Caffè Ristorante Quadri, Venice

SAN MARCO

I'd originally planned to have my last 'holiday drink' in Venice at Florians, before heading to the airport - but there were no tables outside - it was a sunny late December morning. So, I headed to the cafes opposite, and found a table outside Quadris.

I was served promptly by the smartly attired waiter - I decided to treat myself to an Irish coffee - (hot coffee with a slug of Irish Whiskey and topped with cream) it was sunny, but there was a chill in the air.

Waiting for my drink, I had time for a bit of people watching, and to enjoy my last views of San Marco- sadly the plastic sheeting around the central flagpole- see my 2nd and 3rd picture- spoiled the view somewhat.

My coffee arrived, with a piece of chocolate and a carafe of water. I was enjoying my leisurely drink, when I realised that I had less time than I thought before having to leave for the airport, so I ended up rushing my drink.

My bill was 15.80 euros - Certainly not cheap, but I'd enjoyed my cafe experience, and my last few minutes in Venice.

As it was winter - the orchestra wasn't playing- or there would have been a supplement.

Quadris and Florians are Venetian institutions. Both are the only survivors from the 18th century, when there were 27 such coffee houses in the Piazzo alone.

Florians is slightly older, and would appear to be the more popular cafe. During the Occupation, Quadris was favoured by the Austrian Officers, while the locals hung out in Florians.

Both have similar price ranges - not cheap!! prices go up when their orchestras are playing- and there is a supplement added to the bill.
Both have entertained the famous and infamous through the centuries.

Quadris has an upstairs restaurant - Expensive, but the only Restaurant in the Piazza. (I understand this is a popular venue for wedding parties)

Giorgio Quadri arrived in Venice in 1775, from Corfu, with his Greek wife Naxina and his life savings, intent on making his fortune in Venice.

Naxina saw the potential for investing in the new fashion for drinking coffee, a beverage introduced by the Turks

The first coffee shop had opened as early as 1683 under the Procuratie Nuove in St. Mark's Square. Naxina and Giorgio bought an old coffee shop on the corner of Sottoportego dei Dai, under the covered pavements of Piazza San Marco

In 1830 the Quadri opened its restaurant on the upper floor.

The ground floor rooms, with their distinctive stucco in pastel shades of light green and yellow, were the natural backdrop for the paintings of Venice scenes by Giuseppe Ponga.

I enjoyed my Irish Coffee - it was a good Irish Coffee, but why pay nearly 16 euros for a glass of coffee, with a slug of whisky and a topping of cream?

Because, it's being drunk outside one of the oldest coffee houses, in one of the worlds most attractive squares (spoilt only by the hoards of feathered vermin - in December the human hoards weren't too stifling!), the sun's shining, it's my last hour in Venice, I wanted a happy memory - priceless!

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Caffè Ristorante Quadri, Venice

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