Cantieri Concept Restaurant — Restaurant in La Spezia

Our recent visit to Cantieri Concept Restaurant in La Spezia was extremely disappointing. Despite the high ratings on Google, our experience was far from satisfactory, and we regret trusting the reviews.

From the moment we arrived, the atmosphere did not feel authentically Italian. The red-headed lady who served us was rude, and the owners exhibited odd behavior. They engaged us in a bizarre conversation about how teddy bears had supposedly improved their business. They even insisted on taking a picture of us with the teddy bears, which we declined as we were there for the food, not for a photo session with stuffed animals.

The owners’ clothes were dirty, and they seemed more focused on chatting with customers to garner good reviews rather than ensuring a quality dining experience. The restaurant was filled with teddy bears, each with a name, which seemed more like a gimmick than a genuine attempt to enhance the dining experience.

The dining setup was subpar, with plastic chairs and visibly dirty glasses and silverware. I ordered a seafood pasta, which gave me a severe stomach ache, later diagnosed as food poisoning. It was evident that the clams or oysters were pre-cooked and not fresh.

We left as soon as possible, leaving most of our food untouched, yet we still paid for everything. This experience was a stark contrast to the positive reviews we had read.

Beware and do not be fooled by the ratings as we were. We do not recommend Cantieri...

We had a four course meal to share (Appetizer, first course, second course, dessert) plus drinks at a very fancy restaurant in Florence (also a super touristy crowded city mind you) with amazing ambience, with a renowned chef featured in many magazines. It all came to about €70-€80 total and was worth every penny because of how incredible the meal and service was. Why am I mentioning this? Because when these guys charged the exact same amount for three courses featuring rubbery octopus, stale mashed potatoes, and an overly salted cod ‘with roasted potatoes’ (with no roasted potatoes to be seen) we felt like we were robbed blind. The clam linguini was the only good part of the meal. It seems the main focus was on the presentation of the meal. I’m giving the service two stars and not one because I believe the servers were a little overworked that night but honestly the staff was curt and despite having made a reservation in advance, our table was not set up at all. They literally placed our cutlery directly on the table outdoors, no napkin, no placemat underneath. There are better eat outs in La Spezia, and definitely way better ones in other parts of Italy. Go to Bella Vista, go to il Boconcino, but stay away from restaurants like these that are charging a premium for...

I had the best pasta of my life here. The service was absolutely amazing as well.

The owner was the best. He took his time to explain the ingredients going into each and every dish to help us make our choices in ordering, and conversed with us throughout making us feel at home. He made the effort to follow up with us, make us recommendations, and made us feel at home, something astonishing considering we were tourists from 10000 kilometres away dining at his restaurant.

The food was out of this world. The pasta I had here, was undisputedly the best pasta I have had in my life. Should you question me because of my lack of Italian background, when compared to all the states I travelled to in Italy and had pasta in, this pasta was the best by far. The price we paid, for the quality and service we received, definitely made for a meal that was extremely worth it. It was amazing.

Should you be in la spezia, you should definitely give this place a visit. You...