Venice has a reputation for bad, overpriced food that it earned honestly along the main tourist routes and does not deserve elsewhere. 20 bookable food tours below — plus the neighbourhoods and dishes the city is built around.
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The guide
Venice has a reputation for bad, overpriced food that it earned honestly along the main tourist routes and does not deserve elsewhere. The real cuisine is lagoon cooking: small fish, shellfish, cuttlefish and its ink, bitter greens from the island of Sant'Erasmo, and rice rather than pasta. The Venetian institution is the bacaro, a standing wine bar serving cicchetti, which are small plates eaten with a glass called an ombra. Doing a circuit of three or four bacari is a better dinner than most restaurants here will give you. Walk five minutes off the path between San Marco and Rialto and prices fall by half.
Where to focus
Four neighbourhoods to anchor a few days of eating
Cannaregio
North and residential, including the old Jewish Ghetto. The best concentration of genuine bacari along Fondamenta della Misericordia, full of Venetians in the evening.
Castello
East past the Arsenale, the largest and least visited sestiere. Neighbourhood trattorias serving lagoon fish at prices the tourist centre has forgotten.
Rialto Market
The fish market has operated on this spot for roughly a thousand years. Open mornings, closed Sunday and Monday, with bacari on the surrounding lanes.
Dorsoduro
University quarter, cheaper and younger. Campo Santa Margherita fills with students in the evening and the bars around it price accordingly.
What to eat
The dishes the city is known for
- 01
Cicchetti
· Small plates at a bacaro: baccalà on bread, fried vegetables, meatballs, half a boiled egg. A euro or two each, eaten standing. - 02
Sarde in saor
· Fried sardines marinated with onion, vinegar, pine nuts, and raisins. A sailors' preservation method from the 14th century. - 03
Risotto al nero di seppia
· Rice cooked in cuttlefish ink, black and briny. Venetian rather than Italian generally, and messy to eat. - 04
Baccalà mantecato
· Salt cod whipped with olive oil into a pale cream, spread on grilled polenta. The single most Venetian thing on a bacaro counter. - 05
Fegato alla veneziana
· Calf's liver cooked slowly with a great quantity of sweet onion, served with polenta. Older than the tourist trade by centuries. - 06
Spritz
· White wine, bitter, soda. Select is the local choice over Aperol. Drunk from late afternoon, standing outside the bar.
Practical notes
Meal timing, tipping, payment
Bacari open around 11:00, do a lunch trade, then run again from 18:00. Most kitchens close by 22:00 and the city is quiet after that. Avoid restaurants with photographs on the menu or a tout outside. Coperto and service are usually added to the bill. The fish market and many kitchens close Sunday and Monday because there is no catch. Cash still helps at small bacari.
All 20 food tours
Viator last revised 2026-11-09The full list · sponsored partner links
- 01
A Sparkling Day in the Prosecco Hills from Venice
Explore the Prosecco Hills with us, Giulia and Carlo. Join the first and best reviewed tour of the Prosecco Hills area, visiting two friendly wineries with delicious wine tastings and our family-owned restaurant, for a g
7h from $189 - 02
Eating Venice Small Group Food & Drinks Tour
Cruise through Venice’s culinary heart with a food tour in Cannaregio and explore its hidden gems, like the historic Jewish Ghetto. Experience a progressive lunch or dinner that takes you through the diverse styles of Ve
3.5h - 03
Venice Pasta & Tiramisu Cooking Class with wine by Cooking Italy
Take a break from sightseeing and embrace the richness of Italian cuisine with this pasta and tiramisu cooking class. Learn authentic recipes in a locally beloved Venice restaurant as you sip on wine. Learn how to make
3h from $75 - 04
Venice Food Tour: Sunset Cicchetti & Wine Tasting
Venetian cuisine is famously hard to get to know—but not when you’re in the company of a local food lover who knows the city like the back of their hand. Hop from one bacaro (Venetian wine bar) to another sampling two di
3h - 05
Bacaro Tour Unblended: A Pure Venice Foodie Experience
Bacaro tour unblended means to have a food and wine experience in the pure venetian way, not lower levels. Venetians think that a bacaro tour is much more then eating and drinking, is actually a kind of ritual. The bacar
2h from $95 - 06
From Venice: Prosecco Wine Region Tour with 2 Tastings
Meet your Prosecco wine expert in Venice and start this relaxing experience in the countryside. Along the way you'll see local Prosecco grapes, luxuriant and fascinating vineyards and the beautiful hills that are part of
6h - 07
Exclusive Prosecco Wine Tour - from Venice
Enjoy an exclusive small-group Prosecco wine tour from Venice, hosted by Riccardo a certified sommelier. This full-day experience is designed for travelers who want a deeper understanding of Prosecco through visits to tw
6h from $199 - 08
Small Group Prosecco Experience - from Venice
Enjoy a small-group Prosecco wine experience from Venice, hosted by a certified sommelier. Visit a boutique, family-run winery in the Prosecco hills and discover authentic Italian sparkling wine directly from the source
4h from $169 - 09
Venice Food Tour with 6+ Tastings with Cicchetti, Spritz & More
Experience Venice like a local with our immersive food tour through the city’s charming cannaregio and bacari wine bars. Guided by Venetians, you’ll taste 6+ authentic dishes that reveal the city’s rich culinary traditio
3.5h from $108 - 10
PRIVATE Venice Home Cooking Class & Rialto Market with Massimo
Experience Venice beyond the tourist trail with a local, who welcomes you into his home for a private cooking class inspired by authentic Venetian family recipes. Upgrade your experience with a visit to the iconic Rialto
4h from $159 - 11
Lamborghini Ferrari Pagani IN ONE DAY FROM VENICE BY CAR
Discover Italy’s legendary Motor Valley on an unforgettable private supercar tour from Venice! Travel comfortably by car, not by train, and explore the incredible worlds of Lamborghini, Ferrari and Pagani with three amaz
6h from $420 - 12
Brunetti's Venice: A Culinary Journey Through Leon's Mysteries
Explore Venice through the mysteries and flavors of Donna Leon's Commissario Brunetti series. This unique food tour takes you to hidden gems of the city, offering authentic Venetian cuisine while uncovering iconic locati
2.5h from $135 - 13
A Venetian Evening: Wine Tasting and Cicchetti with a Local Guide
Enjoy real Venice away from the tourist crowd led by a young local guide. A relaxing 3 hours street food and wine walking tour around the alleys and the fine wine bars of Venice to try the best selection of cicchetti (Ve
3h - 14
Semi-Private Venice Market and Cicchetti Food Experience
Discover the essence of Venice in a captivating 2.5-hour gastronomic journey, limited to just six individuals for an intimate experience. Led by a knowledgeable local guide, immerse yourself in the rich culinary heritage
2.5h from $159 - 15
Market Tour and Cooking Class with a Local Venetian Chef
We will discover the historic Rialto market in a small group of people. We will choose the best seasonal ingredients to prepare an authentic 3-course meal (2 course for the evening class) in a fully equipped kitchen of a
4h - 16
Market Tour and Cooking Class with a Venetian Sailor
I'm a sailor but I learned to cook from my mother and grandma, we own an old and traditional restaurant and my father is a winemaker. I travel a lot with merchant ships all around the world but I never get tired of getti
3h from $100 - 17
Prosecco Hills Day Trip from Venice & Treviso: 2 Wineries
Enjoy an authentic experience in the Prosecco Hills: visit 2 historic family-run wineries, taste DOCG Prosecco with local specialties, admire scenic views, explore Valdobbiadene and Conegliano. ▻ Explore Valdobbiadene,
10h from $159 - 18
Venice Bacaro Food Tour: Eat and Drink like a Venetian
Discover Venice through its flavors on our Venice Food Tour, a journey through the winding canals and historic streets of one of Italy’s most enchanting cities. Taste the dishes locals love, from traditional Venetian spe
3.5h - 19
Eat Drink Repeat Venice Food Tour with 10 Tastings and 6 Wines
Sip wine where Ernest Hemingway once did and take a seat in one of the legendary Venice restaurants he loved, where he is believed to have spent time writing. Then follow Venice’s wine story from one glass to the next, v
2.5h - 20
Rialto Market Food and Wine Lunchtime Tour of Venice
Come to Venice to encounter an enlightening experience. Join this 4-hour tour across the city market, restaurants, monuments and Bacari bars to have a taste of exquisite wines and prominent cicchetti dishes. Get ready fo
4h from $94
Frequently asked
- How much do food tours in Venice cost?
- Roughly $75–$420 per person, with the median around $159.
- When should I book?
- One to two weeks ahead in peak season; same-day is sometimes possible off-peak but limits choice.