Officina del Gusto — Restaurant in Olbia

Dinner on Friday 14 October 2022 We had read great reviews of this restaurant so we made reservations without a second thought. I felt uncomfortable as soon as I entered, not because of anything the restaurant had done wrong but because it looked so sophisticated that I felt totally out of place. First of all, I checked out the wine list. No house wines, only bottles ranging from €25 (I'm too embarrassed to order the cheapest bottle of wine) up to €250 (What? You have got to be kidding me! Were these bottles jam-packed full of solid gold flakes?) Anyway, the food turned out to be spectacularly good, but sometimes rather expensive and, in one instance, served as a rather small portion. We ordered one large bottle of water at €3, only a mere two glasses of excellent red wine (sob, sob, we're functioning alcoholics and don't know how to get home sober) at €6 each, one starter of Verdure Griglia (grilled vegetables,5/5 for quality and 5/5 for value) at €7, one starter of Tortino di Melanzane (aubergine flan, 5/5 for quality and 4/5 for value) at €13, one main of Zuppa Legumi (vegetable soup, 5/5 for quality and 3/5 for value as it only just covered the bottom of the bowl!) at €15, one main of Salmone Scottato (lightly grilled salmon, 5/5 for quality and 4/5 for value) at €19 and two coffees at €2 each. The food was truly wonderful but I don't want to remortgage the house for the second cheapest bottle of wine on the menu! We walked home sober but (incredibly) didn't lose our way once. However, I walked home hungry and we both walked home sober. Conclusion ... This is the perfect restaurant for you if (1) you have money to burn and/or (2) you're not very hungry and/or (3) you don't...

If you have a lot of money to spend you are welcomed in this restaurant! Me and my girlfriend had to wait 30 min because some free places were reserved for longer time. Further 15 min left to give our order. The main waiter took the order and just rolled his eyes when we decided NOT to drink a wine to tagliatelle. After eating the food, which was by the way not bad, we ordered for the bill. We didn't have small money for tip so we left 50 Euros to get some change back for the tip. At the end the main waiter brought us 14 euros in COINS with the excuse that they have no Euro-bills left!!! No asking about the food, no good bye, nothing. Sorry but this behaviour is unacceptable for a high class restaurant. It should not matter how much money you spend but we left the restaurant with the feeling that we were not welcomed! 1 star is for the food, one for the fancy presenting of...

Utterly poor.

I chose this restaurant for my partners birthday based off the positive reviews, but I think I should have paid more attention to the negative ones. Wrong dishes brought out only to be replaced with more wrong dishes. No check backs, a general feeling that you are below those serving you and not even asked if we enjoyed the wrong meal! Top it off with the fact that everyone else around you is getting great service and paying the same prices. I would sooner be turned away at the door than waste my money.

It’s a real shame when a supposedly higher end restaurant lives up to the snobby stereotype. I work in hospitality and rule one of any restaurant should always be fair and consistent service. There are Michelin guide signs up everywhere you look, but I’m afraid those days are long...