Now BarChick doesn’t like to pick favourites but this may just become your favourite wine bar in Europe, if you can find it that is. Hidden in a courtyard between San Marco and Rialto, Ai Rustenghi sure ain’t somewhere you just stumble upon. Everyone that stops by is in the know; they’ve searched the streets and are in no hurry to leave.

Inside there are more wines than you'd bother trying to count. Bottles adorn the walls, the floor, the windows…and there are legs of meat hanging from the ceiling. Perch up at the bar or hit the courtyard’s high tables under fairy lights. Romance takes on new meaning here.

Ai Rustenghi has been passed through 5 generations of wine heads in to the tender loving care of Giovanni; this dude knows wine. He’ll take one look at you, ask a few questions and prescribe you with an awesome wine, then another and another.
Nb Need the loo? Challenge you to find that one. Clue: look for a button and it’s somewhere behind the walls.