A precious gem hidden along the streets of Venice lays a classy, time-honored restaurant.
You may pass by it when you’re going from Piazza San Marco to the Arsenale di Venezia. However, you may not spot it immediately as it is sort of in a wide and spacious alley on its own. Nevertheless, it is unquestionably worth to look for it, as you will certainly have quite the culinary experience.
Hostaria da Franz is a notoriously distinguished restaurant and visited by very famous Hollywood celebrities and European fashion designers such as Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Zac Efron, Elijah Wood and Miuccia Prada (to name a few) whose photos I’ve personally seen hung along side their “wall of fame”. Knowing that, I undoubtedly became curious and inquisitive in relation to what this place is all about. The friendly owner, Maurizio, greeted us warmly upon my arrival and quickly led me to our table. The interior design of the main dining area reminded me of an expansive wine cellar, as there were a luxurious amount of wines dwelling above along the wall.
Maurizio inherited the restaurant from his father who first started the extraordinary Hostaria da Franz 30 years ago. “Hostaria” (or commonly known as osteria) is a place for Italians that serve wine and food. Back then it was located more east of the city of Venice. He decided to open the restaurant at its present-time new location two years ago. The chef, Nicola Colli, came to Venice at 1999 when he was only 16 years old. He worked during the summer while attending culinary school. He learned how to cook from Maurizio’s father and became his right-hand man. Nicola used to go to the market everyday with Maurizio’s father to purchase the very best ingredients available in Venice. Maurizio was born and raised here in Venice and learned everything he needed to know from his father. He also traveled the world and gained experience in restaurants located in other countries and continents in order to establish and hone his own talents and skills. Hostaria da Franz is known to use only the freshest local products and everything they serve is completely homemade. Hearing all this, I promptly became excited upon tasting culinary art that was handed down from generation to generation.
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Maurizio served a traditional prelude to the meal by providing us some wonderful Italian Prosecco, an Italian sparkling white wine, with some homespun variety bread. Normally I like to eat my bread with butter, but these tasted so good that it didn’t need it at all. I found myself eating them slowly throughout the meal as warm fresh bread is always wonderfully appreciated. I really can’t help it as the server periodically replaced the cooled down bread with more that is freshly baked from the oven. Then came the courses…!
Once our main courses started to come, we were served a wine so distinctive, that it is the only wine made in Venice! The name of this ritzy Venetian Wine is Orto Venezia and the one we drank was from 2011. They really take “exclusive Venetian products” to heart. The first course was Venetian style cuttlefish with polenta garnished with poppy seeds. It felt very light and smooth to taste. It was a simple looking dish with an utmost balanced flavor.
The second to arrive were the famous Venetian sardines with octopus mustardini. The octopus was definitely not chewy whatsoever. It was cleaned so well there were no traces of seawater at all. Fortunately, as most sardines have a strong fishy flavor, these were milder. Next were the grilled razor clams and baby scallops. These were all caught by hand at the north lagoon of Venice. The razor clams tasted like meaty scallops and tested so natural. They were so very soft to chew, and the meaty scallop was surely a welcome texture. The clams tasted very fresh and clean. Throughout the meal, I made several comments about how fresh the clams and scallops were. Maurizio exclaimed “Of course! They were just caught this morning!”
The fourth course was an authentic Venetian black risotto that was uniquely made with cuttlefish. The cuttlefish is very common in the Venetian lagoon. Its meat and ingredients is very versatile. He expressed that the risotto must be carefully made where the chef must pay complete exhaustive attention to it while it cooks. Once the dish is finished, the chef then adds the black ink of the cuttlefish to the risotto quickly and thoroughly. I didn’t taste any strange inky flavor but it certainly blended in marvelously with the rest of the dish. Truly and sincerely, this genuine recipe provides such wonderful synergy.
The fifth course featured the sea bass and a fish called “sarago” in Italian. The sea bass was beautifully presented with small aromatic tomatoes. They seemed to be infused with herbs as they explode with flavor when you bite into it. The sarago was a very soft fish and it was served with sesame seeds. The seeds complemented the fatty fish. It was also served with a red sauce that adds a semi-sweet treat to the cuisine.
For dessert, we enjoyed an authentic Italian panna cotta and delicious lemon pie. The panna cotta was served with strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, red currants and a luscious melon mouse. This dessert surprisingly felt perfectly light and healthy. The lemon pie had a side of peaches, syrup, and amaretto and orange ice cream. The pie came quite warm and creates a wonderful contrast between hot and cold when eating it. The pie’s crust was somewhat crumbly though it does not lose its form once you cut it. Some piecrusts are either very hard or extremely crumbly where the slight touch would crumble the entire exterior of the pie. This pie was perfectly done.
A restaurant refined through generations where tradition is maintained and passed down truly creates a true one-of-a-kind flavor and credible experience. Taste Venice in what it is and enjoy all the excellence that Hostaria da Franz has to offer you. Its goodness is truly worth your visit.
A heartfelt thanks to our awe-inspiring collaborator, Mr. Maurizio from Hostaria da Franz (photo 7), who made our holiday genuinely invaluable!
Thanks to Hostaria da Franz | Salizada San Antonin 3499, 30122 Venezia (Castello), Italia | 0039 041 5220861 | info@hostariadafranz.com