Nuovo Eden Bar & Gelateria — Restaurant in Monterosso al Mare

I am a girl from Spain traveling with my partner through Monterosso al Mare. While he was swimming in the sea, I just wanted to sit for a while on the terrace of this place (which was completely empty) and order a simple bottle of water while waiting for him. When I asked if I could do so, the staff answered in a very rude way, telling me that if I was only going to order water, I could not sit there and that I should leave.

I want to emphasize that I was polite and respectful at all times; I never raised my voice or spoke badly. I simply asked for water, and from that moment on their response was extremely unpleasant, basically telling me straight away: “if you’re only going to order that, leave.”

What surprised me even more was that in the gelateria section of the same place (with just two small tables), they also did not allow me to sit unless I ordered ice cream. And again, the staff there was equally unfriendly. We tried the gelato and honestly, it was not worth it at all — there are plenty of better places in the village to eat and enjoy a much nicer ice cream.

If I ever return to Monterosso in the future, this is definitely not a place I would go back to, and I do not recommend it to anyone. Not only because of the food or the gelato, which were nothing special, but above all because of the extremely poor and inhospitable customer service. In such a beautiful and touristic village, having an experience like this is truly...

We had chosen this restaurant because the view was fantastic but I guess I should have read the review first about the service it’s the worst service experience and to top the food was not even good they lack all the food in the menu the waitress was not happy to serve you and when we ask if we can borrow the extra chair because we are a family of three and it’s nice to be in the sea view area and they were not even full and besides you are paying for everything even their tables and chairs anyway and the guy in the entrance made a sign to us from inside the bar area that is not allowed so then we understand but when we were seated we saw the other tables who just did what we ask for and I ask again the waitress and she just nod and act like she can’t do anything but worst was when there were 5 people who even drag the entire table and put extra chair in the middle area so then I ask them why did they let them do it and the guy who said he is the head there answered us so weirdly like he doesn’t know what was happening with their rules that doesn't apply to everyone and very unapologetic of how we felt very rude It’s the worst they should really think about how they treat their customers. Very bad customer service and food is 2 out of 5 and the...

The Worst Restaurant Experience in Italy in 20 Years

We have been visiting Italy for over 20 years, and this was by far the worst experience we have ever had in a restaurant.

We arrived as a family — my husband, our child, and I. At first we were given a table, but when we added a chair for our child, the owner came and told us this was not allowed. I politely suggested swapping tables with another group so that everyone could sit comfortably, but instead of helping, the owner told us we had to leave the place.

The most shocking part was her attitude. She looked like a simple cook but behaved as if she were the boss of all Italy, like the president herself. With unbelievable arrogance she even said: “Call the police, I have connections there.” This was not just rude, but a complete abuse of power, humiliating and offensive.

Such arrogant and hostile behavior is absolutely unworthy of Italian hospitality and left us deeply disappointed with Monterosso.

Advice to future visitors: only go there with the police. Or...