Best Of Venice

One of my favorite things about Venice is that there are no cars allowed.  It’s one of the few enchanted walking cities, notably quiet and blissfully stuck in the past.  Instead of taxis, there are vaporetto boats and gondolas with men in striped shirts rowing mostly tourists through the narrow canals.  Then, there’s the food, which seems to evolve around seafood of the briny sorts: Cuttlefish baked in squid ink, Steamed Spider Crabs and Scampi come immediately to mind.  There’s the oh-so-traditional Squid Ink Risotto studded with Cuttlefish, Spaghetti with Eggplant and Tomato, Ricotta Ravioli, Artichokes every which way,  fried squid, calamari and shrimp with a squirt of lemon and salt.  For dessert, there’s nougat, biscotti and the holy grail of sweets, gelato, of course.  My favorite spot and the most famous shop is Boutique Del Gelato with a killer dark chocolate variety and an even better Banana and Zabaglione flavor.

What you’ll see the most strolling around Venice is locals and tourists alike sipping on Venetian spritzers.  The most popular are the Campari spritzer, a mix of white wine, campari, sparkling water and a slice of orange.  That’s not my favorite. My favorite is the Aperol Spritzer, which swaps in aperol for campari — a terrifically refreshing, low-alcohol treat late in the afternoon.   We ate our way through the best restaurants Venice and found a few favorite restaurants you won’t want to miss during your trip…