"This was apparently a very old family run restaurant that was incredibly popular in its day. It’s in a fabulous location on the Strand, directly opposite the Savoy. Unfortunately, it now looks like it has been taken over and is being run by a relatively young team, who basically haven’t got a clue. They’re clearly riding on the coat-tails of what it used to be, but are just not cutting it. I’m pretty certain that I’m not the first person to come to this conclusion, as nearly every restaurant in the Covent Garden area is packed out for pre-theatre meals, but Salieri was suspiciously empty, with only three other tables occupied when we went in. The menu was hugely disappointing and not what I expected of a decent Italian restaurant. To give the staff their due, they try really hard (possibly too hard) to be polite and helpful, but what they’re offering is too feeble to match their enthusiasm. When my food arrived it turned out to be the most bland, tasteless, under-seasoned version of a pasta dish I have ever known. You would get more flavour out of a 99p microwave “ping dinner” from a supermarket. In the time we were sat there, lots of passers by were obviously looking for somewhere to eat and stopped to consult the menu. Every couple or group looked at each other and shrugged indifferently and walked on. Not one single person came in. I found myself wishing I’d also looked at the menu before walking in, but didn’t as I was led to believe it was the wonderful family run restaurant it used to be. Given that the staff are welcoming and enthusiastic, this place needs to sack the chef and replace him/her with someone who knows how to cook basic pasta dishes and can bring a creative update to the horrendous menu. Until that happens, I’m afraid I wouldn’t touch it again with the proverbial barge pole."
