Caupona Pompei Ristorante — Restaurant in Pompei

I can only comment on my personal experience at Caupona and yours will hopefully be different than mine. It may also be the case that circumstances will not be the same when you have dinner there, so you may have better luck than we had. I traveled up from the Sorrento area to Pompeii just to experience all that Caupona had to offer - based on reviews and photos I have seen here. It can be a little tricky to get here by car, but the same can be said about almost everything in this region! The problem with Caupona started right away: We would not be able to dine inside as I had hoped (please note that I did make a reservation weeks ago) because there was a large party scheduled and they had reserved the interior. Thus, we were forced to eat outside and with it, any opportunity to "experience" the whole Roman thing. No interesting frescos to look at, no antiquated decor, no togas or other costumes to wear. Just eating outside - something I could have done back in Sorrento. The meal was fine, even excellent, so I am being generous and giving it 5-stars. The experience however, not coming close to my expectations, merits a 1. So the combination of food + experience = 3. To top it off, once the guests started arriving for the party, THEY got to wear the costumes, THEY got to enjoy the whole experience. And they were taking the kind of pictures I wanted to take and having the fun I expected to have. It made us feel like chumps. If a restaurant has something like this planned, everyone who had previously reserved a table should be notified so they have the opportunity to change their plans if they chose to. This restaurant didn't and clearly warrants a poor review from...

We tried to enjoy dinner here many times but with Covid and travel upsets our previous attempts failed. We were thrilled to finally enjoy dinner here, and our expectations were lore than met!!!!

First, let me say if you are concerned this a tourist trap - don’t be — it is not! While there is some noteworthy historical intel in the culinary experience (food, atmosphere, and decor) this is not a “rain forest cafe” sing along stop — this is a culinary delight like none other we’ve had in Italy so far! A must for locals and for those visiting.

Second, the food - I wasn’t sure what to expect from the food but as a foodie let me say, this was one extraordinary culinary adventure. A few of us got the meat tasting, another the slave menu. From start to finish, every course was a palette experience, work of art and memorable! This was Michelin quality dining!!! No doubt!!!

Third, we were greeted by a friendly professional who was also a sommelier and suggested a Spumante, a dry white and a red. We were hesitant at first because only 3 of us were really drinking so with a DD it felt like maybe it would be a little much. However, we dove into the experience and enjoyed every wine! It made a huge difference that they decanter it for us too and it was a pleasure to see that offered to us - a class act indeed!!!!

Atmosphere, this was romantic, warm and yet festive at the same time. I don’t know what a Roman eatery was like back in the day, but I sure felt transported here and look forward to entering another world here in the future! We will return again and again for special occasions and with out of town visitors!

Thank you for a...

Now it's my turn to leave a high rating for this restaurant — though I honestly can’t imagine how it has received so many of them. But we’ll leave that mystery to future visitors; hopefully, this review helps them out.

So, there were two of us, lured in by the countless glowing reviews, the high rating, convenient location, and parking—which was important. A young guy greeted us outside, and we were quite surprised to find there were no free tables, as everything had been reserved. Luckily, the gods took pity on us, and we managed to get a table for two.

With all the creative dish names, you might not guess the actual food or drinks — unless you speak Italian or are local. We didn’t. So, everything we ordered turned out barely edible.

The food arrived at different times, and slowly. Inside, the place gave off a vibe of artificiality and pretense — a slightly forced mask of a lively, healthy restaurant covering what felt more like a long-expired diner.

As for the service (if we can call it that), let me just say that my grandmother does a better job serving lunch in her kitchen than the two grown men working here (despite only three tables occupied outside and a full house indoors).

The prices? Nothing outrageous, but you can definitely find better value elsewhere.

We were on our way to Pompeii, and after this lunch, each of us had our own personal Vesuvius erupting in the stomach. Behind us trailed a toxic cloud — just like in 79 BC. Our bellies and each butt were full of gas and ready for adventure in the National Archaeological...