Proust used to bring his maman to eat in this Venetian classic that has been operating since 1638, and you can still imagine the couple in the plush red upper dining room, with its spectacular view across St Mark’s square. But the food – the exquisite, sometimes surprising creations of star chef Massimiliano Alajmo – might surprise them, as might the bill.
Since 2011, everything here is recherché, from the extraordinary coffee specially toasted
for the café at piazza level, through the club sandwiches and deceptively simple pasta plates served (at slightly lower prices than the restaurant) in the ABC Bistrot, to the marvels cooked up (prawn and curried clam cappuccino, wild duck risotto with truffle and foie gras drops, seabass with olive, caper and chicory pesto) for what is arguably the city’s finest eating experience, recognised with a Michelin star in 2017. There are taster menus at €170, €235 and €300.