Visitors who are expecting
debauchery and nefarious nights in the licentious ‘City
of Revel’, which Venice was once dubbed, will be
slightly disappointed. With so few young people able to afford to
live in the city and most places set up for the tourists, the city’s
nightlife often lacks real soul. In short, visitors to Venice will
often be hard-pushed to find entertainment beyond their plate of
cuttlefish risotto.
Most of the action takes place in the early evening, when Venetians
take their daily stroll or passeggiata along the Riva degli Schiavioni.
Sometimes they stop off for an aperitif, a glass of chilled prosecco,
the local white wine that fizzes on the tongue. For a quick tipple,
the swankiest venues are concentrated around St Mark’s Square,
where you can spend your euros with decadent abandon. Other more
bohemian areas are located in the back streets of Cannaregio and
San Polo, where you can swill a beaker of local wine alongside fishermen
and students. The average price of a beer in Venice is €3-5
and you have to be over 18 to drink. Most pubs close at either 2400
hrs or 0100 hrs, although some places stay open later, especially
those attached to hotels.
Due to problems with the noise pollution, Venetian nightclubs are
virtually non-existent and those that do operate a well-honed entry
system that favours short-skirted women. More places open on the
Lido, in the summer, when you can rub shoulder
pads with Hollywood’s glitziest. However, for the rest of
the year, the best of the city’s bright lights are the lanterns
on the boats twinkling in the lagoon.
For information and listings, A Guest in Venice
is published fortnightly in summer and monthly during the winter
season.
Bars
Harry’s Bar, Calle Vallaresso, on the western
edge of St Mark’s Square, is the home of the legendary Bellini,
a cocktail of prosecco, fresh peach juice and a dash of grenadine.
No introduction to Venice (or prosecco) is complete without one.
The bar is owned by the Cipriani family and has played host to Hollywood’s
most rich and glamorous.
The two grand old dames, Florian and Quadri,
on St Mark’s Square, with a €4.50 per person cover charge,
may seem exorbitant for a coffee but a bottle of wine with nibbles
and a carafe of water costs approx €40-45, which is not bad
value for two when you add in the live classical music and the stunning
panorama of one of the world’s most famous squares.
Campo Santa Margherita has, in recent years, become
the haunt of Venice’s young and beautiful, with its smattering
of trendy cafés and bars and slightly grungy ambience.
Margaret Duchamp is one of the liveliest options
on the Campo, with outside tables, a trendy interior and a good
pint of Guinness. The recently refurbished Taverna Da Baffo,
Campo San Agostin, has once again become one of Venice’s most
popular places. An added bonus is that, as it is not yet featured
in the printed guidebooks and the venue is relatively tourist free,
leaving Venetian hipsters an unmolested location for their nocturnal
revels. The tables outside close at midnight but visitors should
beware at all times, the crotchety old lady upstairs has been known
to shower rowdy revellers with buckets of ice cold water.
Osteria alla Postali, Fondamenta Rio Marin 821,
now run by a Venetian ex-pilot, is a good place to lounge next to
a cosy canal, sipping a campari bitter and watching the gondolas
drift by.
Vitae, Calle Sant’Antonio,
is a real local secret, tucked away near the Rialto, that very few
tourists ever find. Intimate and stylish, this bar attracts the
Venetian yuppie crowd. Over on the mainland in Mestre, a new favourite
of the smart set is Zen Café, Via Torre
Belfredo 110/112, a lounge bar/restaurant. There are echoes of the
Buddha Bar in Paris (an ultra chic but also very tastefully decorated
with mellow and relaxing music, serving a cool clientele) with smart
modern art and mellow background music. Unusually for Italy, Zen
Café is non-smoking.
Casinos
Venice has one casino but in two locations. In the summer, the Casino
Municipale di Venezia (Telephone number: (041)
529 7111) welcomes beach bums and film stars to its home in the
Palazzo del Casino, on the Lido. In the winter,
it closes its doors and retreats to the more refined surroundings
of Palazzo Vendramin Calergi, on the Grand Canal
which is the last resting place of Richard Wagner, who died here
in 1883. Games at both include blackjack, roulette, as well as video
poker. Gamblers should be willing to dress up. They also have to
be over 21 years and a passport is required.
Clubs
Since these are few and far between in Venice, most young people
head for Mestre, where there is more space and
less of a noise restriction and further afield to the student town
of Padua. But if you are stuck in Venice and you
want to dance the night away, the best option is Disco Club
Piccolo Mondo, Calle Contarini-Corfu, Dorsoduro, where
house music is enjoyed by a mixed clientele and entrance costs are
around €7.50. Or try the Casanova Disco Club,
Lista di Spagna, Cannaregio, a popular Venetian hotspot for rubbing
groins with Latin smoothies and is located very near Venice’s
railway station. Expect to pay €10.50, which includes a free
drink. Internet facilities are available at Casanova.
Live
music
Live music venues in the city are scarce. Two of the best known
are the late opening (until 0200 hrs) Bacaro Jazz,
Salizada del Fontego dei Tedeschi, San Marco, for hot jazz and a
cool clientele, and Paradiso Perduto, Fondamenta
Misericordia, Cannaregio, a late-night venue that’s popular
with students. The wonderfully named Pizzeria 900 Jazz Club,
Campiello del Sansoni, San Polo, is difficult to find but well worth
the effort for the quality Italian and international live jazz.
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