I love Luna, and an evening at the jetty

This week my editors thought it was a good idea to send me to Venice to explore why its elderly residents are so opposed to school taxes (I know, it seems obvious). For the uninitiated, Venice is this little city south of Sarasota that has become quite the retirement community. The median age is 65.

I end up in Venice a fair amount, but usually it's a quick trip to a school and back to the office. I don't think I've ever taken the time to really immerse myself in the local culture. Now that I have, let me tell you, these people live in style.

I decided to spend my day like a local, starting with some time in the large print section of the library before strolling through the shops on Venice Avenue. I sat in the park at one of the tables with the checkerboard tile tops listening to bluegrass music and talking to residents soaking in the sunshine. What a life!

I've always enjoyed Venice. Over the years I've visited a lot for work or to meet up with friends for dinner. It has this quaint, kitschy old Florida charm that has disappeared from so many other places. The beaches are great. There's a wine bar and decent little restaurants. Sure, I don't exactly fit into the demographic this time of year. But that almost makes it more interesting.

Anyway, no trip to Venice is complete without a visit to Luna Ristorante. It's this homey Italian restaurant that operates out of a cute Venetian-style building. Inside, the decor is more like a sports bar. But on a nice day - and there are plenty of them - you can sit at one of the metal tables on the patio surrounded by a hedge of rose bushes and overlooking a fountain. They play Frank Sinatra and Harry Connick, Jr. They're old school. They don't even have a Web site.

One of the best things about Luna is the fresh baked white bread they bring to the table with this spicy (note the spicy) pepper relish. A friend of mine noted on a recent trip that it's so good she could just eat that as her dinner. The other best thing is the lasagna. It's the kind you can tell is homemade, its layers of beef, Italian sausage, noodles and ricotta cheese wrapped in gooey mozzarella and blanketed in thick tomato sauce. It's simple, not overdone with a lot of execssive spices. It's the simplicity that makes it so appealing. This time I noticed that the sauce kind of tastes like the one my mom makes (awwww).

The portions make Luna all the more worthwhile. I easily get two meals from the lasagna (unless I'm really hungry). One time I ordered spaghetti with veal, peppers and onions and had so much left over I had to freeze a bunch of it.

I capped off my dinner at Luna with a trip to Brindley's wine shop, which has a surprisingly nice selection of carmeneres from Chile. Then it was on to the jetty. The jetty's a fun place to fish, but this time I was just going to take in the scenery.

I busted out one of the plastic wine glasses in the back of my car, made friends with the baby seagulls and soaked in the sunset.

That's what I call a lovely evening (and workday for that matter)!

On a final note, this post, like the corresponding Facebook photo album, is dedicated to Emily, a faithful reader of my blog with whom I look forward to many splendid evenings at the jetty when she returns from Senegal.