Our premises, which have hundreds of years of history, were used as a barn in the sixteenth century to house the bulls which participated in the famed contests that were held in Campo San Polo. In the gallery overhead there was a magnificent view of the campo (square) and at ground level, stalls were mounted to seat nobles and authorities.

Before the advent of so-called modern sports, Venice’s alleys and squares, its bridges and, obviously, its canals were already host to a vast number of popular games often organized on the occasion of religious festivals, especially Easter and Christmas. The Most Serene Republic of Venice, to be constantly ready to defend itself against attacks by foreigners, often organized archery competitions, in which all citizens had to participate, and these contests gave rise to the role of archers and bowmen who, before becoming perfect shots, had to learn the art of rowing. Indeed, the most important archery field was located, as it still is, at San Nicolò di Lido. Thus, the young Venetians, their oarsmanship to the test, “invented” the regatta, which therefore did not come about as entertainment for the people or to honour visiting foreign high dignitaries but rather as a physical exercise closely linked to the defence of the city-state.

Sites used for military exercises were dispersed throughout the city; there are known examples in the Giudecca, at San Vitale, in Barbaria delle Tole, at San Geremia, Santa Fosca, San Polo, Santa Margherita and San Francesco della Vigna.
Games, competitions or simple demonstrations of physical strength could be watched during public events and ceremonies. During the carnival, for example, equestrian events and games of chivalry, such as the quintana or the three-headed joust, were held.

The popular games of soccer, football, rackets and forfeits (pelota) found free rein at Sant’Alvise, San Giacomo dell’Orio, in Campo dei Gesuiti, in Campo dei Niccoli at the Sestriere di Castello, in the Chiovere di Canareggio, in Campo Rialto Novo, the great courts of the Giudecca, the Fondamenta Nove, in Calle dei Botteri a San Cassiano where in around 1700 Giacomo Borgoloco’s fencing school was also located, and in San Felice and Santa Caterina, where the Calle della Racchetta (Racket Street) inherited its name from the old tennis court.

The moresca, a figurative martial dance, attracted a large public due to the great difficulty of its execution and the clashes, always overt and rough, between the Nicolotti and the Castellani. The eternal struggle between these two factions was exalted in the game called, “The war of the fists”. In Venice “all the bridges of the city became palestrae”, especially the San Barnaba Bridge which is still known as “the bridge of fists”. The contest would start on the bridge’s summit, where the men would openly face each other and fight unarmed, at first one against another and then the number of participants would then grow until the entire bridge-palestra was packed. The objective of the game was to make as many adversaries as possible fall into the canal below, but those who fell were not eliminated and so could always return to their positions. It is understandable, then, that these “wars” could last for hours. It was the dawn of boxing and Venice and the Venetians were already ahead of the times. In the eighteenth century, popular entertainment such as bull or bear hunting was familiar to the Venetians who participated in such events attracted by their peculiarity and for the taste of the exotic brought by the traditions of other peoples, such as the English.

All these bullfights, tournaments, and regattas, often organised by the government, the nobles and guildsmen, gentlemen’s clubs and entertainment circles, while they entertained nobles and common people, kept alive and nurtured in all a warlike spirit.

The era of games and contests ended with the Most Serene Republic and at the start of the nineteenth century, during Austrian rule, the first brewery in Italy found its location in the building now occupied by the beerhouse. The Mauria brothers resumed the brewing activity and even opened a shop to the public until the end of the 30s.

Lastly, after it had been the site of a shipyard for sixty years, we decided to repair and restore the beerhouse using modern materials while respecting the original structure, with the aim of restoring it to its most noble purpose by creating an innovative restaurant that still has a welcoming atmosphere.