Cafe Brunelli — Restaurant in Adelaide

I've been a regular at cafe Brunelli for over 3 years. Every year, things have gone from bad to worse. I've always wanted to leave a review, but I know what Covid did to the industry, so I didn't want to make things worse, however, last Wednesday changed my mind.

Service - rude staff, often addressing you as "honey" or "sweetheart". My apologies, do we know each other?

Kitchen - Slow, often cooking one meal at a time so we almost never ate together. Most times there's only three of us.

Atmosphere - Dirty, especially outside. A couple of years ago it was clean and tidy. These days you'll be lucky not to step over someone else's napkins. Luckily the birds are picking up all of the food from the ground.

Last Wednesday I've visited with friends of ours, who've never been at Brunelli before and came as I insisted. What am embarrassment... 4 adults, 3 kids, 7 meals all together I've called to book a table and was told to try my luck as they were booked out. We went at 1pm and there were barely any taken tables. We ordered at the bar at 1:15 - 4 adult meals (just mains) and 3 kids meals, 2 beers and 2 Espresso Martinis. 35 minutes in, one kids meal came out. 15 mins later one adult meal... 50 minutes without any cocktails or other food. I went to check on the drinks and saw the bartender with a couple of shakers so I thought she must be almost done. The two Martinis that came out had ice in them, no Kahlua and looked like iced black coffee. I returned those and got 2 glasses of wine instead. 1 hour later the second kids meal came. 1 hour and 35 minutes since ordering we got the 3 adult meals and the last kids meal. No mention of "we have delays" or "we're sorry for the wait" - nothing. I felt ashamed as my friends and their children ate separately, with over an hour difference. Will I go back - sure. My kid loves the playground, but I wouldn't order anything but coffee.

Owners, management and staff - do us a favor and sell the cafe to someone who cares about hospitality...

Went there last week as it had been a while since my last visit . The older lady who greeted us was amazing and she was working real hard there but then as far as the other staff not as friendly and the food took so long to come out and the place was not that busy . My daughter kids meal come out first and twenty minutes later the others . The point of going out together is to eat together. I was wondering what was going on and the nice lady who greeted us noticed our food was not there without me even telling her and she went to see what was going on and tbh god knows what was going on In the kitchen because me and the other people I was with were watching In disgust as the chef was on his phone for quite some time . Probably why our meals were so slow , too busy wondering what’s going on in social media or what not to worry about actually working . Not sure either why they would put kids chips n chicken schnitzel in a soup type of bowl either , I could hardly even cut it for my child let alone her attempt to do it herself , maybe they had no other dishes because people were too busy being on their phones . I don’t think I’ll go back there , they may have a playground but not worth the wait tbh . Only thing I rate is the lady who served us she was a real hard worker and hospitable. Also they gave me a jug of lemonade which they said they had and it was mineral water with lemon in it . When I told the lady who greeted us she was good about it and the one who took my order seemed bothered that they had to tip it out . If they ran out there they could of told me and I would of picked a alternative drink rather than pawn us off some drink which wasn’t even the right one . If any one wants beautiful home made Italian food go to pasta deli in glenbyrne it’s the best , they are always fresh and tasty . All Italian cooks cooking the food , very...

I visited your restaurant today for my mum's birthday, and unfortunately, the experience was far from enjoyable. The restaurant was very busy, and upon requesting a table, we were instructed to sit anywhere without a reserved sign and grab menus ourselves.

As we settled down, I placed my order, specifically requesting no Caesar salad dressing but adding sticky balsamic dressing on the side. The staff member taking my order seemed distracted by another customer offering free samples, but she repeated my order correctly. However, when the food arrived, my salad was drenched in Caesar dressing, not as requested, and the balsamic dressing looked unappetizing. My mum's pasta was equally disappointing - dry, overcooked, and lacking sauce.

When I addressed the issue with the waitress, she was unhelpful and insisted that's how the salad is served. Feeling uncomfortable with the attention from the staff, I persisted in correcting the order but was met with resistance. The situation escalated to the point where I requested to speak with the manager.

The manager's response only made my experience worse. She talked down to me, claiming there was nothing she could do since I got what I ordered. She insisted they couldn't give out free food, offering just a free coffee. I clarified that I wasn't after freebies, I simply wanted my order right. Frustrated by the unprofessionalism, I declined the remake and left. Waiting for my mum, who wanted to address the manager, I felt uncomfortable as the staff gossiped about me. When my mum spoke to the manager, she was labeled a bully. In the end, the staff and management's unprofessional behavior left both my mum and me feeling unwelcome. We won't return, and I hope others reconsider visiting your...