Caffè dei Fiori/Ristorante Pesce Seafood — Restaurant in Venice

We wanted amazing seafood, and this is what we got. The fish starter is out of this world! Now the tough part:- We read the reviews that the staff do not like Indians. This is absolutely true. The staff asked for an additional tip in cash, 12% is included. Who carries cash anymore? I have not had someone be so upfront about their tip since a meal at the cheesecake factory in Honolulu circa 2008. If you want to keep a top ranking, drop the hard sell tip. You hardly came to our table, I had to pour my own water and a tip on top of 12% needs to be earned, not demanded. Cringe worthy. There are no Italians or locals eating here. Kind of weird. All tourists. I am not sure why everyone raves about the.service? Very average. There are lots of older drunk women swooning but maybe because we were sober we saw right through the hard sell. Those raving about the spaghetti are getting a box of Barilla. As a chef, I know to ask in Italy for the "fresh homemade pasta" The spaghetti, I am afraid to burst everyone's bubble, is packet. I will be returning as the sardines & onion, squid, cod mash are INCREDIBLE. Drinks are pricey.4 euros for a still water. Ironic as you are seated beside a drinking fountain, I was tempted to stick my glass 5 feet away for a refill.

My 5 stars is for the chef, not the...

I am incredibly confused on how this place has such high reviews. We went here because of the high reviews and ignored all of the tourist trap red flags. First, the waiters are outside to lure you in which I was told is never a good sign.. but we sat anyways. The restaurant plays high-pitched eurodance music which doesn’t match the aesthetic of the restaurant at all. We ordered bruschetta to start which actually was the best part of the meal. I ordered grilled chicken and vegetables and my husband ordered calamari and potatoes. Our friend with us ordered the lobster. This was the most expensive place we ate but was the WORST food we ate in Italy. The food is low quality and not worth the price at all. Not to mention that the waiter checked on us several times throughout the meal which is not typical in Italy. At the end, he mentioned to us that “tip was not included in the bill” despite there being a 12% cover charge on our ticket, the highest cover charge we have had. He then said that if we wished to leave a tip, we could not do so on card but could leave cash on the table. Again, not typical in Italy and we have never been asked for a tip anywhere else here. Again, MANY red flags. Makes me wonder if they hire people to leave fake good reviews for...

So Folks! You must try at least once this restaurant if you come to visit Venice. We were on our honeymoon with my wife in Italy and we wanted to visit Venice as well because we always love to come back. Last summer we found this restaurant and this year we wanted to have a dinner again there. I saw some pictures on their Instagram site of the foods and I wanted to have an Octopus Pasta because that looked very delicious. I asked our waiter(unforunately I don't know his name, but that guy was a really kind super gentleman) if they still have it or not. Actually they didn't have it on the menucard, but the waiter told me that they can make everything that we want. It was really nice to hear something like that. My wife ordered a spaghetti carbonara and she told me that this was the most delicious carbonara ever that she has eaten in Italy and my octopus pasta was excellent and I also can say that this was the best pasta ever that I have eaten. This dinner was a very nice experience for my...