Il Giardino ai Fori — Restaurant in Rome

This is the sort of review where I wish there was an option lower than one star. Let me start of by saying that I come from a humble background and am not picky by any means. I enjoy food from all price points and styles, fast food to true, fine dining.

My girlfriend and I decided to get dinner here, knowing it fits the description of all tourist trap restaurants in Rome - even down to the salt and pepper on the table. We expected an expensive but enjoyable experience with mediocre food and fun, performative service.

Our experience was instead poor nearly to the point of being degrading. We ordered the Antipasta Terra (simple meat cheese and olive plate) and 5 oysters to start. The cheese and meat of the antipasta was dry to the point of seeming ‘off’. Had clearly sat out for hours and was worse than almost any store bought antipasta in the US. The oysters were sandy, nearly flavorless, and served on the same plate as the meat and cheese. They were not ‘on ice’, but covered in ice that had melted into the oysters themselves. Perhaps you could say they were so fresh they’re still swimming. They were also covered in anemic lemon slices. Presentation was messy at best, as if I let a child make dinner for the night.

Next we ordered the amatriciana pasta and a steak. I had attempted to order the lamb, but was either subsituted or upsold to the steak. Fine - I love steak. The amatriciana pasta was overly salted to the point of puckering our faces. It was a mediocre cook - a bit past al dente. Chef Boyardee is a good flavor reference. The steak was ‘okay’. It was served rare as requested (likely a mistake at this establishment) but was essentially ‘plain beef’ flavored. It was served on a hit griddle that continuously cooked the steak and fries. Fries were mediocre.

I was shocked at the bill, nearly 200 euros for the most disappointing and disgusting meal I have had in Rome so far. It included a non-customary 20% service fee for crude, sloppy, disorganized, frantic, and bordering on brutish service.

To anyone who enjoys their time here, please don’t let me bring you down. To thise that are reading reviews and see a few with low ratings and think ‘it’s just a few miserable people’ trust us - you would have a better experience, certainly for the price, dining in on convenience store items.

Oh - no complaints about the two glasses of prosecco, except the price.

Food - poor Vibe - frantic Felt like livestock and was...

THE WORST EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE.

We didn’t even want to go in at first — the place had reggaeton blasting from a speaker just three minutes from the Colosseum, totally out of place for Rome. Still, we decided to give it a chance because the menu was broad and it had a 4.1 rating on Google. BIG MISTAKE.

There were 6 waiters and only 4 tables occupied, yet we waited around 15 minutes before anyone came to take our order — only after we called them over. We ordered a pizza and a salad. The pizza came in less than 5 minutes, which makes you seriously question how it was made. Both dishes were decent, so we decided to try ordering something else. BIG MISTAKE #2.

We asked for chicken with vinegar and parmesan. What arrived was a boiled chicken breast, sliced and tossed in a pan, covered with arugula, a drizzle of vinegar, and some parmesan shavings. Already disappointing — but the worst part was that the chicken had a disgusting white creamy liquid inside. I spat it out immediately. We returned the dish. The waiter was polite and offered to bring something else, but we honestly didn’t dare to keep eating there.

And if the food was bad, the staff atmosphere was even worse. We both work in hospitality and could not believe the lack of teamwork and professionalism. Three of the waiters spent the night eyeing up every woman who walked by, to the point where I felt stressed about going to the bathroom because I knew they would stare. At one point, a waiter dropped a glass, and instead of helping him, another just laughed with his arms crossed while the three exchanged smirks and snide looks. Completely unacceptable.

To make matters worse, at 11:36 PM (closing time is midnight), they forced us to pay. They dictated the order to us and shoved the card machine in our faces. The bill was €57, which already seemed outrageous. When I asked to see it, I realized they had charged us for the dish we returned and had also added a €7 tip without our consent.

A place to NEVER visit again. Disorganized, unprofessional, uncomfortable, questionable food, and service bordering on a scam. Rome is full of amazing restaurants — this one simply...

I don’t recommend it at all. The waiter invited us to dinner, and because the time, I asked him "¿the kitchen was still open?" He answered yes. Once we sat down the kindness was over. We were rushed to order, they answered us badly when we asked something that we did not understand from the menu and insisted that we order now. Then they brought us the food and it was not very good to say the truth. During the entire dinner, the waiters were constantly walking around the tables, without any reason just looking at what we were doing, which was uncomfortable for all the diners. In turn, all those who attended were men and made comments or lewd gestures in spanish about the girls foreign who sat down to drink or eat something. What they didn’t know is that Spanish is my native language. Totally uncomfortable and unpleasant. 20 minutes after having brought us the food, and still finding us dining, all tables started to bring us the posnet to pay without even bringing us the bill or give a receipt or something. Because of the possibility of being faced with a possible scam due to the general attitude they had when charging all diners, all foreigners, we ask for the receipt. Since we had not only not given the account but also the card payment ticket, less the final ticket. When we asked one of the waiters went to look for it, and subsequently another person appeared who began to talk to us in a haughty way and using different languages (english and Italian) to offer excuses for not giving it to us. Saying that "we should have ordered it when we paid". Which is totally inappropriate not only because it is their duty to give, it is not something that is asked, and also because they were those who prepotently and without waiting for us to finish eating or we ask the bill put the posnet on the table forcing us to pay immediately. Attitude they had with all the tables, which was extremely rare and uncomfortable for everyone. We went out to dinner and ended up being an unnecessary and...