our go-to spots, featured in our video on how to see Venice in a day. While you can drink wine in pretty much any establishment in Venice, an enoteca will give you that local feel. Many enoteca’s started off as just straight-up wine bars. Then, over time, they started serving food, which makes sense. Good wine is naturally well accompanied by good food.
Here, they have the best of both worlds. So, you can walk in and just have a glass of wine with a snack at the bar. Or, you can have a sit-down meal and enjoy one of their classic dishes like spaghetti with tiger prawns or roasted lamb. This is a great place to enjoy Venetian comfort food paired with the perfect wine.
Address: Calle Frezzaria, 1610
€€ | Classic Venetian Cuisine | Hidden Gem | Quiet Square Setting
For classic Venetian dishes away from the crowds of tourists, Antico Gatoleto is the place to go. It’s a gem of a restaurant set in a lovely, quiet square serving good food. Try the clams and spaghetti together with a glass of prosecco.
Angel Castellanos stops here in his how to see Venice in a day video, so you know you won’t regret stopping by for a meal here. In fact, many come back more than once on the same trip to Venice! The food and service are that good.
Ristorante La Bitta (Dorsoduro)
€€ | Homestyle | No Seafood
People come to La Bitta when they want a homemade-style meal. It’s a quaint establishment with a cozy atmosphere that puts you at ease. There are very few places like this left in Venice, which is why it’s on our list of the best restaurants in Venice.
As for the menu, there’s no seafood! It may seem strange, but it’s true. Instead of seafood, sit down to enjoy radicchio in a cream sauce or the artichoke salad. Then, move on to the pasta and meat dishes. If you’re tired of seafood or want to be a bit more local, this is the place.
Address: C. Lunga S. Barnaba, 2753/A
This most famous of Venice restaurants, an institution since 1830, recently received a facelift at the hands of designer and architect Philippe Starck. The Michelin star restaurant’s beloved Murano glass chandeliers illuminate walls upholstered in highly-original and playful fabric designed by local textile artisans. To see these opulent dining rooms overlooking St. Mark’s Square would be reason enough to visit, but seasonally-inspired three- or five-course tasting menus are the true attraction – with every bite of asparagus and green pepper risotto and accompanying beetroot foam, you will taste the promise of spring. Generous amuse-bouches are also playful and delicious. This is one of the rare Venice menus that includes gluten-free options. The staff has also opened a small extension in the Fondaco dei Tedeschi shopping centre. You’ll likely want to visit both locations.
The food at this restaurant inside Hotel Danieli is excellent, with a menu that showcases recipes dating back to 1909, including a Dandolo risotto with sea urchin, sole and fresh tomatoes. But that’s really beside the point: come here for one of the best views in Venice, overlooking the Grand Canal, Punta della Dogana, Giudecca and San Giorgio Maggiore.