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Rome and Venice Italy

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Linda C

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Rome and Venice Italy

by Linda C » Thu Mar 22, 2012 12:10 pm

In all our travels, this is the first time we're going to Italy and definitely not the last. We're spending 8 days in Tuscany and also doing the whole tourist thing with Rome and Venice. If anyone has recs for those cities, I'm all ears.
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Brad Keeton

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Re: Rome and Venice Italy

by Brad Keeton » Thu Mar 22, 2012 2:13 pm

It's somewhat touristy, but you should get a drink at Harry's Bar in Venice (http://www.harrysbarvenezia.com/).

As nice as Venice is, get off the the main island and check out some of the surrounging islands. See the glass blowing on Murano or the lace work on Burano. There are also some good restaurants on those islands that tend to be a bit less touristy than those in Venice. Finally, hit Torcello, which is largely unpopulated and filled with greenery, wildlife, and some great churches.

To be perfectly honest, the restaurant scene in Venice is not very impressive. It's just really geared towards tourists. Anthony Bourdain did an episode there a few years ago that made some good suggestions though. (http://www.travelchannel.com/tv-shows/a ... des/venice).
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Lisa Stephenson

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Re: Rome and Venice Italy

by Lisa Stephenson » Sun Mar 25, 2012 9:36 am

Like Anthony Bourdain, we loved:
"Da Romano on the island of Burano (of lace-making fame). The restaurant has been open for over 100 years and is tied to tradition..... "

Calle Delle Clarisse, 6/A, 30141 Venezia (VE), Ital

We sat out on the front patio and watched all the tourists go by. The grilled sardines were not at all what I imagined! Spectacular.....Everything!
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DanB

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Re: Rome and Venice Italy

by DanB » Tue Mar 27, 2012 7:19 am

Venice:

The Terrazza Danieli atop the Hotel Danieli is perhaps one of the most romantic restaurants in the World. It's expensive, and many travelers describe it as way overpriced compared to other top end restaurants. However, the view is something you'll carry with you for a lifetime. For a cheaper alternative go for breakfast or lunch. Ask for a table near the West or South rail (outside on the terrace) and don't let them stick you near the door. Dinner €200 - €250 for two with good wine. And the Bellinis are better than Harry's Bar.

http://www.terrazzadanieli.com/en/

Also if you're looking for a more neighborhood joint well away from the tourist hordes then I can recommend Osteria al Ponte in the Canareggio neighborhood. It's just across the footbridge from Santi Giovanni e Paolo (the church) and is a great place to grab Cicchetti and some decent wine after sight-seeing. I go there once a day whenever I'm in Venice. Really great guys.

Caveat: It occurs to me that you can't actually see any water from this place.

http://www.ostariaalponte.com/eng/index.html


No inspiration for Rome as I avoid the place.
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Ken B

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Re: Rome and Venice Italy

by Ken B » Fri Apr 13, 2012 4:16 pm

Linda- here's an old post of mine on the topic (food in Rome & Florence):

viewtopic.php?f=1&t=18920

Als, here is an email from my brother-in-law re Venice:


We have not been here but The Hotel Cipriani has a swanky restaurant, Fortuny. The hotel is located across the lagoon from San Marco and you ride their private launch to reach it. The food is supposed to be some of the best in Venice but it comes with a price. However, this would probably be an easy one to coordinate.

http://www.hotelcipriani.com/web/ocip/o ... urants.jsp

On the same side, just off San Marco, the Cipriani group operates Harry’s Bar. We had a very nice dinner there but, once again, at a price. It is a Venice landmark and if nothing else, they should stop in for a drink.

http://cipriani.com/cipriani/Locs/ven.htm

Al Covo is a very good yet simple restaurant. We had a great meal there and the chef’s wife is American and that might make it easy to arrange.
Campiello della Pescaria, Castello 3968
Tel: (041) 522 3812.

http://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&safe= ... w&oi=&sa=X

La Furatola was by far our favorite meal of the trip. They only take cash and they’re not always open depending on their seafood supply so it probably wouldn’t work for this occasion. However, if your friends like seafood they should not miss this place. They take the freshest fish from the Adriatic and prepare it simply with a dash of olive oil to finish it. It some some of the best I’ve ever had.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=l&view=te ... _3sgJ&cd=1
The Wine Market
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Ken B

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Re: Rome and Venice Italy

by Ken B » Fri Apr 13, 2012 4:30 pm

Okay, I pasted that link to my earlier post on Florence & Rome poorly, so here's the post, re-pasted in it's entirety:


I have not been back to Florence in just over a decade, and never took good notes the decade or so ago I was there. But there is a restaurant called Cibreo that is off the hook amazing, very fine dining though - a several hour you need a jacket to get in affair. They used to operate an Osteria next door, which used to offer the same items a la carte in a communal dining setting. Not sure if you are into wine, but the two wine bars that I can recommend are: Le Barrique and Le Volpe L'Uva (the latter is right next to the Boboli Gardens if you are sightseeing and a nice place to stop midday).

http://www.edizioniteatrodelsalecibreofirenze.it/

http://www.levolpieluva.com/Le_volpi/Home.html

http://www.enotecalebarrique.com/

The Tuscan countryside is peppered with small towns throughout the Chianti Classico region, each of which usually has one or two very nice but relatively casual places to eat. My wife and I spent a week driving around the region drinking wine and just eating pretty much wherever we ended up at dinner time and never had a bad meal. There are far worse ways to spend a day there than renting a car and heading out into the countryside. Also, the Mercato Central is fun food-centered tourism, you can buy great stuff like olive oils that you'd pay three times as much for here (this may no longer be true, the last time I was there was pre-Euro) and all kinds of great cheeses, and it's just a good place to stroll around for an hour. The Antinori family (Tuscan winemakers royale) operate a wine bar with heavy food emphasis amid the main shopping district if you are there, great wines including some of their really high end stuff are accessible to all since they glass pour everything they make and the food is quite good.

This is from an email I sent to a friend about my go-to spots in Rome:

Here's the 3 spots in Rome I would definitely go back to if I went there:

Ristorante Settimio
Via delle Colonnelle 14
near the Trevi fountain if I remember right. The phone number is 06 678 96 51. The staff speaks English, but we were the only Americans there the night we went (which I consider a good sign).

Enoteca Cavour 313
Via Cavour 313
right down the street from the Coliseum, but not really a tourist spot. Awesome wine list and really good cheeses (most of which are hard to get here) and salumi.

Dar Poeta
Vicolo del Bologna 45/46
this is the pizzeria in Trastevere. It is in a weird corner and hard to find, but totally worth it. I think they don't open until after 7 at night.

Be careful, there are two Settimio's. The one I have been to is close to some sight-seeing, so could be convenient. My wife literally wept at our meal there. When we were last in Rome, we rented an apartment in Trastevere, which is on the south side of the river, a bit off the beaten path. Dar Poeta is loud and a touch hard to find, but well worth it. Don't pass up the dessert pizza with shaved apples and Grand Marnier.
The Wine Market
1200 Bardstown Road, Louisville, KY
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Linda C

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Re: Rome and Venice Italy

by Linda C » Sun Apr 15, 2012 4:29 pm

Wow, Ken, I can't wait to get to work on those links! We are staying in the Chianti region for 8 days, and are planning those day trips with small restaurant stops along the way. Worked great for us in France. Neither of us love cities that much, but you have to see Rome and Venice once. We'll be close to Siena and Florence as well. Now that Spring break trip is over, I need to plan some details on the Italy trip; it will be here soon. Thanks for all the help, folks!

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