Da Giovanni — Restaurant in Lipari

Be careful, prices on the menu don't include service fee at this place. At the very end of the menu, where NOBODY would read it, they say it's 2 Euro service fee per person. So instead of 22€ we paid 26€ for 2 pizzas. We've been traveling Italy for 2 weeks now and been to several restaurants. Literally none of them had a service fee hidden in the menu. If i noticed it earlier, i would not have given a tip on top. Addition: I have just read that Italian law does not allow to put service fees at a place where they are not likely to be read. Customers have to be informed upfront. They must be placed so that customers are likely to read them before they order. So this practice is actually illegal.

Edit: They have an English menu in which all dishes are described in English. Now guess what the only part is that was not translated. In the English menu, you don't have service fee, you have "Coperto 2€". Also it doesn't mention at all that it is per person and not per table. This absolutely can't be legal.

Edit 2: After reading other reviews saying that people feel like they were overcharged or they just don't know what made their bill so expensive in the end, it's very obvious most people don't find the service fee on the menu as it is also not mentioned on the handwritten(!) receit. We will file a complaint with local authorities and Italian consumer...

We ordered the fresh fish of the day and the mixed grill after having checked reviews and seeing photos of the dishes on previous Google reviews it looked like great fresh food. The portions looked generous online it seemed like good value for money.

When it arrived we received a mixed grill with one tiny piece of octopus, chewy calamari rings and a small serving for one person - not reflecting the 25 euro price. It seemed significantly smaller than the photos we had seen online and the service (or lack of) was pretty poor. Note the mixed grill doesn't include any sides and the fresh fish was two small fillets, with potatoes. The potatoes were good and I'd probably pizza as these seemed like a better option.

We were one of three customers and there were 5 staff, all paying more attention to their mobile phones than the customers. We had to try and get their attention multiple times for service during the meal.

I'd advise guests to check your receipts (it's not a printed receipt - it's hand written), we did the math, and we appear to have been over-charged, the bill totalled 65 euros for the two dishes, one water...

CAREFUL, HIDDEN FEES!

We actually had a lovely time. The food was decent, the waiter nice. Sure, there is only indoor sitting without any view, but that doesn't matter, we are chill.

We went to pay, we left a tip and just afterwards when we started counting in our head something did not add up...

Service fee. 2€ per person service fee, not told to us upfront, but hidden at the very end of the menu where 99% of the guests will not see it (which they must be counting on). Also, it is in Italian only. Yes, even in English menu, it is not translated.

This practice, by the way, is illegal in Italy. Service fees are not illegal, but need to be communicated upfront, not just put at the end of the menu where they will be overlooked.

It's a pity because we would have come back (we are staying on the island for a few days), and now what could have been a lovely lunch left a bad taste...