Rialto Market & Bacari Cicchetti Walk

The Rialto Market and Bacari Cicchetti Walk is a three-hour food outing in the San Polo district of Venice, in Italy's Veneto region, starting at the Erbaria beside the Rialto Bridge. The market has served as the city's produce and seafood centre for centuries, and the walk pairs a look at its stalls with a run of traditional bacari, the small wine bars where Venetians take a glass of wine and a bite of food. Several local companies run guided versions, and the same route can also be done independently, so there is no single operator behind it and the group size, language and pace vary by provider. Guided versions are typically small groups led in English. A typical route begins in the Erbaria, where fruit and vegetable stalls sit beside the Pescheria fish market, which is busiest on Tuesday to Saturday mornings and closed on Sundays and Mondays. Visitors see lagoon species such as sea bass, cuttlefish, soft-shelled crabs and moeche in season, along with the seasonal produce that shapes Venetian cooking. The route then moves through the surrounding lanes of San Polo to three or four bacari. At each stop the food is savoury: cicchetti such as baccalà mantecato on grilled polenta or bread, sarde in saor, meatballs, marinated artichokes and cheese and cured meat. The ombra, a small glass of house wine, accompanies each stop, and a produce tasting at the market is included on guided tours. Sweets play a minor role, though some guides finish with a local pastry or coffee. Guided prices run from about €65 to €90 per person and normally cover the food, wine and guide, while transport is not needed because the route is walkable. The self-guided option costs roughly €20 in total for a few plates and glasses. Vegetarian choices are usually easy to arrange at bacari, but strict gluten-free, shellfish-free or vegan diets are harder because so many cicchetti are built on bread, fish and cheese, so guests with restrictions should tell the provider when booking.