Padua invented the spritz — Aperol, Prosecco, and a splash of soda over ice with an orange slice — and the city's bar culture is built around the early-evening aperitivo. The two market squares, Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza della Frutta, are the centre of the action; from about 6.30 pm every bar terrace fills with students and office workers, and the squares stay busy until midnight.
For something a little more atmospheric: Caffè Pedrocchi (1831, the legendary neoclassical café), Enoteca Da Severino (a serious natural-wine bar with cicheti), Osteria al Pero for traditional cicheti and a quieter crowd, and Bar dei Osei for the cheapest spritz and the busiest counter in town. Late nightlife in Padua is centred on the university quarter around Via Belzoni.