Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
EATING
The most sprawling
sestiere
in Venice, Castello is also largely residential, which means
its upmarket restaurants, neighbourhood
trattorie
and raucous
cicheti
bars offer ex-
tremely varied dining choices. Eateries cluster around the stage-set
campi
of Santa
Maria Formosa, San Zaccaria and SS Giovanni e Paolo, as well as down the narrow
alleys around the Arsenale and along Napoleon's grand boulevard, Via Garibaldi.
PASTICCERIA DA BONIFACIO €
( 041 522 75 07; Calle degli Albanesi 4237; pastries €1.50-4; 7am-8pm Fri-Wed; San Zaccaria)
Pastry
awards line the wall in this tiny bakery where gondoliers and Venetian housewives flock to
devour the buttery, just-baked sweetness of almond croissants and take-home boxes of
Venetian specialities such as
zaletti
(cornmeal biscuits with sultanas). As afternoon wanes,
the bakery turns into a makeshift bar as locals pop in for the signature
spritz
and
mam-
malucchi
(deep-fried batter balls with candied fruit).
PASTRIES & CAKES
ZENZERO €
MAP
CAFE
GOOGLE MAP
( 041 241 28 28;
http://barzenzero.it
; Campo Santa Marina 5902; sandwiches €2-4; 7am-8pm Mon-Fri, to
7.15pm Sat; Rialto)
One of the best quick eats in Venice, Zenzero pairs the eye-opening
powers of espresso with great little sandwiches and freshly baked pastries that tend to dis-
appear in a flash. Return for top-shelf
aperitivi
in the
campo
. It's closed for two weeks at
Christmas and two weeks in August.
TRATTORIA ALLA RAMPA €
( 041 528 53 65; Via Garibaldi 1135; meals €12-22; noon-2pm Mon-Fri; Giardini)
Hidden behind a
little working-class bar is a low-slung dining room serving up some of Venice's heartiest
lunch specials. A largely male, Venetian crowd tucks in hungrily to generous portions of
roasted meat and fish, accompanied by seasonal vegetables and plentiful hunks of bread to
sop up the sauces - all for €13.
VENETIAN
