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nless you’re familiarwith chef
GiovanniCiresa’ssublime
il branzinoconschi-
acciadeifiori edannerisce il tartufo
(seabass
withsquashblossomsandblack truffle)at the
Bauer IlPalazzohotel’sposhDePisis restau-
rant, orhaveacraving for theexquisite
il gam-
beronella salsadi erba
(shrimp inherbsauce)
at thesensationalAvogariaLocanda, food is
not thefirst thingone thinksofwhenwalking
thearchedbridgesandmeanderingsidewalksofVenice, oneof
themostbeloved, indeed romantic, cities in Italy.Here, on the
apexof theAdriatic, lavishByzantineandArab-influencedgothic
palacesseem tosprout from thesea likeVenusherself, andcolor-
ful glasswork, delicate lace fabrics, andelaboratelydecorated
masks— the latteraby-productof thecity’sannual
Carnevaledi
Venezia
—fill
theshopsandgarnermuchof theattentionaway
fromanythinggastronomic.
Still, ifyoudreamofdining like thearisto-
craticVenetians thatbuiltsomeof Italy’sgrand-
estvillashere in the17thand18thcenturies,
you’lldiscoverplentyof
trattorie
servingupsuch
local favoritesas
risi ebisi
(ricewithpeas),
fega-
toallaveneziana
(Venetian liver), and
risoal
nerodi seppia
(ricewithsquid ink)onoraround
thecity’shistoricPiazzaSanMarco.Thepiazza
isnestledalongside theGrandCanal,withSt.Mark’sBasilicaand
famousCampanile (tower)alsowithingazingdistance.Take itall
in, andyouwillquicklyunderstandhow theoriginalMalamocco
doges, or leaders,who foundedVenicemore than1,200yearsago,
mightsacrificeeverything tosavor theflavorsof thisheavenly
cityby the sea. Tonavigateyourway throughVenice, visit
turismovenezia.it, 011-39-041-5298711,
.
TRAVEL
A Visual Feast of Italy
