Wed, 15 June 2016, 6:22 pm: Prosecco as your first drink of the evening is a local custom, so sign me up. It’s on the white wine list behind me, along with nine others, all priced to move.
When I take you to Venice, you’re not going to end up in boring, overpriced tourist-centric restaurants. You’re going to eat where the Venetians do.
Opened in 2012, Barcollo has earned a following among university students with its Friday night DJ sets and convivial outdoor seating. Inexpensive wine and snacks and a keen location near the Rialto Bridge ensure that it’s not just college kids who stop by.
I wanted something for my prosecco to wash down, so from the wide selection of small sandwiches I chose a speck-and-gorgonzola (basically a ham-and-cheese with way more bread than ham or cheese). I can’t give it a rave review, but it was only 1,50 E.
There it is again, with my prosecco and a crocchette patate, which is a croquet stuffed with minced potato with mozzarella and proscuitto. At 2,00 E. it was hearty for its size if not super-flavorful.
This curlicued sandwich could’ve used a bit more meat, but for just a couple of the coins rattling around in your pocket, who’s complaining? That’s the compromise with some of the “snacks as dinner” places here in Venice: the food isn’t memorable, but it AND the drinks are dirt cheap, and if the booze is flowing you won’t care that the appetizers aren’t Michelin-starred.
You’re not limited to finger foods; Barcollo has full meals on offer. That handwritten menu behind me includes lasagne, salmon, and gnocchi.
My prosecco bottle is there on the right, along with another wine my party sampled.