The ugly little Gó fish that gives us the amazingly delicious Risotto Buranello

The first time we had Risotto Buranello was on our very first trip to Venice in 1986 (a trip that changed our lives forever).  While walking on the Zatttere, we stopped and chatted with a lovely older lady painting an image of the Palladian Redentore church across the canal on the Giudecca.   She was British, now living in Venice, and advised us that one of the great things to do for a day in Venice was to take the boat out to Burano and have lunch at Da Romano. "Don't go to Murano," she said, "It is tacky."  When we had the Risotto Buranello, we thought that we would never taste something so delicious again (until we returned!). After Venice we were staying in a nice small hotel in Verona, chatting with the bartender, and mentioned we had gone to Burano - "Oh!, the amazing risotto!", he immediately exclaimed.  He told us that it was made from this strange fish that lived in the mud in the Venetian lagoon, but it was quite a few years before we learned the name of that fish.

Every time we returned to Venice we tried to get back to Burano for the delicious and unique risotto. In March of 1998 we came for lunch at Da Romano with my sister Chris. After a great meal we chatted-it-up with the waiter, and he graciously showed us the beautiful  kitchen. It was a real hoot years later to see the dining room and the kitchen we knew on one of Tony Bourdine's best episodes of No Reservations - this one on Venice. Even though we had earlier learned the name of the fish, it was not until 2009 when we saw that episode that we learned how it was made.

Enjoy this clip of the Anthony Bourdain No Reservations episode where you can see them making the great risotto - which he calls Gó fish risotto, but we have never heard it called anything but Risotto Buranello. Flipping the risotto high up into the air out of the pan is totally amazing!

In March of 2007 we took our grandson Dietrich to Venice. (See the previous page for a detail account of our meal at Gatto Nero on Burano).  We got up early one morning to go see the great Rialoto Market - something not to be missed. I was pleased to run across the strange Gó fish and caught the picture at the top of this page and this fun video.  Enjoy!