A Perfect Italian Weekend - Venice | Veneto

A perfect weekend in Italy without the limitations of time, budget, or distance. Every week we ask interesting and inspirational Italians, or Italians at heart, to take us along for a perfect, local weekend. This week Roberta Segantin from Sentier Italia takes us along to Treviso, Pallestrina, and beyond.

Roberta Segantin

After spending many years living between New York, Dubai, and Milan, I have returned to my hometown, Treviso, a small city near Venice. I have always worked in fashion, initially for international brands and then as a head buyer for a foreign retail group. Upon returning to my city for a brief break from my travels, I met Nicola, who would soon become my husband. Now, we live in the countryside with our two German pointers, Aldo and Dante.

I founded Sentier in 2007, starting it almost as a “hobby” and keeping it on the side until 2018 when I decided to expand it both in the Italian market and globally. That's when I launched the sentier-italia.com website and the online shop. 

Our country home is where we welcome friends and Sentier clients; the showroom and my office are part of the house. Our home is our refuge in every season.

Most weekends in summer we often go to our favorite island in the Venice lagoon, Pellestrina, usually driving our old Vespa. We stay at Locanda Stravedo, an easy, simple place where the 5 rooms are facing the lagoon. Breathtaking! The beach here is all free, no beach clubs, neither any sunbed, all very “wild”. At the end of the day, at sunset, we have aperitif at Stravedo ( a cold glass of Prosecco paired with the fried mussels,  to eat as “candies”). Dinner has to be on the terrace of “Nane” restaurant, you need to order the tomato spicy clams and their famous “pasticcio di pesce” (seafood lasagna)!

During winter we go skiing in the Dolomites, 2 hours from home, our favorite places Alpe di Siusi, Passo Sella, Alta Badia.

When not summer or winter, we spend our time at home

Saturday

On Saturdays, we love to stroll through the flower and fruit market in Treviso's historic center, searching among the stalls for seasonal produce to bring home for cooking, especially in the winter, exclusively on the wood stove.

After a walk through the nearby fish market, we catch up for spritz and a porchetta sandwich at the historic Beltrame bar in Piazza dei Signori—a tradition! Saturday afternoons are for gardening, pruning in the winter, picking peonies and roses in spring, harvesting tomatoes in summer, and also playing with Aldo and Dante. Or spending time “shopping” at our favorite vineries Case Paolin, Ida Agnoletto, Loredan Gasparini, a few Km from us. Small wine production, family-running vineries, very excellent wines.

If we're not cooking at home on Saturday evening, we usually have two favorite restaurants: “Osteria alla Vittoria” and “Trattoria Liberal” in the hills near Treviso. Both are intimate, seating around a fireplace in winter or under the porch or pergola in summer. The chefs of both restaurants are young and talented, offering sophisticated, seasonal traditional menus described as modern trattorias. Must-try whipped cod cannolo or whipped cod with panelle, foie gras with brioche, tartare, roast rabbit, or duck breast at Osteria della Vittoria. Trattoria Liberal's menu is always evolving; try the steamed Bun, tortellini del Plin with Montello wild boar, Milanese cutlet, and their fantastic mille-feuille. Both have a unique, carefully curated wine selection from small to medium producers.

Sundays start with breakfast in our veranda by the stove in winter or outdoors in summer, accompanied by birds chirping. Afterward, we get ready to visit one of the antique markets, each Sunday in a different town, with favorites being “Mercatino dell’Antiquariato di Badoere” on the first Sunday of the month, or “Piazzola sul Brenta” on the last Sunday instead. Both are located in very beautiful and historical locations. Must go!

Nicola and I love cycling, and whenever the weather allows, we take our gravel bikes on the countryside trails for a 2/3-hour ride, leaving early in the morning, especially in summer to make sure to return on time for the Flea Market.

Sunday brunch is exclusively at Da-Da in Mogliano Veneto, a few kilometers from Treviso. Angela, the owner, welcomes us to her beautifully designed and cozy bistro, a haven for Jazz and swing music lovers, hosting small bands or duets, even of international fame, once or twice a month. They serve the best club sandwich in the area! But don't miss the fried fish. The afternoon is spent chatting with nearby tables, making it impossible to leave without meeting new people. The atmosphere here is truly special. Alternatives include taking an early train to Venice to wander through the alleys, visit an exhibition, and sit at The Venice-Venice Hotel terrace for an Americano (excellent), potato foam with “castraure” artichokes, and a Caesar salad with chicken.

Roberta's favorite places

Sleep 

 Locanda Stravedo Inn | Via Laguna, 190/191 - 30126 San Pietro in Volta - Venezia 

Eat

Ristorante Da Nane |San Pietro In Volta, 282, 30126 Venezia VE

Beltrame bar | Piazza dei Signori, 31100 Treviso TV

Osteria alla Vittoria | Via della Vittoria, 4, 31040 Volpago del Montello TV

Trattoria Liberal | Via Eligio Porcu, n 2, 31040 | Selva del Montello | TV

DA-DÁ Cafè & tavola calda | Via Cesare Battisti, 12, 31021 Mogliano Veneto TV

Vineries 

Case Paolin | Via Madonna della Mercede, 53 , 31040 Volpago del Montello (TV)

 Ida Agnoletto | Via Pietro Andrea Saccardo, 55, 31040 Selva, TV

Loredan Gasparini | Via Martignago Alto, 23, 31040 Volpago del Montello (TV)

Antique Markets

Mercatino dell’Antiquariato di Badoere

Piazzola sul Brenta

Drinks

The Venice-Venice Hotel