Seafood is always a good choice, as are local wines. Murano is known for its glasswork. You can see artisans at work in the local workshops that dot the islands. If you check out the nooks and crannies, you can find real Venetian life here, but you have to look. Every night at the Piazza San Marco is a battle of the bands.
Caf quartets play classical melodies for patrons and on-lookers.
It feels like the Venice of movies when you linger at dusk at the Piazza as a violinist plays Vivaldi and the Renaissance facades glow orange with the setting sun. The Biennale is a world-renowned art festival that draws modern artists such as Cindy Sherman and Jackson Pollack. The Venice Film Festival is right up there with Cannes and Sundance for international cinema. Student areas, like Campo Santa Margherita and Fondamenta della Misericordia, provide ample opportunity to drink, dance and mix with local students. Generally, however, nightlife in Venice is pretty low-key.