Donna Floriana Bistrot, Brucoli — Restaurant in Augusta

In summary: HORRIBLE dining experience in all aspects at Donna Floriana Bistrot on Wednesday 24 September 2025.

We checked in today at Mangia’s Brucoli Sicily and we were excited to spend a relaxing time and celebrate my sister-in-law’s birthday. We made 20:30 reservations at Donna Floriana which is supposed to be the fine dining restaurant at the resort.

All seemed ok at first. The host/restaurant manager seated us and took drink orders. We should have known the evening would be disappointing when the waitress showed up at our table and just stood there and said nothing – no greeting of Buona Sera, no introduction of her name. In fact, my sister-in-law was the one who greeted her! So strange! After we placed our orders, it took about 90 minutes to be served our antipasto/appetizers. Specifically at 21:58.

Was there a problem at the kitchen? Was the restaurant short-staffed? We don’t know because no one communicated with us during that time. In fact, no one stopped to check in on us during those 90 minutes! No one checked to see if we wanted to order more drinks. No explanation for the delay. No apologies.

After we approached the host to inquire, he said that the order would be expedited. By the time our food was served, it was 22:20 – almost 2 hours after we were first seated! And after the food was served, the server did not apologize for the delay nor did he say “Buon appetito” to the table. And, the food was lukewarm and tasted mediocre (see photo of my disappointing pasta dish).

After the meal, we tried to explain to the host/manager what he should should have done. His lack of communication and lack of customer service is not what one would expect of a fine dining restaurant at an Autograph Collection Resort. The food quality and the service (from what appears to be a staff that is not adequately trained) were also not what one would expect. This was truly an abysmal experience and literally left a bad taste in our mouths.

We plan to eat outside the resort for the rest...

The food was genuinely great; flavourful and well-prepared. Unfortunately, the service completely let down the experience.

It felt unprofessional, slow, and inattentive from the start. Basic table settings were off, with knives facing outwards, and although our child’s meal came first (which we appreciated), the rest was a mess.

Our starters didn’t arrive until an hour into the meal. After two hours, the mains still hadn’t come, so we decided to leave. Even asking for the bill took 10+ minutes, and I eventually walked out feeling ignored and frustrated.

It’s a real shame because the kitchen clearly has talent, but the service needs serious improvement. Based on this experience, I wouldn’t...

We were sat without a reservation at 7:45. We ordered by 8:00 our kids food came at about 8:30 and then we sat for over an hour. With no one coming to our table or food served. When someone asked if we were ready for the check we said that we hadn’t gotten our food yet and the server verbally said “what?!” My husband ended up walking out with the kids shortly after and our server came and said it will be another 10 min for the veal. I told her we’ve had enough and just please bring the check. Still ended up paying a premium for 2 kids pasta dishes (spaghetti with butter and pasta Pomodoro) a bottle of wine and meatballs that we were told we couldn’t order but some...