All reader reviews by Edwin

Kitchen Italia (Covent Garden)

Although the food here is passable to good (their olive oils are lovely), the level of service leaves much to be desired.

On the three occasions I have dined at this particular outlet, service from the staff has ranged from indifferent to borderline rude to downright appalling. Tonight, I have just returned from a particularly galling experience.

I arrived past 10pm during their advertised 'Post Theatre' special, which trumpets: "£9.95 for any main course pasta, soft drink, fresh juice or 175ml carafe of wine (tiger prawn, chilli and garlic taglionini and Spaghetti with Meatballs £2.00 supplement)."

I placed an order for the Mafaldine with Spicy Sausage and a 175ml carafe of Cabernet delle Venezie. Upon asking for the bill, I was charged full price for both items and when questioned, I was belatedly told that I not only had to specify that I wanted my meal to be included in their advertised special, but that the wine I ordered was not eligible for the promotion, despite their own explicit wording that 'any ..175ml carafe of wine' was part of the deal.

I pointed out that the restaurant made no explicit request that diners order by mentioning the promotion, and, in fact, with their prominent advertising, it is foreseeable that customers could logically expect their orders to be included.

I also pointed out that they were silent on what wines were and weren't included in their deal - there is no indication on any of the advertising of the deal, nor on the menu itself, of any such restriction, and at no point was the information offered to me at the time of placing my order.

To these queries, the manager sheepishly insisted that there was nothing he could do. I decided it was not worth the hassle of arguing over a few quid, but the point is that the establishment is purposefully misleading diners with these unspoken exceptions to a heavily promoted and publicized deal - introducing conditions after the fact is dishonest and the failure to offer any plausible explanation is an insult to every customer.

As I mentioned, the food here is passable, and occasionally good, but I think the shoddy and deceitful treatment they visit upon their customers should not be rewarded. In light of the fact that this outlet is situated in a tourist-heavy area, I can only imagine how many different ways this outlet's manager has come up with to rip off unsuspecting clientele.

Avoid at all costs.

Friday, May 07, 2010
Overall rating
Food 6 | Service 0 | Atmosphere 4 | Value for money 0