Osteria La Bottega ai Promessi Sposi

Just finished an OK meal at the very highly recommended Ai Promessi Sposi. Food was a B-​B+, but the price was right and very close to our hotel. The big problem was the service. We had a reservation for 7:30pm — party of four (us and our two children, ages 9 and 11). From the get-​go, I felt rushed, but ok, we’re American and had kids with us so I guess they assumed that would be ok. I spoke a little bit of Italian (tried anyway) and felt that we had a good rapport with the (albeit rushed) waiter. We had a glass of wine, all ordered primi and then one secondi to share — they cleared the primi plates before everyone was done, and I promise we didn’t linger too long. Fine, ok, then we ordered dessert. When we finished dessert, the waiter came and with apologies, said they needed the table and would we mind moving to the bar. What??? I was shocked for several reasons. The tables nearby were all taking longer than we did (most had gotten there before us and had still not finished dessert). Our kids had been perfectly behaved and eaten extremely well (one ordered clam pasta and the other ate mixed fried fish, etc… regardless, we were at the table at the very back against the wall anyway). I had LITERALLY just finished explaining to the kids how Italians emphasize savoring the meal and would never rush people out of a restaurant when the guy came and essentially asked us to leave because he had to seat another table. I will say I loved the wine and the yogurt/​berry dessert. Lamb pappardelle was just ok, frito misto quite good, squid ink pasta and clam spaghetti were both B+. Unfortunately, the treatment we received — so antithetical to the Italian ethos about the restaurant experience — left a very sour taste in my mouth about Ai Promessi Sposi. I will not return and will definitely not recommend. Very disappointed.

3.5÷5
The tuna tartar appetizer is outstanding, so much so that we ordered another one instead of dessert. The salmon app too was pretty solid, basically sashimi with some wasabi. Everything else was just kind of standard though. Seabass daily special was ok but short on flavor. Side potatoes were undercooked. Prices are reasonable, service is good. I don’t really feel compelled to return.

Best meal we had in Venice! Had the black squid ink pasta and a frutti di mare. This place was tricky to find (as most addresses are in Venice) and we did have to wait some time for our meal (again, typical of the area) but it was obvious that our meal was cooked to order and it was exceptional! Yes it was a bit pricey, but we anticipated that. Also, the waiter was great at explaining the menu and making suggestions. Amazing stuff.

It was one of those, «Why don’t they have these an America» moments.
A standing room only bar as the entrance to a restaurant, that serves great little cheap bites, and glasses of house wine for less than a dollar! So smart!
We stood there for about 20 minutes, put back multiple glasses of super good and super cheap wine, and tried almost every snack they had to offer. The bill was about 10 euros.
There are a number of these bars scattered around Venice, Bourdain went to one of the more popular ones on No Reservations, but we didn’t want to walk that far.