In the Footsteps of Ernest Hemingway
Or, the serendipitous discovery of Harry's Bar in Venice
Venice was unusually hot for late June, a sweltering 37ºC by early afternoon. We had been walking the city for several hours when we finally squeezed our sweaty bodies through the final tourist-infested block of Calle Vallaresso en route to the Gondola Stations at the Customs House for a boat tour of the Grand Canal.
We all agreed there was plenty of time to imbibe in some much-needed refreshment—preferably large, inexpensive, ice-cold adult beverages—before we boarded the boat. As we approached the centrocondario, lo, and behold, my little eye spied an unassuming restaurant doorway to my left. The sign over door read, Ciprianis. But the name etched in the glass told the better story—Harry’s Bar.
Notorious for its exorbitantly expensive Bellinis and extra-dry martinis, Harry’s Bar is also known for its famous clientele, most notably, Ernest Hemingway. His novel Across the River and into the Trees was directly inspired by the bar. During the 1950s, the novelist occupied the back corner table every day around 11:00 am to write, talk politics, and do what he probably did best—drink booze.
Declared a national landmark in 2001 by the Italian Ministry for Cultural Affairs, Harry’s Bar was founded by an Italian chef named Giuseppe Cipriani. He opened the joint in 1931 with a financial gift from Harry Pickering, a young American from a rich family who had been the beneficent of Cipriani’s generosity.
The story goes that Pickering had been a regular at the Hotel Europa where Cipriani was tending bar. Pickering suddenly stopped his visits after his family cut him off for spending all of his allowance on drink. Apparently, the two were close enough pals that Cipriani loaned him some money to get by. A couple of years later, Pickering returned the money, 5-fold, with the caveat that Cipriani was to open a bar and call it “Harry’s Bar.”
Other notable frequenters of Harry’s Bar included Charlie Chaplin, Alfred Hitchcock, Jimmy Stewart, Truman Capote, Orson Welles, and Joe DiMaggio. Regrettably, we didn’t meet any famous patrons that day. But, the dapper, white-jacketed staff did pack us into a tiny table, served us a bowl of olives with our tiny drinks, and then charged us like we were celebrities. That’s got to count for something, right?
Now, I didn’t do any writing while I visited Harry’s Bar, and I’ve yet to finish my great American novel, but I did write a couple of other books that may interest you. One of them was even written about a special letter addressed to a community of Italians.
