One of my favorite places during my trip to Italy. Great place to interact with locals while…read moremunching on some tasty small bites and wine at a VERY affordable price. It was a bit of a walk from where I was staying but it was def worth the trek. Next time, I'll stay closer so I can come here everyday. Great place.

We came for a quick breakfast. We got the little sandwiches to go. They were cheap and delicious…read more What more can you ask for? I would have loved to go back when they had more things available. I loved the overall ambiance of locals just standing around sipping wine (early in the morning) and enjoying their rolls. Service is fast and efficient.

Situated at the foot of the Ponte dei Frari bridge in a non-touristy, quiet part of Venice, this…read morequaint two-story bar with an inventive cocktail menu is characterized by a mezzanine with black leather booths and beautiful stained glass lamps hanging from the ceiling that opens up to look down on the main room. This is actually a historical Venetian cafe' from 1870's called "Caffe' dei Frari o Toppo"[1], and I remember coming here regularly when I was in college to "study", i.e. to hang out with my friends who would also come here during the day. In fact, this is still a cafe' during the day, but it transforms itself in a cocktail bar at night. The vibe is mellow, relaxed and romantic and this bar prides itself on being one of the few in Venice to serve truly inventive contemporary cocktails. The menu is actually divided by techniques: fermentation, distillation, liquid kitchen, and fat wash. We tried the Cucumber and Fake Rose (fermentation: Fermented cucumber, Andaliman pepper, Lillet, verjus and bubbles) and The Amaz-on Fire (fat wash: Yaguara cachaca, coconut oil, Cynar, dill, house sherry mix and Porcini mushroom; peat perfume). Both were excellent, and were presented in an artful way that doesn't feel pretentious. And if you are hungry, the bar serve their own cichetti (bar snacks). I look forward to coming back next year, and perhaps try one of the food-inspired, liquid kitchen cocktails. ------------------------------- [1] https://www.yelp.com/biz/caffe-dei-frari-o-toppo-venezia

Finally found my other notes for this place. They did really interesting stuff with their sides…read more Very modern, in portion sizes that are approachable. It brings delight and minimizes food waste if guests don't like it. * Le Corsaire: A gorgeous soft green drink. Sweet but not sugary, with a lil bit of spice at the end. It was paired with a blue cheese mousse and honey caviar - I don't know how they did it, but it was delicious. The blue cheese taste makes the mousse pop. * Steven had a cocktail that came with a side of yogurt covered with a soft shell (that acted like a water balloon). * Hispaniola: The drink was smoky and something about it tasted like temptation. Paired with a beautifully done meringue (nice and airy!) and a keyboard-smashingly gorgeous caviar.

Every time when we're in Venice, All Arco is an absolute must. This time we've came here for lunch…read morethree times even. It's still the Gold standard for Cicchetti here in Venice. It's a cozy little bar. Staff is fantastic, friendly and helpful - despite being very very busy at all times. It's popular with both locals and tourists. And for good reason. They've got a huge range of fantastic cicchetti. And nice, affordable wine, prosecco and more. There are only four tables outside and limited space to stand inside. Most visitors just hang around in front of the Bar. We've managed to get a table each visit still. We've had some of our favorites again: Gorgonzola with anchovies, some with sardines, some with bacalau. Some with prosciutto or lardo. Smoked fish or salmon All great stuff. But also this time we've discovered some new ones: With crudo di mare (raw fish/seafood), shrimp and sour onions, mushroom cream topped with mushrooms, bacon and artichokes. They've also got other snacks like fried bacalau. Really: Every single item here was delicous. They are just the best at what they're doing. And that since a long time. It never disappoints and is well worth the money. Depending on the day and time they do not always have all and/or the same cicchetti. Even more reason to come back to get some more. And we will definitely be back.

When I was in Venice and looking for food recommendations, many places online suggested Bar…read moreAll'Arco as a restaurant to check out for cichetti. Since it was in walkable distance from where I was staying, I decided to check it out for lunch. The bar is pretty small, so I think taking it to go is usually what many people do. I got there close to when it opened so it wasn't crowded and I was able to order right away. I decided to try a few of their cichetti that had seafood on it like fish and fried squid. These are all bite-sized so I would definitely recommend getting multiple to try out the different flavors, especially with the different cheeses/creams they add. The food here was very fresh, and I liked the flavors a lot so I'm glad that I went to try it out. Overall, if you're in Venice then this is a good spot to check out!

Tapas and PAELLA…read more Disclaimer: I haven't (yet) been to Spain to eat 'real' Spanish food. But I'd had paella in Texas and thought it was boring and wondered why people made such a big deal about it. The whole time I ate, I asked my dining companions, "is this authentic?? is this how this is supposed to taste??" Now I get what all the fuss is about. The paella serving is hearty, so plan to order 2 servings for every 3 of you if you want to have some tapas, too. We stuffed ourselves because we wanted to try as much as we could physically handle. My palate found a lot of the tapas boring after the paella's dazzle-job. A few of them tasted outright frozen and bland. I didn't much care for the Sangria, but my friends enjoyed it well enough. I was also disappointed in the lack of beer variety since I'd seen something calling the place a "cerveceria", but the paella made up for all the shortfalls for me. Update: there are some fancier beer options, and you may want to do the menu fizzo option, which sets a fixed price - good for groups trying it out!

Oh my goodness, looks can be deceiving. When you first look inside from outside, it looks like…read moreempty, but is only because everyone is eating in the garden. The food is some of the best we have had all over Italy. On our first visit my sister orders the pasta and bean soup because she was not feeling well. I ordered the spaghetti all' amatriciana and we shared the fresh sea bream grilled whole fish with grilled vegetables. It was divine! The service from Nacio and his team was wonderful. At the end of our meal he brought us a small shot of limoncello that was a tart and delicious way to end the meal. We loved it so much we came back for dinner the next night where my sister had the lasagna al forno and I had the spaghetti aglio e oglio with chili peppers. For our second course we had the grilled pork chop with roasted veggies and the Yahay pizza. Everything was delicious and cooked to perfection. This time we ended with the flaming creme brûlée that was creamy deliciousness! Nacio then brought us a digestif that tasted like anise liquor which we loved! We highly recommend trying this place! You will not be disappointed!

Everything about it was wonderful. The food, the atmosphere, the staff. A great family owned…read moreauthentic place.

Stopped for a bite after shopping and the service was quick. Order your items on a pad and take to…read morethe counter. Varied menu with traditional beverages as well as wine and beer. Chips served with our sandwiches. Kids menu available. Clean and comfortable atmosphere.

The tables were really small and the sit was uncomfortable, but at least the food was good.read more

Excellent sandwich shop in the heart of Ferrara. We were a bit dubious as we were the only people…read morehaving lunch but I think we were just lucky! The staff was exceptionally friendly and spoke multiple languages fluently. They gave us a run down of the menu: over a hundred 'small' sandwiches! We ipted for an Italian and a Spanish set of 5 sandwiches each and they were amazing. We also got the fried potatoes which were excellent. Finally we got an order of the calamari and a Caesar salad. The calamari and salad were ok but if you are coming to a sandwich shop you should get their sandwiches! Overall we had a fantastic experience and likely will revisit the shop before we leave Ferrara

I had understood Lido island at Venice only had some extremely expensive 5*hotels to go to to sit…read moreon the beach, have a drink or something to eat but if you want to escape the busy Venice and want to spend some hours relaxing this Playa Blanca bar might just be what you are looking for. The beach itself is not very nice and don't expect something really cool here but it is a good escape and at least there is sand and the Adriatic. This beach bar is about a 15 minute walk from the Lido island main boat stop straight across the Lido island. Actually it is part of a public beach thing. It is definitely not trendy or posh but still kind of a decent place to sip your Aperol Spritz with your feet in the sand :-)