Da Secondo — Restaurant in Rome

My partner and I attended this restaurant for our last night in Rome. Upon arrival, the waiter was friendly and built a humorous rapport. Initially, we ordered a bottle of their Red Wine and a caprese salad. For mains, my girlfriend ordered the Arrabbiata pasta and I ordered the beef steak, cooked to medium. Shortly after receiving our meals, I was completely dissatisfied with my steak- it was evidently undercooked and not consumable, particularly given it was not how I had requested. The patrons sitting next to me even said that the meat was inedible and looked horrible. I made the head waiter aware and after overcoming issues with our translation and showing him image, he took the plate away to have the meat cooked again. After approximately 5 minutes, he returned with a rude persona and without saying anything, put my plate back in front of me. For the remainder of the evening, I could tell that the waiters were talking about my table in Italian and purposely avoided serving us. Once we finished our bottle of wine, my girlfriend asked for the bill. After receiving the invoice, I showed the waiter the image and he was disgraced- he even made a comment saying “not this restaurant.” Due to translation issues, the head waiter came over and we showed him the image. At no point, did he apologise but instead, he became extremely aggressive and condescending- he even said “I give you the main, just pay the bill.” We were never intending to receive a discount but merely wanting to bring it to their attention to ensure it was not repeated for future customers. I have attached photographs on TripAdvisor and their Facebook...

This place is a total TOURIST TRAP. Not to mention that they’re liars/scammers. The waiter lured us in with his charisma but long story short for a meal that was supposed to cost us €40 maximum he charged us €70 FOR TWO PEOPLE. That’s more than we spent at OSTERIA DA FORTUNATA (way higher class restaurant) in the area. He gave us food we didn’t ask for and then said it was our fault for eating it after paying (we’re not locals so we didn’t know that the food he gave us was more than we asked for). He also trying to guilt us into tipping after charging us a 20% SERVICE FEE. When we noticed we pointed out the print on THEIR menu that says 10% service fee and he claims it’s his second day (absolute bull). He tried to get us out of there by giving us €5 which didn’t even cover the overcharge of service fee / all the other items he racked up that we NEVER INTENDED ON BUYING. Worst part was the food wasn’t even good. My moms lamb was tough and horrible. AVOID THIS PLACE IF YOURE A TOURIST OR THEYLL SCAM YOU INTO PAYING DOUBLE WHAT...

We have visited Rome half a dozen times and have some favorites, but, like most visitors, we rarely know a place nearby at dinner time. We were at Piazza Navona our last trip, in April 2023, and couldn't find a restaurant we liked after looking up several. Then, we had some Roman luck and wandered into a typical little restaurant , Octeria da Secondo. We almost walked out when the owner, Antonio, invited us to stay. This was the meal experience you look for-a family group dedicated to giving you the best food and friendliest service in Italy. For instance, artichokes were not on the menu, but Antonio quickly prepared fried and boiled (always try boiled). Then we had four excellent meals. If you mention Alabama sent you, you will probably get a complimentary...