Cole Point

For an alternative to traditional restaurants, visit any bar or oste-ria in town and make a meal from the vast display of meat- and cheese-filled past-ries, tidbits of seafood, rice, meat, and tramezzini, triangular slices of soft white bread with any imaginable filling. Venetians have long cultivated the tradition of this between-meal repast, known as the cicchetto, always washed down by un’ombra, a glass of local wine. Good deals fill Dorsoduro, the university area.

Paradiso Perduto, Fondamenta della Misericordia, 2540 (tel. 041 72 05 81). Bar, jazz club, and restaurant. Well known among locals, this dark place is young and hip. Outdoor seating by the canal. Live jazz and salsa on Su. Typical Venetian fish dishes. Open Th-Tu 7:30am-late. Closed Jan. 6-20 and Aug. 1-5. Go to Restaurants in Venice for more reviews.