“Fun” drinks for kids in Venice

I don't know about Venice, but when in Rome and Northern Italy, I saw younger kids and teens sometimes order a "coke."

Also, most ordered aqua minerale or aqua frizzante. Keep in mind, coke or other soft drinks may be (or usually is/are) more expensive than bottled water.

A couple of thoughts:

Perhaps inquire about mixing a bottled fruit juice with frizzante? If so, see if they can give little fruit garnishments - cherries, lemon, lime.

I saw this on a Venice blog - "Italians do enjoy a similar beverage made with myrtifolia juice, a native-Italian citrus fruit." (In 'comparison' to the "Italian soda" we find in America.)

Fun fact: The Italian Soda is not Italian though - it was originally created by Torani, the San Francisco-based syrup company. Rinaldo and Ezilda Torre were the first to coin the term “Italian soda” in 1925 for a drink made of flavored syrup mixed with soda water.

Fanta (orange soda) is totally different in Italy, so they might enjoy trying that. Restaurants often offer bottled fruit based beverages such as limonata, aranciata or pompelmo, so that's another option.

I have an adult daughter who doesn't care to drink alcohol. She's enjoyed trying the Fanta, and while in Europe, we often find it in flavors in addition to the typical orange. As said above, the orange tastes different, better, in Europe,too. The kids might also enjoy trying "Europe" Coke which also tastes better. I'm not sure for Italy/Venice if this is also the case, but recently, in Spain, all we saw for cola was Coke, no Pepsi. Which is the way it should be! ;) You might also check out grocery stores which will have a greater selection. I like to have a bottle of wine in the room/apartment for an occasional drink. It was nice for her to have something fun to try when her sister and I were enjoying "happy hour".

My wife and I don't drink alcohol and we really enjoyed lemon and orange soda which comes in black cans. I also loved Schweppes Lemonade. Although we have searched we have been unable to find them here in the States

Thanks for the ideas. When we were in Spain last year, my son drank Fanta Limon for breakfast, lunch, and dinner (welcome to vacation). He loves all things citrus. Good to know we can find Fanta in Italy as well!

Appreciate the suggestions, keep 'em coming!

Although he only drinks them at home, my husband loves the fizzy fruit drinks that San Pellegrino makes --- they come in flavors like blood orange, grapefruit, lemon & mint, pomegranate & orange, and clementine. I prefer the unsweetened flavored sparkling waters (but also just at home).

In addition to the San Pellegrino drinks mentioned above, look for Orangina, although not Italian it is common in Europe.

Here's a thought: How about a small glass of wine? Growing up in an Italian family in San Francisco, all the children had a little bit of wine now and then. (I often wondered if American teens make such a big deal out of getting drunk simply because they are breaking the rules?) Maybe introducing kids to alcohol in small sips is like an inoculation?

Of course, there are always "Italian" sodas--which are not really Italian but rather an American drink created by the Italian-American makers of Torani syrups. But flavored simple syrup and soda water is an easy-to-make beverage and both ingredients are available all over Italy.

Building off of Monty's suggestion, how about a sweeter wine wine with sparkling water, to make a spritz.

And for the adult kids, an Aperol Spritz.

Edgar, SHHHHHHH! I've been drinking Campari and Aperol Spritz for a few years now, but suddenly, the stores in my area are selling out of Aperol.

At cafes (not usually a restaurants), you can get a spremuta, fresh squeezed citrus juice. Spremuta d'arancia is orange, spremuta di limone is lemon, and (not always available) spremuta di pompelmo is grapefruit.

Remember that oranges in Italy are often blood oranges, which is something that can surprise or upset US visitors (when their orange juice is "the wrong color" and "the wrong taste").

About half the time, the spremuta is served at room temperature and, although odd to us, it is so much more flavorful!

Thanks for more suggestions, all. And while I am totally not opposed to parents having their teen kids try a supervised alcoholic drink, we’ll keep our orders to non-alc for them; one takes medications that won’t mix and the other (age 14 going on 40) has decided she doesn’t ever want to drink alcohol. So OK, and we’ll check back when she’s in college.....

The parents, however, will definitely be savoring some spritzes!

Spremuta sounds delicious! Which prompts me to ask another question: how do I tell a cafe from a restaurant (first trip to Italy)?

I hear you Deb. My 22 year old that doesn't drink, takes ADD meds and hates what it "feels like". And with meds, its best for her not to drink anyway, plus she doesn't even like the taste. Hey, everyone needs a designated driver

Actually, I misspoke (or mistyped). What we would call a cafe is called a "bar" in Italy. Don't worry - while they do serve alcohol, they also serve a variety of non-alcoholic drinks. No one is there to get hammered. This is where Italians get breakfast (a coffee and cornetto, similar to a French croissant), and where they stop in all day (into the early evening) for coffee, pastries, sandwiches, and light snacks. You can stand at the counter to eat and drink. If you want to sit down, you MUST do this first, and you will pay more; the table is then yours for as long as you like. It is a big no-no to order at the counter and then take your order to a table (like many others, I did it on my first trip because I didn't know better).

If you're getting counter service and not sitting down, it's also common at bars (and gelato places) for you to have to pay first at the cashier and get a ticket, then place your order and hand in your ticket. This way, the servers don't handle money. It's common for us non-regulars (who don't know by heart what's on offer) to have to go to the food area to choose what we want, then go to the cashier to pay for it, then return to the food area to actually get it. This is not hard once you adjust, but it is different from the usual US system. Just watch others and imitate.

A restaurant is a place with table service only. In Italy, a restaurant meal is an event and takes a while (90-180 minutes). Again, they do not expect to "turn tables"; once you are seated, the table is yours for the evening. So, if there's a particular restaurant you want to eat at, make a reservation (even if it's just dropping in at lunchtime to make a reservation for dinner). If you don't have a reservation, get there when the restaurant opens, and you can hope to snag one of the few unreserved tables. Restaurants are often closed for several hours between lunch and dinner. And because they only have one seating per table per meal, you won't get served if you get there too late (in other words, if they're open from 1-3 for lunch, you won't be served if you get there at 2:30 - I know because I've tried!).

Once you're in Italy, the difference between a bar and a restaurant will be very obvious. What I meant was, a bar, since it specializes in drinks, will have the fresh fruit and machine (or squeezer) to make a spremuta, while a restaurant usually will not.

Mom of teenager here who has traveled frequently in Italy. Kids also love the Fanta, but really love to drink Freedea Lemon Soda in Italy.

Thanks, Harold, for the bar vs restaurant explanation and navigational tips! These are the details I really appreciate when traveling. I don’t want to annoy anyone in the bar/restaurant by wasting their time or doing the wrong thing, but I sure do want my food and drink when I’m hungry!

And thank you Emily for the additional suggestion. We will keep an eye out for Freedea.

We are back from our trip. Thanks for all the suggestions; we tried as many as we could!

Lemon soda was a huge hit for my son — he tried it once and asked for it at every place we stopped after that. He must have consumed gallons.

Spremuta is awesome! Watermelon water was also a hit with the kids. And for the grownups, coffee, spritzes, Prosecco, and wine. I could maybe live in a Venetian bar.

We loved Venice!! Thanks again for the drink tips; it was fun trying different things.

Thanks for posting your feedback!

Glad he liked the Lemon Soda! My kids love it too.

The citrus myrtifolia is actually named chinotto, and gives a soft, sweet and dark beverage resembling a cola but tasting something half way between a cola and an orange soft drink. It is something like an acquired taste.