Whipped salt cod with olive oil and parsley, served on polenta crostini. The canonical Venetian cicchetto, on every bacaro counter from November through Easter.
Where to eat it: 5 restaurants across 1 city.
Baccala mantecato is Venice's interpretation of dried stockfish, brought back from Norway by Venetian merchant Pietro Querini after his 1432 shipwreck on the Lofoten Islands. The Venetians whip the soaked-and-cooked salt cod with olive oil into a pale emulsion (the mantecatura), the texture of a thick aioli. Served traditionally on grilled polenta crostini, it is the canonical winter cicchetto from November through Easter. Despite the name (baccala in Italian usually means salt cod), Venetians use stockfish (dried, not salted) for this dish, the legacy of the Querini trade route.
Common allergens: Fish
Tip from the editors. Stockfish, not salt cod, is the canonical version; if you can only find salt cod, soak 24 hours and skip the salt.
This is the TableJourney editorial recipe, modelled on the canonical bistro / counter version. The first place to try the dish in its city of origin is below.
Cantina Do Mori in Venice's San Polo near Rialto is the 1462-founded bacaro, with francobolli sandwiches at EUR 1.50 to EUR 3, the cheapest historic-bar meal in town.
Try: Francobolli sandwiches and ombre
Tip: Cash only. Walk-in. Closed Sundays. The francobolli (postage-stamp-sized sandwiches) are the move; pair with ombre at EUR 1.50.
Osteria All'Arco near Rialto in San Polo serves cicchetti at EUR 1.50 to EUR 4 each, the canonical bacari budget meal with francobolli sandwiches and lagoon-fish bites.
Try: Cicchetti at the bar
Tip: Six cicchetti plus two ombre runs roughly EUR 20 to 25 for a full meal. Closes after lunch.
Antiche Carampane in Venice's San Polo is the 1983 family-run seafood trattoria the Rialto fishmongers send friends to, the room with the no-tourist-menu sign on the door.
Signature: Spaghetti with lagoon clams, Fritto misto, Sarde in saor
Order: Spaghetti with vongole, fritto misto della laguna, sarde in saor.
Tip: Book a fortnight ahead. Closed Sundays and Mondays. The dining room has 10 tables, so flexibility on date is more useful than time.
Why locals love it: Lazzari family trattoria on Calle Stua in Cannaregio with a 1,200-label cellar that locals book first and tourists rarely find.
Tip: Closed Mondays and Tuesdays. Book a week ahead. The wine cellar is the reason; ask Laura Lazzari for pairings.
Osteria alle Testiere in Castello is the 22-seat lagoon-fish bistro with two seatings per service, run by Bruno Gavagnin and Luca di Vita since 1993.
More cities are in research. Want baccala mantecato covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.