Ristorante Rovelli — Restaurant in Como

Italian 🇮🇹 cuisine does not exist (La cucina Italiana non esiste. It is also the title of a book written by Professor Alberto Grandi and I 100% agree with everything he wrote ✍️ in that book) so I am somewhat surprised by the negative reviews by tourists.

What do you expect from Italian restaurants in Italy and in a historical center in a touristic city like Como?

The entire cuisine consists of basically white flour (or rice if it is risotto) and cheese 🧀 and tomatoes/tomato paste or some other uneventful ingredient in a dozen variations with little to (more often than not) no herbs and they rarely use chilli or any spice.

And yes they also know how to put a piece of meat or fish on the grill (big deal).

It is the most bland and boring food in the world and it is the same all over Italy.

However, my pizza was tastybecauae the cheese was of high quality and the "spinach" was an Italian green which is very healthy and it was not over boiled so I was totally satisfied (plus the egg on top was baked and wholesome)

They have very good Austrian 🇦🇹 beers and the dessert was as tasty as desserts that are outsourced from catering factories can be (the vast majority of restaurants in Italy do not prepare desserts on the premises so no surprises there).

Service was excellent but the ambience was lacking because it was too hot inside (perhaps it is because the door to the outside is kept open).

The so-called "extra virgin olive oil" on the table is most certainly not extra virgin and probably moat of it is canola oil.

I highly advise to first taste a few drops of this mixture of oils and chemicals before splashing it on to pizza or salads because it can be especially harmful to children and those with a weak...

We visited this restaurant on Monday evening for my mums birthday. We said cheers and happy birthday to my mum and the older gentleman in the restaurant heard us..... We ordered a fillet steak with pepper sauce, lamb chops and a lasagna. When the food was brought to us they brought lasagna and 2 fillet steaks - my sister advised she had ordered lamb chops and the gentleman looked confused and said they take too long to cook now so have the steak instead! First rip off of the evening.... My lasagna was dry and stodgy, and the grilled veg that we ordered as a side dish was insulting! 1 thin slice of pepper and a greasy courgette slice each! After the main courses, the older waiter asked "would mammy like a special birthday dessert?" She said yes please, and as it would be in England, we thought what a lovely gesture..... He then went on to ask if we would like birthday Lemoncello's - I said not for me thank you, but he insisted I had one - again we thought what a lovely gesture.... When my sister paid the bill, we realised he had charged us for EVERYTHING!!!! Even the extra cost of the fillet steak which we didn't even ask for!! And they added on a 10% service charge!! We left quite disappointed and would certainly not return if we visited Como again! Seems like they are just out to get as much money from you as possible!!! Dirty...

Strolling through charming Como, we stumbled upon Rovelli — where hospitality is optional, and honesty didn’t make it onto the menu.

At lunchtime, we politely asked if it was possible to make a reservation. The answer: a firm no. “Just come back tonight.” Which we did. Come evening, the restaurant was full — except for two tables still cluttered with plates. The very same man stood there. “So, no reservations, right?” we asked. His reply: “Oh yes, of course, but only from five people upwards.” A fascinating twist.

He then turned away, muttered something in Italian (apparently words of admiration, who knows), and returned. When I asked him, in plain English, why we had been lied to earlier, his solution was simple: he took the chair from my hands and firmly escorted us off the terrace. That’s Rovelli’s idea of guest service.

Summary: If you’d like to be deliberately lied to during your stay in Como, and then arrogantly dismissed from a terrace without so much as a conversation — Rovelli is the...