Taste of Venice Food Tour in San Marco & San Polo

You’ll enjoy specialty drinks like Aperol spritz, Campari, or wine, then visit a historic rosticceria, taste fresh fish and artisan cheese, and enjoy a tasty gelato to finish.

Venice Cicchetti Food Tour Description

Your 3-hour walking tour includes:

• Guided walking tour through San Polo, Rialto Market, and San Marco district

• Four traditional cicchetti snacks

• Three glasses of local wine, spritz, or soft drink

• One delicious Venetian gelato

• English-speaking, food-loving local guide

• Maximum group size of 10

The exact food stops on this tour may change due to holidays, closures, or other factors, but your guide will always make sure you have a fantastic foodie experience.

Meet in Campo San Polo

Venice’s second largest public square is full of history dating back centuries, and it makes a convenient meeting point for your foodie journey through the city. After being welcomed by your local guide, your walking tour through the Venice streets begins as you learn some of the city’s rich culinary history.

San Polo Rosticceria and Marco Polo’s House

You’ll pass by the former home of Venice’s most famous son, the explorer Marco Polo, on your way to your first stop of the day—a much loved rosticceria (canteen-style restaurant) that has been keeping local workers fed since the 1930s. Specializing in filling snacks like arancini, croquettes, and fried mozzarella balls, it’s the perfect place to start filling up your belly.

Rialto Bridge and Market

Nearby to Venice’s most famous bridge, Rialto Market is perhaps the true heart of Venice food culture, and is full of delicious fresh fish and the buzz of local life to this day. Your guide will lead you through the market’s pescheria halls where you can sample the day’s catch and soak in the authentic atmosphere that has changed little in 800 years!

Local Cheese, Wine, and Spritz

After leaving Rialto Market, you’ll stop in at a 1930s family-run cheese shop where you can try famous local cheeses such as asiago, montasio, and dobbiaco. A spot of cheese always warms up your palette for some wine, so shortly after you’ll enjoy an ombra. In Venetian tradition, an ombra (which means shadow in English) is a small drink of wine that was traditionally drunk by workers in the shade of the San Marco Bell Tower!

There will be three drinks included during your tour, but you don’t have to stick to wine. Why not excite your taste buds with an expertly crafted spritz! These wine-based aperitifs come in a number of varieties, including Aperol, Campari, Cynar, and the little-known local favorite: Select. Your guide will help you choose the perfect drink based on your tastes.

Bacari and Cicchetti in San Marco district

Throughout Venice you’ll find hidden bars known as bacari. These little places attract more of a local crowd than you’ll find in the big restaurants, and that’s all down to their relaxed and informal atmosphere, as well as the delicious cicchetti small plate snacks!

When Italians drink wine, they always have something to eat with it to make sure that they don't get too tipsy. So over time, the bacari started offering cicchetti and a new tradition was born: drinking wine with cicchetti. With tasty snacks including small sandwiches, olives, polenta, seafood, and cured meats, your guide will make sure you try a great selection during your foodie adventure!

Venetian Gelato Dessert

No Italian food tour is complete without gelato. Learn how to spot the difference between authentic and artificial gelato by visiting one of Venice's best gelateria! Your guide can tell you which flavors are in season, and what makes gelato different from the ice cream you have at home.

It’s the ideal way to end your Venetian foodie experience!