(Naples, Caffe Florian) Maestro, Some Music If You Please

Venice is pretty cool on it's own.  It's tiny and quaint and watery and stripey. 

Gina, Scarlett and hundreds of others

Add the fact that there is a gigantic banner of Scarlett Johansson posing in a thigh-slit strapless ballgown astride a ladder holding a bottle of Moet & Chandon in Piazza San Marco, and that doesn't suck either.  

Combine those elements with a sophisticated restaurant Caffe Florian which serves some of the best cuisine in Venice (of which there really isn't a ton, unless you loooove cuttlefish), albeit a tad pricey.

While the nearly 300-year-old restaurant has an indoor and outdoor section, you would be best served to sit outdoors, weather permitting, and enjoy the cool shade while listening the sounds of the live orchestra.  

Our Florian waiters

Starting at about 11:00 a.m. and ending sometime after dark, this restaurant will charge about €6.00 per person supplement to listen to the music.  If that is too steep for your liking, standing on the outskirts of the tables is perfectly acceptable.

We came here two or three days in a row, for breakfast and lunch.  The white jacket-clad waiters whirl around the tables and diners, presenting your meals in grand fashion.  

Each is presented on a silver tray with a delicate carafe of water, intricate Florian logos are emblazoned on napkins, tea cups, tray liner, and even the sugar packets.  It's a bid like stepping into the past... think something like Midnight in Paris, uh, in Venice.

We tried the cheese quiche ("Sfogliata Formaggi") and ham sandwich, which were both perfectly prepared and presented.  Of course, we also had cappuccinos which were tasty and expertly frothed. I think we ordered somewhere between four and six of them, one right after the next.

Cheesy quiche

Cheesy sandwich

Cappuccinos

The following day, we returned for the music, the shade, the cappuccinos, and the quiche.  This time I ordered the "Colazione" which is an embarassingly large breakfast presentation for €30.00.  The price includes coffee, juice, a giant basket of pastries ("brioche e cornetto"), and then a two-foot tall three-tiered display that includes platters of fruit, cheeses, and meats.  It is delicious, but you need two people or more to polish it off.

We didn't come here for dinner, but we probably should have.  Piazza San Marco is beautiful at night, but more truthfully, we should have eaten here because it is really hard to find super delicious food in Venice.  Surrounded by water, it stands to reason that nearly everything in Venice is fish-based, add to the fact that the bread is flavorless (although this is trend in most of the country), and while the pastas are okay here, the pizza in Venice is rather terrible.  

Regardless of whether you choose to dine morning, noon or night, Caffe Florian is a must while in Venice.

Caffe Florian | Piazza San Marco, 56 30124 Venice, Italy | www.caffeflorian.com