Piazza Ferretto is the main square of Mestre and its liveliest public space — a handsome pedestrianised area lined with cafes, restaurants, and shops, and anchored by a medieval clock tower from 1108. In the evenings it fills with locals: families walking, teenagers gathering, older men nursing espresso at outdoor tables. It is, in short, everything that the tourist-saturated squares of central Venice are not.
The square is a good base for exploring Mestre's small but genuine historic centre. The Cathedral of San Lorenzo, rebuilt in the 18th century but with earlier origins, is a short walk away. The streets leading off the square have the mix of independent shops, pasticcerie, and ordinary Italian commerce that makes mainland life so different from the island across the bridge.