Hidden Venice: Have an Aperitivo Like a Venetian, Venice, Italy (B)

A flicker of yellow light from a lantern down an obscure alley, an illuminated painted name board reflecting in the still black water, a vibrant noisy crowd squeezed in a pokey dim interior with a low ceiling of wooden beams – this is the Venetian aperitivo in the traditional bacaro.

Most travellers to Italy will be familiar with the legendary aperitivo – free-flowing prosecco, spritz by the dozen and, most importantly, free food. Starting from as early as 6pm, it’s a golden hour to meet with friends, snack on mini pizza and lots of pastry, and have circular conversations about where to go for dinner. In Venice, the aperitivo goes one step further…

Students, i veci (old people), and workers all come together in the bacaro. A couple can be found on the main tourist drag but to mingle with some non-English speakers you need to lose yourself in the quieter areas. There is obviously no guarantee of stumbling across the perfect atmospheric bacaro this way so with recommendations from a student friend in Venice I’ve compiled a version of the standard student bacaro ‘crawl’ featuring a boat terrace, mysteriously illusive insects, some risqué decoration and the tiniest interior that succeeds in containing all Venetian life. ...... (follow the instructions below for accessing the rest of this article).