Trattoria Nonna Gigia — Restaurant in Bologna

This place has a lot of positive reviews and clearly happy diners which have come through it's doors, but what we experienced was a typical tourist restaurant serving below average food. Their management seems to be pretty active on these reviews, so I write this expecting some pushback - Ultimately, I just want to help other potential visitors know what to expect.

We visited on a night when many restaurants in Bologna were closed, and we rolled the dice knowing options were limited for a sit-down meal, but we came hungry and with an open mind.

When we ordered drinks we asked for tap water, and the waiter told us "We don't serve tap water". I don't recall ever hearing that one before. It's standard for many restaurants in Italy to charge a nominal fee for seating and water service, but this ended up costing a few bucks for a glass carafe of water emblazoned with the restaurant's logo, which for all we know was poured from the tap. Not the end of the world, but a bit weird.

More important was the food, which was the most forgettable of our 5 days in Bologna. We had the tagliatelle with ragu, tortellini with butter and sage, and some sides. Nothing was explicitly bad, but the pastas were both overcooked and blandly flavoured. We had much better versions of the same dishes elsewhere. Our waiter was nice enough as we both earnestly struggled through the language barrier. He recommended the panna cotta for dessert, which was quite solid and honestly the tastiest dish of the night.

The atmosphere was a bit tacky, blaring American top 40 hits in the dining room. I know these things are subjective, but with a name and branding that's trying to conjure up a traditional family restaurant, it didn't feel like one. It leaves me confused with all the gushing reviews. I can see how a foreigner on a business trip could haphazardly stumble in and have a decent time, but in a city rich with food culture and dining options, this experience didn't...

Disappointing Experience at Trattoria Nonna Gigia:

This trattoria is a traditional restaurant with a simple old-fashioned interior. Based on the reviews, we were excited for our meal, but the overall experience was somewhat mixed.

The platter of mixed cold cuts and cheeses was excellent—Italian products at their finest. This was a showcase for the quality of local ingredients.

The Parmesan pie with porcini mushrooms was OK, but not more. It felt like it was missing a special touch to elevate it beyond just "good."

Unfortunately, the well-known tortellini in brodo didn’t live up to its reputation. The chicken broth was too simple, reminding us more of an instant soup than the rich, flavorful brodo we were expecting in such a restaurant. The tortellini themselves were nicely made but didn’t quite shine in such a basic broth.

The mortadella pistachio raviolini had a nice texture, though the pistachios didn’t seem as fresh as we’d hoped, which affected the overall enjoyment of the dish.

Even the wine selection was a bit underwhelming.

Service was initially slow, and we had to get the attention of the waiter after waiting for some time. However, once we were served, the staff was efficient and attentive.

In the end, Trattoria Nonna Gigia didn’t quite meet the high expectations based on the reviews we read before. For us, it falls short of the country’s high...

Came highly recommended. Unfortunately I believe that this restaurant probably doesn’t prefer tourists anymore, so they are providing sub par food/service to them in hopes that they’ll dissuade tourists from checking out this local spot. I could be wrong but that’s the vibe I got. We had a reservation booked a month in advance. When we got there a few mins early they told us we couldn’t sit outside but if we came back after 20 mins we could. We had no problem waiting so we left, came back, and we’re seated inside. No big deal, but a little frustrating. Later, I ordered the lasagne, which is supposed to be one of their specialties. It came out in no more than 3 mins and it was dry and crusty. Very clearly it had sitting under a heat lamp for hours. It wasn’t even a question. Very odd. The other food was okay. The service was good fine. Anyway, the next night we went to another local spot and it was filled with locals, we were seated in the basement and were so worried but the food was INCREDIBLE. Taverna do Roberto. Highly recommend that place...