Trattoria da Giovanni — Restaurant in Naples

I want to preface this review with the fact that I grew up in and lived in a very working class neighborhood in northern New Jersey. Little restaurants like this existed in every ethnic neighborhood and you could find some really great, really simple food at reasonable prices. That’s what I was looking forward to.

I went here based on the reviews and pictures of the menu items and I have had to keep verifying that I was at the correct address. I have seen a few negative reviews and they absolutely mirror my experience. The “cute older couple” who apparently own the place could care less if people were there or not. Upon arrival we had our concerns because the reality of the place is not close to the representative photographs but again, based on the reviews (and they are recent) we thought this was a hidden gem. It isn’t. We sat down and the cloth napkins were replaced with paper, NBD as I’m all about conserving and caring for the environment but this was a foreshadowing of what was to come. Time to order and the first three things we ordered were not available. OK, I understand local places change their menu daily sometimes but these were basic pasta dishes. We decided on some compromises and recommendations from the waiter and moved forward. We did receive the free bruschetta which was ok but nothing to rave about like I’ve seen in other reviews. I’ve had better in local restaurants in “nowhere” Delaware. As we were eating the bruschetta the older woman started slicing bread and it was obvious that a chain saw would have served her well. And that proved true when it was delivered to the table. We ordered lasagna, spaghetti al pomodoro and scaloppina al limome o al vino. The pasta was “OK,” the lasagna was old in that it had hard crusts on it, a very odd taste and was essentially inedible. The steak was truly more tendon and fat than beef and was just salted like crazy with a lemon on the plate. Again inedible. I’m frustrated because I was obviously anticipating a different experience but more so because I am compelled to write s negative review to hopefully spare someone from having as disappointing an evening as I had. Fortunately the pricing was more than reasonable but we didn’t get the value for an inexpensive meal. And the waiter was very nice. Update: I’ve had 2 days off stomach cramping and diarrhea since this dining...

I agree with everyone else that this place is a hidden gem! Full disclosure that it does feel like it’s in a dodgy part of town. That being said, you can get there from the Main Street and even at night it did not feel that bad. The area is run down but I don’t believe it to be unsafe.

Now on to the food! We were greeted with a free appetizer of bruschetta and fresh ricotta cheese. I actually ordered a second because the first one was so good! When I went to order lasagna, Antonio told me it was already out for the night (we went around 8pm). What a shame because I’m sure it was delicious! However, Antonio said to try the bolognese and he was not wrong!

My other dining partner also got the bolognese and the last one got the spaghetti with seafood. All 3 dishes joined the clean plate club as we sopped up the remaining sauce with our bread pieces. There are only two wine options, red and white. We ordered a small carafe of each and both were excellent! The menu says they are local wines.

Finally, for dessert I ordered the lemon cake because the tiramisu was out, another testament to the dishes at this place! The lemon cake was light and fluffy and also joined the clean plate club. Our bill was only 47 euro which feels almost like a crime for how good the food was. We even got candies at the end!

I have never suggested this in a review, but if you are going to tip in Italy, do so for Antonio. He takes care of the ENTIRE front of house including orders, sorting silverware, drying plates, serving desserts, and bringing the bill plus cleaning all the tables and seating all the people. He is truly a one man show and a super hard worker, that is very clear. As someone who has worked in the restaurant industry, I understand how hard he works everyday!

Final note this is a family run business. The older man at the front is the “boss” and the chef is his son. Antonio is a dear family friend. All of them work in sync to create a truly unforgettable dining experience. I highly recommend this place and so do others so I would suggest you make a...

As an Italian I have to say absolutely NOTHING IS WRONG with this place, all the reviews that claim otherwise are probably just Americans complaining without understanding. Our experience went as follows: we called to book a table but probably the line was not stable so we went there and they swiftly accommodated us at a table with great kindness and exceptional professionalism, they offered us a little appetizer made with delicious ricotta and a little bruschetta which olive oil was very pleasant at least to northern standards, then we ordered an appetizer ( sardines) also very nice, 2 first dishes one of which may have been a little under salted but was corrected with cheese, and a dessert ( babbá) that was super nice as well. We drank half a liter of wine, 1/4 red and 1/4 white and frankly they were both good. For all this we paid 37€ total. Now it is true that it is very hard to interpret the bill as it is handwritten but on the other side maybe the itemized list doesn't really matter, for what we had to eat and how we have been treated we have been asked for an exceptionally honest price especially considering the amount of tourist traps around where prices are double.

If you are not Italian and you have zero understanding of what you are eating, drinking and the quality of service you are getting, you should refrain from writing a review of this place. We nearly missed it because of a couple people like that and it would have been a shame.

Highly recommended, hopefully we'll be able to eat...