Alberello Pizzeria — Restaurant in North Vancouver

I ordered the carbonara with meatball appies. The sauce was pointless because it tasted like nothing. There was no egg unless it was just mixed in the sauce. It was literally moist spaghetti with one piece of bacon cooked and ripped to throw on top. The pasta was over cooked. Mushy when it should have been al dente. Now moving onto The meatballs. Presentation was the only thing that was decent. (Btw I ordered here for the first time through skip) I thought it was just me but when I gave it to my boyfriend to eat he wasn't even able to down them. The meatball size was good but it was a weird texture. The only way I could describe them is that the meat was mixed with something else. It was almost like they took the meat and put it in a blender so it was like a weird liquid then cooked it to keep it together. I would describe my boyfriend as a garburator but he could not eat anything from here. This place was rated 9.3 I believe on skip.... I don't know how unless it's based on their pizzas only. I spent 27$ before courier tip and delivery fee. Disappointed beyond measures. I'm a big foodie, not at all picky and I can 100% tell you the frozen pastas at a grocery store is 1million times better. Even the frozen meatballs are better too. I would have never paid for it if I ordered in the restaurant and ate it there. Can't touch base on the pizza but it's a hell no on recommending this place for pasta. Browns and places like earls have better pastas dishes. Definitely wasted money because it ended up feeding the garbage can.

Response to response: When I say it was just literally one piece of bacon thrown on top, it was as basic as I could describe what I saw. Literal: taking words in their usual or most basic sense without metaphor or allegory I'm just giving my experience and honest feedback. The way you explain about these measurements are fine, however, it wasn't satisfying one bit. Maybe it was an off night? But this would be the first flavorless carbonara I've ever ordered and received from an establishment. If that is how Alerello makes it, it is what it is. I've eaten in many places, in different cities and countries. Non expensive to expensive. When I crave an expected taste, that's what I look for. It didn't hit home for what a typical carbonara would taste like. I don't judge based on if it's truly Italian owned or not as I've experienced amazing pasta from ppl of different backgrounds. But stating that Alberello is in said Italian ethnicity, should I be more disappointed? And yes the meat balls should be blended. Maybe I'll say that it was over blended then? The consistency was mush. I guess all I have to say is, don't take my word for it and try it yourself guys. I may take up on the offer to try this again to see if it was a one off situation. I always tell ppl to try a place twice to see if there is a difference or if...

The inside decor is decent and cosy. I enjoyed the pizza and lasagna we ordered. Both were delicious. The problems are relating to service. Was not greeted at the door( though I waited 5 minutes) and the manager/ server did not have my reservation which I had done online and was very busy at his computer or cash register. Not sure why. Later, I noticed he did greet others at the door, but not us. I had my vaccine passport and ID to show the restaurant no problem.

We asked for extra parmesan, and were told, there was already cheese in the pizza- what ?? He did correct himself and gave us parmesan, pepper and chili flakes later.

Afterwards, we asked for spoons to divide our lasagna. My friend asked for a serving spoon and instead of apologizing for the inconvenience, he argued with her about how the dish was not usually shared.

He asked us how was dinner but did not stick around to find the answer and we had to wave him down for the bill.

The restaurant is small with 3 inside tables and one large family size table. It was not crowded on a Saturday dinner time; this I attribute to the service- details mentioned above. As for the patio, it was not well kept and needed a cleaning. The planter pots had dying plants. With so many dining choices around, I'm afraid I won't be back anytime soon and will not be posting dinners here. It's a shame as the food isn't bad.

Owners of Alberello, you need to take a good look at your service issues and improve them rather than react defensively in your responses back to the negative review. Given a chance, I would have been willing to change my review but your defensive and false response solidifies my review above. You will not have a repeat customer and I will not be recommending your pizza and...

The most arrogant service imaginable.

This review is about the management and service only, as it would be unfair of me to judge their food harshly without tasting it when hot.

The biggest problem wasn't that the pizzas and salad took 45 minutes to arrive, or that they add $7 for delivery, or that the driver's credit card machine was spotty. My complaint is primarily due to how the management chose to resolve my complaint.

I called him just after the food arrived to see if we could get it redone. The pizza was cold, soggy and extremely unappetizing. None of us wanted to even try it, as when you touched it, it felt cold and literally wet. I spoke to "Sean" to see if they could just send replacements. He told it was too close to closing time now, and I guess they wanted to go home? Anyways, I then asked for financial compensation of some sort, and he began mumbling unintelligibly. Ultimately I was told my refund couldn't happen over the phone but only in person. So I had take my time and fuel to get this resolved.

Went in two days later, and "Sean" greeted me. I gave him my receipt and reminded him of my experience. My bill came to $61.58 after tax and tip (I gave the driver 15%, as he was having a rough night too with that credit card machine), but Sean suggested that $40 was adequate, as the salad was still fine. Hmmm....

After a couple more efforts to get a more reasonable response from him, he scurried about to collect enough cash, and finally brought it up to (drum roll) $43.

I have no interest in negotiating with businesses like this. I took the money and left. With ethics like this, there are many better choices. These guys just...