OSPEDALETTO, Italy — It doesn’t take long to drive from Vicenza to the sea. But it’s an even shorter trip to a restaurant that offers some of the best that the Adriatic offers.
Trattoria/Pizzeria da Angelo is only a few minutes from Caserma Ederle in the suburb of Ospedaletto. It’s been run by the Caramante family for more three decades. Angelo Caramante opened it, and it’s now run by several generations of his descendants. Giovanni Caramante serves as host and directs traffic on busy nights.
Many customers are either munching on a pizza or ordering up a serving or two of seafood. Most of that comes from the Adriatic via the coastal town of Chioggia, which is south of Venice. Specialties include spaghetti allo Scoglio, a large helping of pasta with creatures from the sea — some still in the shell — mixed in. There’s an entire page of the menu devoted to seafood pasta dishes and the opposite side is filled with seafood entrees.
There are fewer options for those interested in non-seafood pasta fare or other meats. The main alternative to seafood is pizza, though many of the toppings for those also came from the sea.
The restaurant started out as a bar and that’s still the first thing that customers see when they enter the building. But it also has seating areas downstairs and upstairs (where the pizza oven is located). The decor isn’t fancy and most customers don’t come dressed to impress either.
The portions are large, and the prices are comparatively small. A couple could probably swim away with a bill of about 30 euros, with a family netting a meal for less than 50.
Don’t expect to see a lot of fellow Americans in the place. Giovanni Caramente said the restaurant used to have a group of regular American customers several years ago, but they moved away. So those willing to venture out a little away from the normal hangouts can try to pick up a little Italian while trying a seafood dish — familiar or not.
Cristina Lanaro provided translation for this report.
Trattoria da AngeloOspedaletto, Italy
Hours: 7 p.m. to 2 a.m. daily; closed on Tuesdays
Specialties: Fish, fish and more fish. And pizza.
Prices: Appetizers 4.50 to 7 euros; seafood appetizers 8 to 20 euros; non-seafood first courses 4.50 to 7 euros; seafood pastas 8 to 16 euros; seafood entrees 9 to 23.50 euros; other meat entrees 3.50 to 7 euros; side dishes 2.50 to 4 euros; pizza 3 to 9 euros
Dress: Casual
Clientele: Local Italians
English language menu: No.
Address: Via Postumia 228. From the traffic circle north of Caserma Ederle (near the Agip station), take a right on Strada di Bertesina, then a left onto Strada del Ospedaletto, then a right onto Via Postumia. Find a parking spot, because the restaurant is up ahead to the right.
Phone: 0444-535348
Web site: No
