We are not afraid of trying new foods.  Travel has numbed us to the fear of “new things”.  What scares us is actually trying a bad version of an otherwise delicious food.  We hate being let down unnecessarily.  If there is in fact, no such thing as a “good version” of a particular food (chocolate-covered crickets, for example), then so be it.  But if we have sampled a food without getting a fair shot at a good version, that’s when regret and fear really set in.

Chris and I had never considered going on a food tour while travelling.  But with only a few days in Venice, a long list of food I wanted to sample, and the afore-mentioned fear, this seemed like a good time to try one out.  After some vigorous browsing of reviews on TripAdvisor, we came across Venice Bites.  Chris was intrigued by their average rating of 5 out of 5 stars- an exceptional accomplishment by the grueling reviewers on TripAdvisor.  They advertised it was “off the eaten path”, winning me over with their puns.  And at a cost of less than 100 euro per person, including a walking tour of the city, we snatched a spot with as soon as possible.

Spoiler alert:  This was, by far, the best tour and experience we have had while abroad.  That’s not a reflection of excessive bad tour experiences.  In fact, we think we’ve lucked out in most cases with decent experiences.  This particular tour was just that exceptional.

Our guides were Adam and Maya, married expatriates from the US.  Adam formerly worked in construction, and Maya was a former human resources director.  But after both of those jobs got…jobby…they moved to Venice, where her grandparents originated, and started Venice Bites Food Tour.  We immediately liked them for three reasons:  1.)  They understood the Venetian heat was uncomfortable to us spoiled Americans and worked to keep us in the shade and, when possible, in air-conditioning.  2.)  They were incredibly friendly and personable.  3.)  As Americans in Venice, they gave us an insiders’ view of a Venetian lifestyle, but with a particular focus on how it compared to an American lifestyle.  In short, they knew what we wanted to know, anticipated our needs, and prepared accordingly.

Oh, and did I mention that everything we sampled was amazing?!  Don’t assume that just because you’re in Venice, every little eatery is going to be excellent.  Or more importantly, affordably priced (depending on your priorities abroad).  But Adam and Maya took us where the locals eat so we could sample authentic Venetian cuisine, and could happily return without fear of sticker shock when we paid the bill ourselves.

Our fabulous guides, Maya and Adam, of Venice Bites Food Tour.

We began our 11:00am tour with a shot of grappa, a traditional Venetian hard liquor plus espresso.  Used to help the fishermen prepare for a cold morning on the water, it was meant to give your morning a start, while also warming your insides. When it went down, it felt like someone lit a shot of Jaeger on fire.  Actually, I can’t say that honestly, because I could only swallow a few drops.  But that’s what I imagined after my unfinished sample.  So with warm bellies on a hot day, we marched on to our next stop.

Next was Cantine del Vino gia Schiavi for some cichetti and wine.  Most local eateries make their own wine in-house, and it is almost always better than any other wine you could order.  In fact, since this tour, I’ve been in search of a good Italian red table wine that comes close and have come up dry every time (Ha..Get it?  Dry?).

Cichetti is a traditional Venetian snack between meals.  It is toasted slices of bread with a variety of salads, delicacies, and garnishes on top.  In this case, the main topping was a very finely chopped fish salad. And to our delight, we were able to choose our samples from over 20 different options.  Chris surprisingly chose some pretty adventurous options for us.  From top and moving clockwise:  plain cichetti, cichetti with ricotta cheese and red currants, cichetti with dried flowers, and cichetti with fish roe.  All four were perfectly delectable.

Traditional Venetian snack, cichetti, at Schiavi.

Our third stop was probably our favorite:  Bar alla Toletta, the home of the original Venetian sandwich, tramezzino.  And not just any sandwich:  the most perfect sandwich we had ever eaten.  Let me be clear:  I am not a sandwich fan.  Chris could survive on nothing but, while I could live the rest of my life without eating a sandwich ever again.  But these were something different.  I cannot even fathom how they could possibly be made that morning, out of simple bread triangles,and never get soggy.  We loved it so much we re-traced our steps the following day just to have another.  And then, after finishing our lunch order, we ordered seconds.   Just view some of these images submitted by others on TripAdvisor for some serious mouth-watering.

An interesting related factoid:  All sandwiches at Toletta are sold the same day they’re made. In Venice, restaurants are not permitted to serve food from the day before, so food not sold must be thrown out in the evening.  To cut down waste, they only make what they know they will sell by day’s end.  No exceptions.

Even more impressive than the food was Adam and Maya’s knowledge of the city.  They took us through neighborhoods and alleys to show us secrets and uniquities that we never would have paid attention to otherwise.  For example, below is an example of the Venetian philosophy that if it’s not technically broken, don’t fix it.  Venice is susceptible to floods, earthquakes, and most other natural disasters, evident by the picture below.  But since the structure is still standing, the building will remain un-repaired, and thus, slanted.

We saw these arches all over the city, and assumed they were there to stabilize buildings.  But as our guides explained, these actually represent marriages between adjacent houses and families.

Below is one of the last gondolier repair and workshops in Venice.  The workers live and work on-site.  With all of the other sites catching our eye, I can guarantee we would never have found, nor paid attention to, this gem had our guides not pointed it out.

Our fourth stop was a full meal.  It was our first Venetian seafood pasta and prosecco experience.  And as promised, it was superb.  We laughed and joked as we did our best to put a dent in our plates.  But we had already eaten appetizers and sandwiches, so we simply swallowed our way through our misery.  I think the buttery cream sauce helped it along the digestive tract too.

Traditional Venetian seafood pasta

At the end of stop #4, we were all miserable.  But we had several more stops to go.  Stop #5 was our gelato experience.  I like to think of myself as a gelato connoisseur, but that’s only because when in Europe, I force Chris to stop daily at a gelateria.  We learned that true gelato should be more muted than brightly colored, as bright, unnatural colors indicate it’s made with untraditional, artificial ingredients.  It should also be more creamy than icy.  Ice crystals are a sign that it is not fresh or has been stored improperly.

The second best gelato in Venice, Il Doge, second only to Suso.

Adam and Maya were very honest when I inquired if this was the best gelato in the city:  no, it was not.  But it was only because the best gelato was not on our path for the tour.  They gave us directions to a place that I’m not sure even Indiana Jones could have found with a map, a compass, and a tour guide.  But we were not let down.  Suso was absolute gelato heaven, as confirmed by the experts at Lonely Planet here.

The best gelato experience we’ve had in our travels was at Suso, Venice.

A few more items we had the opportunity to sample are below.  From left to right:

• fresh Venetian produce from the produce barge, delivered to the city daily
• fresh fried seafood in a cone, including octopus and squid, at Acqua & Mais
• fresh sardines (don’t knock it until you try it)

Our tour ended, fittingly, at Naranzaria, a fantastic cafe overlooking the Grande Canal. Adam and Maya ordered each of us a traditional Venetian Spritz Select with Prosecco.  This was a particular treat for me, since I desperately wanted to try the Venetian specialty, but had no earthly idea how to accurately order one.  It was the perfect ending to the perfect afternoon tour in Venice.

Currently, Adam and Maya of Venice Bites provide a progressive dinner as well.  When we return to Venice someday, it will be on the top of our list of must-do’s.  Right after we get another sandwich.