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Positano Sa1

Positano Sa1

J Shed Arcade, Kings Rd, Swansea, United Kingdom, SA1 8PL

Pizza • Pasta • Welsh • Coffee


"I rang at the beginning of January to book a table for my daughters 16th birthday on February 10th. I booked for 24 people and paid a deposit of £5pp. In the week leading up to our visit I had a phone call on the Monday asking for my preorders as they were not asked for when I booked. I quickly got all the orders in and emailed them to the address I was given. I didn’t receive a reply to my email to confirm so tried to ring the restaurant all day Wednesday and Thursday with no answer. I started to panic. So I tried again on the Friday and finally someone answered. She said the head chef had been unwell so they couldn’t open and today was the first day they had reopened. She checked that they had my preorders and said everything was fine and they were looking forward to seeing us tomorrow. At 1.45pm on the day of my booking I received a phone call to say that unfortunately there was a problem in the kitchen and they would have to cancel my booking. The bloke then went on to say how much business they would be losing this weekend blah blah blah, at no point did he say sorry! At no point did he offer any kind of compensation. It was only when I asked about having my deposit refunded did he mention that and proceeded to tell me he would do it when the venue was back open. That’s no good to me!! He asked me why I was so angry??!! He told me there was nothing he could do!! If there was a genuine problem in the kitchen surely they’d know about it in the morning when they were prepping for their 12pm opening?? So why was it nearly 2pm before they rang?? This whole situation was handled so badly and with no apology offered by him. It wasn’t a meal for 2 that was being cancelled (although that would still be out of order) it was a table of 24 who were celebrating a special birthday!! I then had to try to book somewhere that evening so my daughter wasn’t left without a celebration meal with her family. Thankfully we found somewhere and we had a fabulous night! Judging by previous reviews on here we might have had a lucky escape with it being cancelled! I can’t review the food but I can review the attitude and lack of professionalism by the individual that I had to deal with! I think he might need a refresher course in customer relations!"

Francesco's

Francesco's

53 High Street, HP23 5AG, Dacorum, United Kingdom

Pizza • Pasta • Steak • Italian


"An earlier conversation with the owner left me with eager anticipation of an evening with friends at Francesco 's last Saturday. My wife and I arrived to find an a homely restaurant setting with lively Italian music booming out. We were all set for a fun evening...Our friends arrived who we had not seen for a long time and stood to greet them. Instead we were instantly approached by the surly owner gruffly telling us all to sit down and order our food as they were busy that evening. We meekly complied, taken aback by this strange attitude and, quite frankly, rudeness on the part of 'mine host '.It got worse, the owner stripped off to a singlet vest top and roamed about the restaurant bellowing orders to his small staff who clearly were in fear of him. We asked a poor lady waitress if the music could be turned down a tad so that we could hear ourselves speak. She rolled her eyes and declined to approach the boss....In an earlier conversation prior to booking, the owner had assured me that all the food used in the restaurant was fresh. Absolute rubbish! We chose squid or antipasta to start and as far as the squid was concerned were presented with something that did not look like squid. It may have been squid it was difficult to tell but it was very ordinary and looked reminiscent of something from the freezer chest in Aldi. The antipasta was topped with nothing less than a bit of tinned salmon!This was followed by our mains. I was looking forward to my spaghetti marinara. What I received was a pile of steaming hot spaghetti, very al dente, on which a tomato flavoured pasta sauce had been slopped. If one looked carefully one could find the odd small prawn, an occasional small mussel or a squid ring. All very reminiscent of what one would find in a bag of frozen seafood. So much for fresh!The food was left on the plates largely uneaten. The surprising thing was that the staff were not surprised we had left it and did not query whether there was a problem! The bill £115.00 paid very reluctantly but we just wanted to leave it was all so appalling.A disappointing and embarrassing evening. The atmosphere in the restaurant was tense and unpleasant, the food, such as it was, decidedly below expectation.Our first visit to Francesco 's. Very poor experience; we will not be coming again, not only because of the food but the owner 's unpleasant manner and rudeness!"

The Higgins Pantry

The Higgins Pantry

Castle Ln, Bedford MK40 3XD, United Kingdom

Wine • Pizza • Tapas • Pasta


"This wasn 't my first time dining at 'The Pantry ' so my expectations were high after previous postive experiences with their service and food, however this is my first review of this friendly and well known Bedford Italian eatery. On arrival we were given a warm welcome by the front of house staff and were shown to our table promptly. There was certainly plenty of space between tables which in my opinion certainly made it covid friendly. The informal, warm and relaxed atmosphere certainly encourages a postive and enjoyable dining experience also. We ordered six tapas dishes off of the tapas menu which were delicious, freshly cooked and vibrant. I would certainly recommend you try the sautéed King Prawns and the Whitebait which were very moreish!! For my main course I ordered the Pasta Cozze which was spaghetti with mussels cooked in a white wine sauce with cherry tomatoes. All my mussels were prepared, and cooked beautifully. The spaghetti was perfectly al-dente which I prefer, and in my opinion is just how it should be cooked. My wife ordered the chicken cutlet with fries and salad which she enjoyed. The bread crumb coating covering the chicken wasn 't soaked in oil but delightfully golden brown and crispy. We also sampled the lobster ravioli which was cooked to perfection along with a homemade pizza which my son really enjoyed. It has been a while since we had previously dined at the pantry, but I can honestly say in my opinion the service and food has remained excellent. Thank you for an excellent lunch, and we will certainly return again soon."