My 24 year old son and I will be spending four nights in Venice in early January. Neither of us eat much seafood, so I am looking for restaurants that have good alternatives. Someone mentioned Osteria La Zucca to me and I have the names of several places for ciccetti and pizza, but I'd love couple more restaurant recommendations. We will be staying at the Hotel Canal Grande in Santa Croce. Will be taking an afternoon train in from Bologna and I'd like to have something lined up for the first night. Do you think reservations are necessary on January 2?

I wish I could help you as I was just in Venice in October. We never made reservations for anywhere (including the restaurant in our hotel, the Gritti Palace) but the apparent non-need may have been due to the time of year.

I cannot imagine your not being able to find a place to eat that doesn't have alternatives, and lots of them, to seafood. I can only hope that any recommendations you get are from people who have exactly the same taste and standards which you have.

Alla Rivetta, as you enter the San Zaccaria Campo.
Small, a

I would get some specific info from your hotel on places they reco.

Also be aware that Venice specializes in risotto - since they are near the rice growing area - versus pasta.

and polenta. DS had a great pile of meat served swimming in a sea of polenta at the restaurant we ate in on our last day in Venice a few days ago. i think that it was this one but in any event, La Bitta specialises in meat not fish.

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaur...ce_Veneto.html

it's not that far from your apartment and shouldn't be that difficult to find - the nearest vaparetto stop is Ca' Rezzonico.

Virtually any restaurant will have non-seafood choices.

calves liver and onions [fegato alla venezia] is also a typical venetian dish, flwrjen and there should be plenty of it around in January.

you might be interested in this article:

http://www.cookinvenice.com/ourblog/...netian-dishes/

apart from the fish dishes, i've had risi e bis once in a restaurant on the edge of Cannareggio; it was a place catering mainly to workmen so it was pretty good, if limited in choices on the menu. it emphasised for me the regionality of italian cooking - i mentioned it to a sardinian friend and he'd never heard of it.

Thank you all for your replies. I didn't know that Venice specializes in risotto, which I love. Annhig, I really enjoyed that article--thank you, and La Bitta sounds great. I think my son, especially would enjoy it. (I am close to vegetarian.)

Bobthe navigator, I looked up Alla Rivetta and it looks wonderful, thank you.

I'd have to second La Zucca..small place inside with just a few tables outside..near a small canal with a footbridge. Best bet is to take vap to San Stae...walk down the street where vap stops...you will pass Hotel Mocenigo (were we stayed on out last trip to Venice) and a Gelato shop on your right. Your only a few minutes away from La Zucca.

Take that right and meander through narrow lanes and ask directions to La Zucca which is not far from that point (you could ask directions at the gelato shop also). I recall having a fantastic plate of tagliatelle with melted gorgonzola and pistachio nuts. Roz's lasagne was equally delicious. Very pleasant sitting outside chatting with some other diners. It was October with pleasant temps.

If you are close to vegetarian, La Zucca is a no-brainer. Also it is very close to your hotel.

I'd add to your list, Vini da Gigo and La Cantina in Cannaregio.

Will you be disappointed if it is Fruti di Mare Risotto? See the last half of Antony Bourdain, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyQvTefwP48

Tower, taglietelle with gorgonzola and pistachio nuts sounds insanely good--I'm so excited. And thanks for the detailed directions. I'll be cutting and pasting them!

Rialtogirl, thanks for weighing in on La Zucca, and for the other two suggestions. I really appreciate it.

Greg, I'm afraid I don't like shellfish, but my son does. I will watch the clip and pass it along to him--thanks.

This is such a helpful forum!

<i><font color=#555555>"Do you think reservations are necessary on January 2?"</font></i>

Reservations are always necessary for lunch or dinner at very popular restaurants, no matter what day. For most of the top-40 places, you only need to make a reservation a day or two in advance. If you're OK with 9:30 PM for dinner, you can often secure a reservation on the same day.

<i><font color=#555555>"Neither of us eat much seafood"</font></i>

There are many restaurants in Venice that serve non-fish items and specifically cater to tourists. Unfortunately, it's the nature of the beast in Venice. No one knows how you feel about the quality of your food. It's up to you whether or not you wish to take a stranger's advice on where to eat in Venice.

Most pizza places in Venice offer non-fish toppings. There are hundreds of restaurants that offer pasta with non-fish ingredients, but I have no idea what they're using for ingredients.

If you care about quality, intensive research is required to eat well (and safely) in Venice, and you'll need a higher than normal budget. IMO, Fodor's is not the best place for quality food recommendations.

<i><font color=#555555>"We will be staying at the Hotel Canal Grande in Santa Croce."</font></i>

This is not the most convenient hotel in Venice. The closest vaporetto stop is Riva di Biasio, which is a local stop immediately following Ferrovia, which is the train station. Be forewarned, it's a long "local" ride from here to Piazza San Marco.

Without a superb map, finding your way in the Santa Croce neighborhood can be extremely difficult and challenging. Finding your way on foot to other areas of Venice from here can be fun, but extremely frustrating if you make a wrong turn or get lost. I can't stress enough the importance of a great map, and I have to warn you, great maps of Venice are very difficult to find these days.

<i><font color=#555555>"I didn't know that Venice specializes in risotto"</font></i>

Some chefs do a great job, others not so great. Casanova's food writings have been discovered, and he talks quite a bit about pasta in Venice. So pasta has been around for a very long time. Some restaurants in Venice make their own, and it's fabulous. Most others do not.

<i><font color=#555555>"La Bitta sounds great."</font></i>

It's good, and I adore Deborah, the owner. But her English-speaking customers are such a pain. They torture her with their demanding neediness.

<i><font color=#555555>"I looked up Alla Rivetta and it looks wonderful"</font></i>

Be careful, there are two, and the names can be confusing. In Santa Croce, there is Osteria della Rivetta. In Castello, which is quite a distance from your hotel, there is Alla Rivetta da Lino, which I believe is the former "Alla Rivetta" under new ownership. Neither place has a website, so where did you look to determine "looks wonderful?"

<i><font color=#555555>"And thanks for the detailed directions. I'll be cutting and pasting them!"</font></i>

Stopping to ask someone, "Where is La Zucca?" is not what I would call "detailed directions." With a good map, you can easily walk to La Zucca from your hotel because it's so close (but not a piece of cake to a newbie). It's a lot faster and much less expensive than taking a vaporetto one stop.

However, I can't stress enough the need for a good map in Venice, one that correctly names each street (calle). It also helps if someone in your party is a good navigator. It can be very cold, damp, and windy in January. If you're not prepared, you may endure some challenging frustrations.

Good luck.

I agree with NYCFoodSnob, it is easy to get lost in Santa Croce. I've wandered around in circles there a few times. Get a good map (I use Streetwise) AND bring a penlight to shine on it when it gets dark.

It is an easy walk from your hotel to Zucca.

You will find Campo San Giacomo dell' Orio by walking down the Lista di Bari and turning right at Salizzada Zusto. You will see restaurant Antica Bessetta in the distance. At Bessetta, turn down Calle Savio and walk over the bridge.

You are now in Campo San Giacomo.

Find the Coop Supermarket. Turn left out of the campo and walk a short distance. You will walk over another bridge that will be in front of you. This is Calle Tintor. Zucca is on the right. It is tiny. Don't pass it.

Thin

Thanks for all the suggestions on finding Zucca--I'm glad it's close to the hotel. I ordered a one of those laminated street easy max of Venice and one of Venice by water. I wonder how good the google maps are.

I picked the hotel because it's close to the train and got great reviews. I don't really mind that it's out of the way of the main sights. I think I will like the area. And I love to walk, and have no agenda beyond wandering.

The location of your hotel is fine. It is easy to get lost anywhere in Venice at any time. NYCFoodSnob is just blathering on for her own reasons. I wouldn't give it any attention.

I work in show business. Only a foolish fool would ignore my travel experience. Around this sand box, certain cracked pots are famous for calling the kettles black. Sandra D-list is the Maytag of blather. The rinse cycle is broken. I can only assume she has reasons.

<i><font color=#555555>"I picked the hotel because it's close to the train"</font></i>

A lot of people do that. And people have their reasons. If you're on a budget, of a certain age, and you're entering and leaving by train, staying two nights, and don't want to haul luggage over bridges and through narrow streets that see no daylight, I could see why someone might want to stay near the train station. The people I just described would probably want to avoid schlepping their luggage over the Scalzi Bridge. If it's raining or snowing when you arrive/depart, be careful of walking on ancient stone steps while carrying luggage. It's very easy to slip and take a tumble. I've helped far too many people.

<i><font color=#555555>"I love to walk, and have no agenda beyond wandering."</font></i>

There's no greater way to see Venice, but you'll need to eat and use a bathroom, which calls for some agenda. In January, I can envision dozens of scenarios where you might want to be somewhere warm and dry quickly and not waste an hour or two trying to find a specific destination.

NYC, your posts are just compulsive dumps of non-stop travel anxieties about Italy, not useful travel advice, and people deserve a headsup. There is nothing wrong with the OP's hotel location and no big whoop about getting around Venice. The OP is wisely brushing it off.

You needn't constantly remind us that most people who work in show business are so catastrophically self-centered they only are seeing themselves wherever they go, not the millions of other people getting by just fine, thank you. (Happy to join Kathy Griffith on the D-List. Better jokes and it would be a step up from this!)

By the way, flwrjen, you won't have inordinate trouble finding non-fish meals (or La Zucca). There are no universally agreed upon "main sights" in Venice. The city itself is the "main sight" and most people enjoy walking in the city more than they do checking off a list of show business sights. Thirty million people visit Venice every year, most for the first time, and most of them love it, rain or shine, and they aren't there to sit inside their hotel. Enjoy your stay.