Ai Mercanti, Venice, Italy

When preparing my trip to Venice, I had written down the names of the best rated restaurants in TripAdvisor, and I must admit that the 1st ranking of Ai Mercanti is well deserved.

Located in a not-so-easy-to-find patio in the crowded area of San Marco, Ai Mercanti was a lovely place to treat ourselves.

As we went there from lunch, and the prices were in line with the venetian standards -ie high - we decided to order only a Primi.

Ravioli stuffed with cuttlefish and fried squids

Lasagna with pigeon and wild herbs

We would fill ourselves anyway with the delicious home-made (and warm!) breads and gressini.

 

Obvisously, Ai Mercanti being a gastronomic restaurant we swallowed our Primi in 5 seconds, and decided to have a Secondi. After all, we were on holidays, and if you don't treat yourself on holidays, when then?

Controfiletto di scottona, white and green asparagus, 
quail egg and crispy pancetta

Gorgeous steak ... I felt like Sookie Stackhouse in front of Eric Northman

 

Turbot fillet, sesame seeds, 
zucchini flower tempura in a sweet and sour sauce

The meat was perfectly cooked and seasoned, and went quite well with the quail egg, even though at this stage I had probably already had my daily fat quota. The fish was good but nothing special, with a little Asian twist, probably not the best choice. Fortunately, it was not my choice, but my friend B's...

We paid 123 EUR for 2 people. For a glass of Valpolicello, a Primi and a Secondi (and a huge amount of complimentary bread) this was not cheap, but definitely worth it.