I proclaim Venice as the Romantic Capital of the world

Dear folks,

much has been said and declared about romantic places and/or cities.

Yes Paris is wonderful, what about Rome, but I fancy Vienna and also Prague. Lisbon is a city to walk hand in hand, Seychelles is where you want to be with your love one and so on and so on…

I proclaim Venice as the romantic capital of the world!!!

It is the only place in the world that gave me more than I was waiting for, and believe me I was waiting for a lot.

The city is just unique, you cannot find anything like that in the all world. The history, the views, the escapades, the weather, the culture, the romance, the food, the intrigue and the sex… Venice has it all.

To visit Venice is to walk in the past, to a time that does not exist any longer, you can actual feel how people use to live before.

Walk hand in hand and get lost in the many narrow little streets, take the vaporetto and feel the sea breeze in your face, take a Gondola and pass under the “Ponte dei sospiri”, enjoy a Bellini cocktail, take a hot chocolate in the same place of Casanova, buy a Venetian mask and play a role with your lover, seat down by the canals and watch the sunset, walk during the day, walk during the night, have a meal in the many cute small restaurants, visit the museums, visit the Cathedral, visit the Palaces, visit the S.Marcus square, visit the tower, visit Murano glass factory, visit the Lido, go the Casino, go to the Opera, go to the city festivities, enjoy it, enjoy it all.

So next time you fancy a romantic escapade, go to Venezia.

Here’s a list of small restaurants, that not only you will have a proper Venetian meal with excellent quality but also you will not over pay just because you are a Tourist, luckily there are still places where Venetians go and have a wonderful meal at decent prices.

1)      Osteria alla Vedova – Calle del Pistor

2)      Trattoria da Gigio – Campo San Leonardo

3)      Anice Stellato – Fondamenta de la Sensa

4)      Bancogiro da Andrea – San Polo, 122

Hope that you enjoy it as much as my wife and I did last weekend.

Bon Apetit,

Chef Gourmet Du Art

J'aime "French Riviera" - a tale of Cannes

Dear readers,

my wife and I love the “French Riviera”, from Menton to Monte Carlo, from Antibes-Juan Les Pins up to Cannes, we love it. We love the scenery, we love the tows we love the summer life.

Just in front of cosmopolitan, hype, rich and famous Cannes you can find a natural paradise called “Iles des Lerins”, there’s two little islands reachable by boat after 15 minutes.

The biggest of these islands is “Ile de Saint Margherite”, it’s about three kilometres long and 900m wide, no cars or pollution allowed. A natural paradise made of Pine trees and wild beaches. Time seems to have stopped there.

Water is warm and clear, you can relax and forget about the hectic city life all day long.

Nightlife is intense in Cannes, with venues for all tastes. From world famous nightspots (that present for example DJ Bob Sinclair) to Moroccan Cafes where you can smoke flavoured Sisha in the Hookan. But if you talk about France you have to talk about food. I love promenading with my wife in old town Cannes, the Croisette, there’s a small little street called Rue de Saint Antoine, also known as “Le Suquet”, this narrow street that goes all the way to upper Cannes is full of little restaurants, galleries and shops. It’s a place to see and be seen. It’s actually possible to be sited next to a famous VIP in one of the many restaurants.

The place that I am going to talk about today is “Maitre Renard” restaurant, a tiny, cosy restaurant of Chef Renard that in person greets visitors and exchange a kind word and advice. The atmosphere is that of the “Suquet” but with added touch of class and sensibility because his restaurant is also a Jazz place. He invites known pianist that jazz along talented singers.

The menu is not huge, but in my view it’s better that way cause all in it is delicious.

My wife and I had different starters and different main dishes so that we could taste the variety. All dishes had a wonderful mix of flavours, smells and colours, the end result exquisite. We finished with a wonderful tris of flaming Crème Brulee.

If you have the chance go and pay a visit, you will not regret it. Here’s the contacts: Restaurant Maitre Renard – Rue St. Antoine, 4 – Cannes, Tel. 0033 (0)4 93399938

As they say in France…

Bon Apetit,

Chef Gourmet Du Art