Merchants of Venice: 10 of the city's most beautiful historic shops

The Guardian

28-01-2025

Cantina del Vino gia Schiavi is a 150-year-old wood-beamed cantina that sits right on the edge of a canal and is a favourite stop on all the city bacaro tours. It is renowned for prosecco, spritz and an original selection of cichetti nibbles created by owner Alessandra De Respinis, a big inspiration for the late Russell Norman's Polpo in London. But the faithful local clientele at Al Bottegon, as the bar is known, come because it is one of Venice's few specialist wine cellars, as Alessandra's sons, Tommaso and Paolo, have amassed an unparalleled selection from vineyards in the surrounding Veneto and Friuli regions, alongside rare vintages from across Italy. It is also the place to come if you are looking to take home a bottle of quality grappa.Fondamenta Nani, 992
Calle del Fumo is a bustling alleyway leading to Fondamente Nove, where boats depart for the islands of the lagoon. But a steady stream of visitors also come specifically to visit the narrow brick-walled Antica Stamperia Gianni Basso – a printing workshop, showroom and museum. The printing trade has been associated with Venice for centuries, and since 1981 Basso has been producing exquisite bespoke stationery – writing paper, bookmarks, business cards and invitations – using ancient hand-operated presses and a collection of metal typefaces, copper plates and woodblock stamps. Although the cards of movie stars, musicians, poets and royalty are displayed on the stamperia's walls, everyone is welcomed equally by this genial printer known as the Gutenberg of Venice. Not surprisingly, there is no website or email, ensuring clients must either visit in person or send snail mail to order by post.Calle del Fumo, 5306
The crowds of visitors walking along Strada Nova, the main drag between Venice's train station and the Rialto Bridge, often walk straight past this neighbourhood pharmacy, missing one of the hidden gems of the glorious Settecento era of Casanova's Serenissima. This ancient apothecary, rather grandly known as the Spezeria all'Ercole d'Oro (Pharmacy of the Golden Hercules), dates back to 17th century, and today is divided into a regular pharmacy and an adjoining salon restored to its sumptuous wood-panelled original, with walnut cabinets and lustrous lamps, gilded scales and delicate ceramic jars. Here they sell Murano glass bottles from local artisan perfumery The Merchant of Venice, along with natural wellness products such as herbal teas, mustard seeds and blueberry essence.Salizada Santa Fosca, 2234
Sometimes it looks as though there are more food tour groups than local shoppers wandering around Venice's historic Rialto market. But the one shop in the maze of streets around the market that is always crowded, essentially by Venetians, is Antica Drogheria Mascari, a delicatessen run by the same family since 1948. While every local speciality is stocked here – bussolai biscuits from Burano, Bassano's bigoli pasta, artisan polenta – there are innumerable goodies from all over Italy, such as Sicilian cassata, amaretti di Saronno or Florentine cantucci. Harking back to Venice's historic role in the spice trade, turmeric, nutmeg, cinnamon and star anise are piled high in the window. And then there are the irresistible slabs of chocolate and vintage glass jars filled with sweets. The list of must-buys goes on and on, and that is before you enter their exceptional wine cellar, stacked with rare vintages.Calle Prima de la Donzella, 306
Located on the staircase leading up the Rialto Bridge, this minuscule La Bottega Dei Mascareri is pretty much a hole-in-the-wall, decorated with remarkable artisan masks covering every inch of the walls. In the middle, maestro Sergio Boldrin patiently paints his latest creation, handmade from papier-mache at a larger atelier 15 minutes walk away where his brother, Massimo, works. It is rare to see a master mask-maker in action but Sergio is usually in the bottega, always willing to chat with customers and explain his technique and inspiration. He started painting Commedia dell'Arte masks in 1979 for a local theatre company and opened the bottega in 1984. Aside from classic carnival masks, such as Arlecchino, Pantalone, the Bauta and long-nosed Plague Doctor, he also makes more audacious contemporary designs. He collaborated on Stanley Kubrick's Eyes Wide Shut and has exhibited in New York, London and Paris.Calle dei Saoneri, 2720 f
The proudly Venetian Nardi family have been making exclusive jewels beneath the arcades surrounding the Piazza San Marco for almost 100 years. These arcades have housed shops for centuries, since the earliest trading days of the Most Serene Republic, and Nardi's is more like a sumptuous baroque salon with ornate Murano chandeliers, marble statuettes, antique furniture and velvet brocades. Venetian-inspired pieces such as the iconic lapis lazuli gondola brooch, which is encrusted with diamonds and sapphires, are seriously expensive. But it is still worth stopping by to window shop, and almost next door is the 1720 Caffè Florian, where you can join locals standing at the bar for an espresso.Piazza San Marco, 69
One landmark of Venetian gothic architecture where you do not have to spend a lot of money to admire its walls and ceilings decorated with flamboyant Liberty frescoes is the down-to-earth Despar Teatro Italia supermarket in the heart of the lively Cannaregio neighbourhood. This ochre red palatial food hall dominates a bustling square lined with cafe terraces, and the elaborate facade declares the 1915 building as the Teatro Italia. Over the years it was first a cinema then a lecture hall for university students. Then, in 2016, the Despar group created what the press christened 'the most beautiful supermarket in Italy'. While these days locals barely bother to look up at the murals, this is a favourite place for tourists to admire the artworks while stocking up for a picnic or for cooking at home.Campiello de l'Anconeta, 1939-1952
Artisan ateliers continue to survive in the backstreets of Cannaregio. Here you will find the Orsoni mosaic furnaces, the Valese metal foundry and Piero Dri's wood carving workshop. So it is no surprise that extrovert costume designer Stefano Nicolao chose the ground floor of a grand gothic palazzo on Cannaregio's Misericordia canal to open his workshop and showroom, Nicalao Atelier. While this is the perfect place for those looking to rent a costume during carnival, the showroom is worth a visit throughout the year to see his range of clothes and accessories along with the museum-standard collection of 15,000 period costumes meticulously replicated from the Renaissance to the 19th century. Collaborating with cinema and theatre, Nicolao has supplied costumes for movies such as Farinelli, Casanova and the Merchant of Venice. Visits are by appointment and bookable on the website.Fondamenta de la Misericordia, 2590
Hidden away far from the crowded tourist spots, the industrial-style workshop of Fiorenzo Fallani offers a fascinating snapshot of the silk-screen printing process. Artists from Italy and abroad come here to have limited-edition prints of their works produced. Fiorenzo founded the studio in 1968 and today it is run by his son Gianpaolo. Half exhibition space, half busy printing presses, Fallani Venezia has a large selection of prints on sale, or you can book one of their courses to try your hand at making a silk-screen print.Cannaregio, 5001/A
Step off the vaporetto water bus at the Grand Canal stop of Sant'Angelo and a few minutes walk brings you to another architectural gem, Palazzo Ca'Pisani Rubelli, headquarters for the Rubelli family whose luxurious Venetian textiles – damask, brocade, velvet, silk – are sold all over the world. The sumptuous ground floor hosts a shop and showroom of their current collections, open to the public, while the rest of the building houses the precious archives of 7,000 designs, some stretching back centuries. Rubelli may produce their fabrics around Como, but the designs originate here, inspired by Venice's unique art and culture. Fashion enthusiasts and professionals can apply to visit the archives through Rubelli's website.Ca' Pisani Rubelli, S. Marco, 3393