It feels great to be back in Venice again after 15 years. The water is still high, San Marco is still undergoing renovation and designer shops have increased -- but the Venitian charm of canals, narrow alleys and magnificent architecture is ever-present.
For the first dinner in Venice, we asked the concierge at the Westin Europa & Regina to recommend a place that 'is not touristy and where locals go'. This has become our standard 'ask' of hotel concierges now wherever we go. His first answer was, 'This is Venice, you get tourists everywhere!'
Still, he recommended a place that his wife likes and he goes occasionally himself -
Al Paradiso, in the San Polo district, a short walk from the Rialto bridge. It's exactly what we wanted: a small place, away from the waterfront restaurants along the Grand Canal that serve pizza and a 'Menù Turistico.' The
maître d is the proprietor; a charming older gentleman dressed in a suit and tie and clearly in charge.
For an appetizer, we had a type of slipper lobster - cicale di mare, or "camoce" in the local Veneziano dialect. It was lightly broiled and really fresh tasting. Even though the plate came with half of a good sized lemon, the owner stopped us from using it. We obeyed and he was right -- the fresh crawfish flavor was so delicate and sweet that the lemon's acidity would have been too overpowering.
 |
| Cicale di mare |
For main courses, we had Venetian-style cuttlefish with a creamy polenta and
Spaghetti al nero di sepia. Both were really tasty. The cuttlefish was so tender, and the spaghetti perfectly
al dente - just the way I like it! The owner told us that he buys the freshest ingredients every morning, and that with fresh ingredients, you don't need much preparation and don't need a 5-star chef!
 |
| Venetian Cuttlefish with polenta |
 |
| Spaghetti al nero di sepia |
And as for dessert, we ordered some sabayon which I didn't care for because it was too sweet. However I really liked these complimentary cookies, hailing from nearby Burano island, called
Bussola Buranello Esse (as in S), which were served with complimentary dessert wine - a white Fragolina. What a great first dinner back in Veneto; we are looking forward to more. A nice meal makes the woes of not having our luggage with us (still in Frankfurt), and having to wear the same clothes for hopefully only 48 hours, go away...
 |
| Buranello cookies |
