I live in Venice and herebelow are the views i have on the restaurant:<BR>Cipriani's is also called 'Harry's Bar' if i'm not mistaken. If that is the case, then i went there to eat (i was invited by some colleagues) and let me just say that it is a total rip off !!! The food was very good (nouvelle cuisine - which is basically very small portions for a lot of money) and the restaurant in itself is nice but nothing special. If i remember correctly the bill was 500 Euros for 3 and we only had 1 bottle of wine as alcohol and ok, a few liquers also....I would avoid it unless you are prepared to spend big.

to clarify<BR>In Venice the Cipriani family owns<BR>(or has their name associated with) the Cipriani Hotel on Giudecca Island (with with restaurants and bars on the hotel premises), the cafe Harry's Dolci, the Locanda Cipriani on Torcello, maybe some other places I don't know, AND Harry's Bar which is quite near the San Marco vaporetto stop, across the street from the Monaco hotel.<BR><BR>I agree that Harry's Bar is crowded, overpriced, and imo a tourist trap.<BR>I didn't stay to eat, because I found the atmosphere so unpleasant (crowded, noisy, and let's just say, "un-elegant"), and the drink and food prices so outrageous. Even if the food is wonderful, I would never go in there again.<BR><BR>However, the restaurants and bars at the Cipriani Hotel, and the Locanda Cipriani on Torcello, while very very pricey, offer outstanding food, perfect service, and beautiful, calm, settings, removed in feeling from the madding crowds.

Da Fiore, Da Fiore, Da Fiore. Now, stay outta Harry's! Da Fiore!

I think people go to Harry's Bar because Hemingway supposedly hung out there. When I was in Madrid there was a restaurant that had printed on the awning "HEMINGWAY NEVER ATE HERE" which I thought was quite humorous.

Okay, I know where NOT to go --- Joe, living in Venice as you do, how about a few suggestions on good restaurants that we should go to ???<BR>

I had a drink in the RainBow Room in NYC last weekend, and all the ash trays and towels in the bathroom, said Cipriani. I didn't know they bought the Rainbow Room. I had two delious apple martinis at $18.00 a piece. The best part was we could not see a thing, we were in the clouds (rainy night). Oh well, they were great martinis.

Good morning, Sue Cipriani has a numbr of places on Manhattan, Harry Ciopriani on 5th and 59 st. A food shop across from Grand Central Station<BR>just off Lexington and another down in<BR>the Wall Street district. check into<BR>www.cipriani.com/ as has others in SA<BR>as well as Venice. They have had the Rainbow Room for a couple of years now..<BR>Richard J Vicek