Was walking by and saw how cute it was! Our group had time to kill and got a jumbo Bellini and it…read morewas amazing. Francesco gave amazing service and was super kind to us. Def a fun part of our trip!

We checked into our hotel around 1:30pm when most restaurants were closing after the lunch hour. I…read moresaw that Dal Moro's was nearby, and pasta on-the-go sounded like a good option for a late lunch. My husband and I found the queue, which didn't appear to be that long of a wait. There were a lot of people, of course, but they were filling orders quickly. While waiting in line, you pass by the window into the kitchen where you can see staff members freshly making pasta. It was good to know that even pasta out of a box can be prepared with the freshest ingredients. I ordered the pesto with garlic and pecorino, and it was honestly one my favorite pastas I've had in Italy. My pasta came with rigatoni, which was perfectly al dente.

I found Ai Mercanti on the Michelin guide and noted that it was a 5 minute walk from our hotel. It…read morewas a restaurant I had bookmarked in my mind while we were in Venice. When my husband and I had just gotten back from a day trip to Bologna, we realized we were hungry for a late dinner. Ai Mercanti popped on my mind. I figured that reservations were required, but I took a chance and called the restaurant to see if they could accommodate us for a 9:30pm dinner. They told us to come right on down. Score! This restaurant was a hidden gem. Not only was it off the beaten path, but the food and service were excellent. We had an amazing experience. The servers were the nicest, and they were highly attentive. I overheard multiple waiters speak French fluently, so I thought it was impressive that they were tri-lingual with English, Italian, and French. This was one of the few places in Italy where I felt that the service team actually read the room. They knew when we were ready for the next course or when we wanted to finish dinner, so the pacing of each meal was impeccable and there was no dilly dallying around for the check. Each dish was a banger, and the portions were right-sized. I didn't feel overstuffed after a first, second, and dessert for once. We had the following: - Octopus with agretti (saltwort), grilled new potatoes, parsley oil and amaranth. I loved the simplicity of the flavors. - "Apparently" crispy egg, potato foam, Cantabrian anchovy. This is what a warm hug tastes like. GET THIS. - Cod in a lightly spiced coconut milk, lemongrass and coriander soup. Since Venice was a merchant hub for trading spices, I felt like I tasted more ethnic variety. For example, this was the first "Asian"-inspired dish I had in Italy. The cod was very tender, and the lemongrass coriander soup was a flavor party in my mouth. - Lamb chops, spring onion, curry sauce. The meat was tender. - Panna cotta, merengue, dulce de leche, salty peanuts ice cream. Each bite was a harmony of flavors and worked very well together. The panna cotta had a nice creamy texture. - Crème brûlèe. A beautiful, traditional classic dessert. They do this right.

(Overall: B) - Very small restaurant located in the interweavings of Venice, that serves…read moretapas-styles elevated small plates. Their menu is conceptually captivating and their food lives up to that standard, which is a pleasant sight. (Oyster: A) - Very fresh oyster, served with an mignonette sauce that adds a contrastive garlicky acidity that really flares up the palette! (Octopus Salad: A) - Lot's going on in this salad, but the guac packs an intense flavor bomb pairs well with the delicate seasonal produce and tender octopus. (Pigeon: C) - Dish looks apart and sounds conceptually interesting, but I don't think the ingredients work well together; given that the pigeon is boney and hard to eat, adding a thick barley gravy simply makes it harder to eat. I was hoping that the flavors could help highlight the beauty of the pigeon rather than dominate it in the case of the kumquat. Food: E Presentation: +1 Price: E Atmosphere: E Service: E Menu: +1 Overall: 4 stars Insta/Yelp/Beli/TikTok: @amei_eats

Well, the missus and the cousins have finally arrived from the South, and today marked their first…read morefull day in Italy. What better way to spend it than wandering around Venice and enjoying dinner at Rossopomodoro? They're still in the "Italy training program" and these menus tend to confuse them, so after three weeks here I felt obligated to guide them toward the promised land. After much studying, debating, and staring at menus, it was finally time to order. I went with the Tagliatelle alla Bolognese, and the wife and I shared a salad. When that salad hit the table, it nearly stole the entire show. We drizzled on a little balsamic vinaigrette, added a shake of salt and pepper, and suddenly we were ready to dance right there in the alley. Fresh tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, crisp greens--every ingredient tasted like it had been picked that morning. It was outstanding. The pasta was very good, but today the salad was the undisputed champion of the meal. Of course, dining outside along Venice's busy walkways only adds to the experience. Watching people pass by while enjoying great food is one of those simple pleasures that makes Venice such a special place. Rossopomodoro delivered a fantastic meal and a great evening. The newcomers survived their first full day in Italy, and I'd say they're off to a pretty good start.

Service was good, pizza was great! This is our first trip to Italy! In fact it was our first meal…read morein Italy. It was a great time in this restaurant.

The tables are close and you're gonna hear the people in your proximity so don't go here if you…read morewant a private dining experience. We actually enjoyed talking to the folks next to us. I ordered a pizza with sausage and was surprised when the pizza came out with hot dog slices on top. And yes, they tasted exactly like an Oscar Meyer hot dog. The pizza was, however, pretty good. Service was good.

To say pickings are slim at Verona's Porto Nuova train station would be an understatement. Spizzico…read moreis like an Italian version of Sbarro but in retrospect somebody should slap me for eating bad pizza in Italy, the world's culinary capital. Look, I was coming off an 11 hour train trip of nightmare transfers, crowded steerage class seats, and a lost ticket that resulted in a *very* cranky conductor. I was hungry and left my snacks back at my last hotel in Rome as I ran out the door in a hurry to catch my train. Spizzico wasn't crowded (should've been a big clue) and had ready to eat pizza so it seemed perfect at the time. We got two huge slices of pizza (for about 4 Euros each) and a couple of bottles of soda. I had classic plain pizza that had a stingy portion of cheese and red sauce on an even more unappealing pre-made crust. Hubby was intrigued by what he dubbed "hot dog pizza" and after one bite said it reminded him of those English muffin "pizzas" he used to make after school in the microwave. There's a small and inviting, cheerful dining area if you want to sit and eat. Our layover was about 45 minutes so it was nice not to have to grab a slice and run, although it would've been easy to do so. The pizza tasted about as good as it looked. It wasn't fresh and tasty and was obviously mass-produced. Spizzico is a chain owned by the giant Autogrill, so you'll only find these outlets at road parks on motorways, malls, train stations, and airports (big clue #2). Do not, I repeat, do NOT go out of your way to eat here. This isn't great pizza. It's not even good pizza. But it's not the worst thing to fill your rumbling tummy with as a quick train station meal.