The restaurant has a large and well-appointed wine cellar; personally supervised by the Paties family, our wine cellar offers our clientele the finest wines from all the Italian regions, the most prestigious French wines and champagnes, as well as a wide selection of wines from international vineyards.
The history of Do Forni restaurant hails back to the most characteristic and ancient traditions of the city. During the golden years of the Venetian Republic the bakery producing bread and sweets for the nearby convent of San Zaccaria (the Doge's Palace) was located here, in fact, and a small part was used as a typical Venetian tavern (with cicchetti appetizers). After the fall of the Venetian Republic in 1797, the tavern was expanded to include the area previously used as bakery. It became a restaurant in the nineteenth century under its current name and it has been under the care of Mr Eligio Paties since 1973. Through his passionate vocation, understanding of the cultural importance of cuisine, and his innate hospitality, he has successfully turned Do Forni into a popular destination for all those who travel to Venice and wish to experience the noblest traditions of Venetian hospitality. Do Forni Restaurant offers a traditional and elegant setting in its Venetian-style rooms, and luxurious in those rooms that faithfully reproduce the hospitality of an Orient Express dining car.
Do Forni features traditional Venetian cuisine, mainly based on seafood, with a menu offering fish and shellfish from the Adriatic Sea using centuries-old Venetian recipes enhanced by seasonal vegetables and delicate sauces, but also a refined interpretation of both Venetian and Italian cuisine that is influenced by international gastronomy in its preparation of local meats and vegetables.
Since 1986, the DO FORNI restaurant has revived the tradition of the “Art Restaurant” by creating the International Prize for Graphic Art, awarded to two artists - one Italian and one international - selected from a shortlist of twenty invited participants, during the annual ceremony hosted at important locations in the city.
The works of the winning artists of all editions of the Do Forni International Prize for Graphic Art are on permanent display in the rooms of the restaurant.
1986 | Miguel Rodriguez Acosta | Spain |
Giuseppe Zigaina | Italy | |
1987 | Bertrand Dorny | France |
Francesco Vaccarone | Italy | |
1988 | Vladimir Velickovic | Yugoslavia |
Aldo Turchiaro | Italy | |
1989 | Jean Michel Folon | France |
Emilio Tadini | Italy | |
1990 | Rainer Mordmuller | Germany |
Luca Crippa | Italy | |
1991 | Adolf Frohner | Germany |
Riccardo Licata | Italy | |
1992 | Albin Brunovsky | Czechoslovakia |
Carmelo Zotti | Italy | |
1993 | Joze Ciuha | Slovenia |
Aligi Sassu | Italy | |
1994 | Aduardo Arroyo | Spain |
Bruno Ceccobelli | Italy | |
1995 | Joe Tilson | Great Britain |
Giuliano Viaggi | Italy | |
1996 | Beverly Pepper | United States |
Marco Lodola | Italy | |
1997 | Kyoji Nagatani | Japan |
Sergio Vacchi | Italy | |
1998 | Roger Selden | United States |
Fabrizio Plessi | Italy | |
1999 | Miguel Berrocal | Spain |
Concetto Pozzati | Italy | |
2000 | André Verdet | France |
Ugo Nespolo | Italy | |
2001 | Alberto Gianquinto | Italy |
Kengiro Azuma | Japan | |
2002 | Enrico Baj | Italy |
Hsiao Chin | China | |
2003 | Sandro Chia | Italy |
Igor Mitoraj | Poland | |
2004 | Edo Murtic | Croatia |
Mimmo Rotella | Italy | |
2005 | Safet Zec | Bosnia |
Salvo | Italy | |
2006 | Ludovico De Luigi | Italy |
2007 | Peter Blake | Great Britain |
2008 | Mimmo Paladino | Italy |
2009 | Valerio Adami | Italy |
2010 | Giulio Paolini | Italy |
2011 | Joe Tilson | Great Britain |
2012 | Sandro Chia | Italy |
2013 | Walter Valentini | Italy |
Do Forni restaurant commemorated the second centenary of the death of Giacomo Casanova by creating a dedicated menu with recipes inspired by the era of the great Venetian adventurer and writer. Food and recipes described in this publication actually come from original eighteenth century recipe books and include many curiosities about the culinary customs and the cultural traditions of Venice at that time.
The dishes on the menu were prepared and presented to the public during the many events organized in Venice all year round. All the illustrations in the menu are the work of the Venetian artist Ludovico De Luigi.