Dining in Venice often comes with the risk of overpriced meals that don’t live up to expectations—but there’s a delicious and authentic alternative that locals love: cicchetti bars.
Cicchetti are small, flavorful bites traditionally served in bàcari, the city’s rustic wine bars. These snacks might include mini sandwiches, marinated vegetables and olives, hard-boiled eggs sliced in half, fried cheese or squid, and artichoke hearts. You’ll also find a variety of toppings—like creamy baccalà mantecato or sweet-and-sour sardines (sarde in saor)—served on slices of bread or polenta. Every bite is typically paired with a small glass of local wine.
You can enjoy cicchetti as a light pre-dinner treat or combine several dishes to create a satisfying meal. Prices usually range between €1 and €3 per item, and you can often order a mixed plate for around €8, making it a very affordable way to sample authentic Venetian flavors.
Beyond the food, cicchetti are all about socializing. It’s common for friends and colleagues to gather after work for a drink and a few bites, catching up in a relaxed, informal setting. Many people even go on cicchetti crawls, hopping from one bàcaro to the next to try different offerings.
When in Venice, you might hear someone suggest “Andémo béver un’ombra,” which translates to “Let’s go drink a shadow”—with ombra being a local nickname for a glass of wine. A “giro d’ombra” refers to this kind of bar-hopping experience. The phrase harks back to a time when wine vendors set up shaded stalls at the base of St. Mark’s Bell Tower, adjusting their position as the sun moved to stay in the shade (ombra).
Some of the most beloved spots for cicchetti in Venice include:
- El Sbarlefo
- Cantinone già Schiavi
- Ca’ d’Oro alla Vedova
- Cantina Do Mori
- All’Arco
- Al Timon
- Do Spade