VENETIAN WINE BAR
CANTINE del VINO SCHIAVA
This tavern has two souls: ‘bacaro ‘ and small restaurant, both normally crowded for satisfying the customer’s request. Please be careful : do not confused it with the the near restaurant that has the same name , meanwhile the original ‘ bacaro ‘ is on a ‘calle ‘ near to ‘Campo Santo Stefano’ where you still today find shoe shops, shops with artistic grasses and ancient prints.
The owner is Mr Marco, that has many customers that appreciate the fresh appetizers as fresh fried fish,
( cuttlefish,shrimps, herrigs) but also grilled cuttlefish ( better know as sèpe roste) or small octopus ( polipetti) with celery, or ‘ sarde in saor’ or codfish in butter and also meatballs and sausages, and also spleen with onion.
At aperitiv time the are many people there and it is quite easy meet some new friends.
A ‘bacaro’ with special atmosphere. In fact it is placed at the end of a narrow’ calletta ’where you can find one of the most historical and famous ‘ bacaro’ : Ca’ d’Oro or better know as ‘ alla vedova’.
Inside there is a Parisian atmosphere like a bistrò Cartier- Bresson style, where all it is mixed together with a fascinating result.
Beside the kitchen service you can find the typical traditional dishes of Venice that many local people love as the famour meatballs whose fame is well known.
Beside the meatballs you can find’ sarde in saor’, codfish or grilled squid so called ‘ sépe roste’ with the usual ‘ombra’ ( glass of wine) whose price was one of the cheapest one in the city. Also for this reason this tavern is an important meeting point for retired people who live nearby. Today the price is growing up and it is in line with the other taverns in that area.
In the evening , when the tavern is full of peole, sometimes could be overcrowded and so the waiter service is not guaranteed.
It is the ancient ‘ bacaro’ in Venice and it is said that it is the place where the young Casanova brought his lovers on the first date. Still nowadays is one of the most popular ‘ bacaro’, with an appelling forniture with barrels at sight and it has a lot of good reviews in the guidebooks.
For this reason you can find a lot of turists here and also there are well known wine and a wide choice of appetizers like meatballs, sandwiches and the speciality of the house the so called’ francobollo’, a small sandwiches filled with ham, eggs, gorgonzola cheese, shrimps and much more.
Thera are two main doors: normally turists use the one placed in ‘ calle Do Mori’ where the enviroment is more formal , but if you want to enter with local people, you should enter from ‘ calle Galeazza, where the bar- tender serves his customers with courtesy and passion .
You should ask for the ‘ ombra’ ( glass of wine) of the house and you will be satisfied.
This ‘Bacaro’ is placed in a popular cross, many local people usually arrive here for an aperitiv or during the lunch- time or for having a break after the usual shopping in the near market at Rialto.
Thi tavern offers some of the most tasty’ chicchetti’ in the city, famous for their ingredients and the fantasy in their preparation and there is a friendly atmosphere.
Outside there are some tables and inside there is a counter desk that is full of classic sandwiches or codfish dishes or ‘ sarde in saor’ or some particular sandwiches filled with salami, figs, gorgonzola cheese and anchovies. The connoisserurs ask for a plate of octopus, and the most brave a plate of ‘ spleen ( better known as spiènsa) .
There is only bottled wine available and many customers prefer to get here for the quality of drinking : little but very good, but also quite expensive.
I stumbled upon all ARCO one my 1995 exploratory tour of The Wine Bars of Venice. I walked from Santa Lucia Train Station looking for a hotel. I walked over the Scalzi Bridge and into the Sister of San Palo making my way toward Albergo Guerratto at the Rialto. It was a bit tiring, lugging my luggage through Venice, but I loved walking through the labyrinth of Venice, down Calle, Fondumenta's, and over quit a few bridges. I stumbled upon all Arco and just had to go in. I asked the cordial barman if he had cichetti, and he replied "yes" and pointed to the little morsels before me. He handed me a crostini with something on top. I asked what it was. The barman replied "Nerveti," and it didn't take me but a moment to figure what it was. What the late great Anthony Bourdain called "The Nasty Bits," things like intestines, pig snout, liver, kidneys, and in this case boiled nerves of veal, dressed in a little vinegar and oil. I ate it. My 1st Cichetti, and what a wild one. I looked over the offerings, and pointed to the Baccala Montecato, Granzia (Crab Salad), and Mussetto (Pig Snout Sausage). I asked for glass of Tocai, and dug into my little feast. It was marvellous. It was a nice sunny day in April, and I was in Venice, sipping local Tocai wine, chatting with Venetians and nibbling on cichetti at all Arco. "What more could I ask for?"
I paid the bill and left. A few minutes later I came upon Albergo Guerrato. I walked one flight up to the front desk, and asked if they had a room. They showed me one, quoted me a price, and I took it. I was all set.
In a zone where there are not many taverns, we can find this ‘ bacaro’ featured by a friendly management and typical Venetian cooking so you can find dishes as mutton during the ‘ festa della salute ‘or the ‘ moeche’ ( soft small crabs) available in march-april or october-november.
It offers a kitchen service and also the display window is available for usual ‘ ombra’ ( glass of wine) or for some appetizers like ‘ sarde in saor’,meatballs with tomato sauce, squids and shrimps.
Altought it is a tiny place, there many customers, mainly in the evening, when some other taverns usually close but this ‘ bacaro’ still remain opened till late at night.
We are in the centre of ‘Sestiere di Castello’, where you can still see a piece of true Venice that lives normally the huge amount of turists and where also you can find some grocer’s and greengrocer’s and even the local football club headquarter. Here we can find this ‘bacaro’ called ‘ Scuela’, a tavern that is quite recent but it plays the correct role of meeting point for local people and those who live nerby that love drinking an aperitiv with a ‘cicheto’ before coming back home.
Into the display window there are typical dishes whoose roots are into Venetian cooking tradition; fried codfish, monkfish, grilled squids, meatballs of fishballs with tuna , shrimps with cheese and many other that change following the seasons.
In the evening there are sometimes some live concerts that fill the’ calle’: for example i can remember a magic night with tango argentino .
My suggestion is try to find out this ‘ bacaro’ because you will be satisfied.
This is the correct ‘Bacaro’ for those who want to eat and drink well, in a friendly and rustic atmosphere.
It is placed on one side street along ‘salisada San Lio’, under a a front porch that is a good sheld for finding shadow and protection when it rains and the customers usually use this front porch when the tavern is crowded to find out extra space. As soon as you arrive we are caught by the inviting display window where there is a wide choice of sandwiches with salted meat and mushrooms , codfish , cheese and vegetable or with truffles cream…. the most gourmet food as shallops, small squids with tomato sauce and squids with black sauce and fried fish.
It is impossible not to be satisfied by this wide range of tasty dishes. Congratulations.
This tavern is one of most impressive Venetian ‘Bacari ’ and it is placed in’ Rio della Maddalena’, near to Sant Antonio’s Bridge , along one of the most popular streets of the city.
You can easly notice the wooden barrels and the blackboards, and inside there is a first area with the counter desk and then some typical rooms, with old wooden tables, shelves full of bottles, ancient advertising plates, nice nautical prints, and wooden lacquered boiserie that gives to this ‘bacaro’ a touch of authentic old tavern.
Here you can find a lot sandwiches and the more peculiar are filled with ‘gorgonzola cheese and leek, red radish with shrimps, beef with spicy peppers also some omelette and some typical dishes.
You can eat inside, that is a quiet and nice place, overlooking the near canal, where you can see the normal flux of the goods in this city.
The price of the ‘ombra’ (glass of wine) is not so cheap, but in line with the other premises that are on this turistic road.
CANNEREGGIO
This ‘Bacaro’ is quite alternative as it is a place where fantasy, party, anarchy, freedom and music are mixed together.
It has been precursor of a style not only in furnishing that reminds the hold of a ship with long tables, where is possible to eat next to other customers, and it is full of life: a place that during the first years of 1980, there were the first jazz concerts, and there were a lot of artists and musicians that played here on the stage, where still now there is a Yamaya grand piano.
The owner is the histrionic Mr. Maurizio, that runs this tavern carefully, as the times are changing and it is going towards a more commercial management.
It is maily a restaurant but you can also find a lot of ‘ chicchetti’ at the counter desk and the best tables are along the canals, here during the summer time, you can taste fresh fried fish, meatballs or codfish, and many other specialities, and abvioulsy with a glass of wine of the house.
The lively atmosphere of this tavern has affected all the surroundings, so today is one of the most popular place with an intense nightlife in Venice .
On Mondays there are live concerts with famous songs
It was born in 1944, and it is a compulsory break and with a consolidated fame. You can find here different type of customers from the local people, to the students or workers at lunch time or some turists that can arrive thanks a good guidebook, in this ‘ fondamenta’ where you can discover interesting places to visit.
Mrs. Alessandra, mum and their children, are the owners, who run this ‘ bacaro’ carefully and they prepare a lot ot ‘ chicheti’ that you can find in the display window like : tuna with red radish, tuna and leek, pumpkin with ricotta cheese, or special ingredients as flowers with chocolate and, for sure, you can also find the classic codfish with ‘polenta’ or herrings and a wide choice of ham and cheese.
At the weekend you may find a lot of peole that stay also the near ‘ rio di San Trovaso’ and the service may be affected.
This ‘ bacaro’ is also a wine bar and the wall are covered with shelves full of bottles, also for the celebrations and for every occasion. The astmosphere offers feelings that you will remember over time.
We are at the end of the so called’ fondamenta degli Ormesini’ in a zone that is far away from the more turistic places and the name itself helps us to prepare our soul and to walk slowly.
This taver is also a little restaurant so at midday is oftern full or workers and local people for their lunch- break, but anyway, you can order a wide choice of classic’ cicchetti’ like squids, mussels, ’sarde in saor’with the usual ‘ombra’ (glass of wine) from the counter that is on the road.
During the summer time there are also some tables along the canals or you can have a sit inside, where a rustic furniture and the familiar enviroment give you an authentic view of Venetian life.
This is a ‘ bacaro’ with a rustic furniture with a friendly atmosphere and it is placed in a quiet ‘ calle’ where also you can find some seats available.
Beside the wine of the house we can find also other type of wine and two display windows full of tasty food.
One is for hot dishes as small squids and vegetable to be eaten at lunch time and the other one is full of appetizers also for take-away like tasty sandwiches, fried squid, skewers of potatoes and olive , bread with codfish in butter and may other big sandwiches for who is always in the hurry.
It is the right place for spending some time during the foggy days ( caigo- as in local slang-) and you can imagine to be in an ancient galleon.
This is a nice’ bacaro’ with a rich historical background and special forniture, with nice wooden tables and walls covered by wood and it is quite large. The best table is near the window, where you can enjoy the view of the brigde in ‘rio dei Carmini’ but if you prefer a more secluted seat ,chose a table in a room that is placed at the bottom of the tavern.
Today this ‘ bacaro’ has also a kitchen service but the display window on the counter if always full of meatballs or fishballs, bread with codfish in butter, fried mozzarella cheese, or herrings and the classic ‘ half eggs’ with anchovy and the usual ‘ombra’ of the house ( glass of wine)
Here there are some turists and many local people for a fast break or during the lunch time.
You can have a set on the tables inside, if available, or during the summer time you can also seat at the tables outside along the canal.
This ‘ bacaro ‘ is fully covered by photos of twins, where its name comes, some phots belong to the owners, other have been left by the customers over the time.
It is featured by a wide range of sandwiches filled with special ingredients at affordable price.
We can find ricotta cheese with figs, tuna and red radish, codfish with celery, bacon with caramelized onion, it is quite impossible to mention all the appetizers available.
So this ‘ bacaro ‘ becomes a compulsory break if you are nearby and sometimes could be overcrowded.
It is placed near the popular ‘Ruga del Ravano’ street but you can find anyway some tables placed in the lateral ‘ calle’ but if you are sat the price may grow up slightly.
On saturday and Sunday they don’t serve “ombra” but only glass of wine as suggestted on the blackboard!!
