Ristorante President Pompei — Restaurant in Pompei

We’d have happily paid the price if the meal was worth the money. I’ve dined in numerous Michelin restaurants in Asia, Australasia, Europe, the Americas ranging all stars but have truly never encountered a more clinical dining experience than this. Upon entering the restaurant it smelt like disinfectant – not sure if it’s because they just cleaned the place or if it is just like that. Though was greeted by a very very welcoming lady at the beginning she soon became very dictatorial over what we ordered, how much we ordered and kept on emphasising how great their Michelin one star restaurant is and how great Chef Paolo is. There’s nothing wrong in being proud of one’s achievements but only those who are humble become the real stars, regardless of what field it is. She also suggested that we order other beverages for everyone, suggesting the lemon juice, without showing the beverages menu and thus the price. The price seems to be the real emphasis on her reply to my previous comment, and as I said before, we wouldn’t have got angry if the food lived up to our expectations. Perhaps it was because the greatest chef Paolo was not there himself for the lunch shift, but the fish we ordered was so chewy and over cooked, paired with a balsamic foam which completely overwhelmed the natural taste of the fish. The sweet shrimp pasta we ordered, though cooked to al dente, was overly savoury I personally had to drink water with it. There was also an egg dish with poached eggs on potato which texture and taste was like hummus drizzled in red and green pepper sauce. To be frank neither the flavour nor the texture came together and the dish completely fell apart. This is possibly a overly critical review for a one star restaurant, but this criteria is what I always reference when it comes to so-called fine dining. The portions, needless to say, were very very small, even for second plates.

The service was ok. The waiters serving the table all seemed very out of their skin and very nervous the entire time, though the manager of the restaurant was always very enthusiastic about her restaurant that after introducing every dish she’d come around again in less than five minutes to ask us how it was and reemphasise the fact that this is a Michelin one star restaurant as if her audience has never dined out before in their lives. It later became rather intrusive, not leaving us any space to ourselves. I’m not sure if it was because we were the only table who were dining there at the time or if the manager lady does it to everyone, but at times the way in which the service was carried out made me very uncomfortable...

My mom, dad, husband and 2 year old daughter enjoyed an unforgettable lunch. We were met with the most gracious reception and the staff provided the most impeccable service throughout our lunch. The chef, Palio Gramaglia, prepared the most delicious multi-course meal for us to enjoy and the staff recommended beautiful wine to complement the dishes. The food, service and ambiance was perfection.

We’ve had the pleasure of dining at over a dozen Michelin star restaurants over the past few years and since having my daughter, who is 2 years old, it has become increasingly difficult to find a Michelin star restaurant that welcomes young kids. When I contacted Ristorante President Pompei to make the reservation and ask if they accept toddlers, they said she was more than welcome and would be their most treasured guest of the day. They did not over promise. They made her a custom meal she could enjoy, graciously assisted us with her care, and truly went above and beyond to make her and therefore us adults feel comfortable...

Lovely place to experience fine-dining in Pompei. Lovely service and very friendly hostess (turned out to be the wife of the chef). She answered all my questions, and I also found out where the chef got his inspirations from to come up with the gorgeous dishes that we had. We had the Grand tasting menu with the wine arrangement. Great food, and also great wines. My favourite is of course the (black pig) pork belly dish, which reminded me of this filipino dish that my mom makes. The chocolate medley dessert was gorgeous.

We expected the restaurant to be very pricey, and being the 5th Michelin star restaurant I have visited, I did not expect large portions. We were quite stuffed at the end, so I guess our portions were just right.

Just the prices of the basic drinks could have been lowered (6€ for an espresso, for example). Or perhaps just include it in the menu. Maybe tell the little story behind the dishes as well.

Overall, we enjoyed...