La Taverna di San Giuseppe — Restaurant in Siena

It's important to note that Michelin-starred restaurants in Italy and the U.S. are not the same. If you're coming from a place like Chicago, known for its flavorful and diverse food scene, you might find yourself underwhelmed here. Many tourists and friends I spoke with agreed that Italy, in general, tends to focus more on the quality of ingredients than on seasoning and spice, which can lead to a blander taste for those used to more robust flavors.

This restaurant has a medieval atmosphere to match the city’s vibe, but despite its Michelin star, it fell short of expectations for me. We tried the lasagna, which we heard was popular, but while it had some flavor, it tasted like a typical lasagna you'd find anywhere else—it was simply the best because it was the only dish that had any noticeable taste. The tagliolini with fresh truffle was the second-best dish, but the watery consistency really threw us off. The gnocchi, unfortunately, was completely tasteless, and I wouldn’t recommend it at all.

I also had the Fiorentina steak with truffle. We tried the truffle and steak separately, then together. Both tasted bland, almost like paper. Essentially, it felt like eating raw, unseasoned meat with garnish that added no flavor. My partner had the braised beef, which the server highly recommended, but I couldn’t even manage to keep it in my mouth—it was that unappetizing.

It’s disappointing because I genuinely wanted to like this place. Our server was great—attentive, professional, and clearly took her job seriously. The owner also seemed on top of things, noticing when our busboy accidentally dropped a water bottle cap. Despite the attentive service, the food just didn't live up to the Michelin star reputation, and for the price, you're paying more for the name than the experience.

Overall, I wouldn’t recommend this restaurant unless you're strictly looking for ambiance over...

As a food critique and journalist I must say that this place is going to loose their Michelin rating for sure. In about 2 weeks you can read in details about my experience in this restaurant. Lets start from the beginning: Unexperienced rude waiters with no knowledge about anything. Try to sell you on horrible house wine and house grappa. Forks and knives were not changed in between dishes!!! The appetizers were ok but not of very good quality. The toast was burned black!!! Should not be accepted my Michelin . Truffle fall on the floor out of the hand from the waiter behind by chair and he picked it up and was later serving an other table with the same truffle. Not a very good thing thing to do for a Michelin rated restaurant. Main dishes were served cold and when complained we were told no time to change because we need to leave the restaurant soon because at 2pm other customers need our table. They let me order a desert and then tell me to eat it quickly because they need the table. Unbelievable!!! When I ordered grappa they bring it to the table and told me I have no really time to drink it so I send it back. Not to believe. Son why take it to my table when I have no time to drink it. I ordered Pana water but was served filtered cheap water. Not the practice in Michelin rated restaurant. This restaurant is over rated and I am writing to Michelin to have them removed!!! I have many photos in my possession to proof what I am writhing. Within the next few weeks I will dispose my articles to Stampa in Italy and the New York times. Front door manager extremely rude and no cares. I guess she did not know who I was and thought I was just a stupid tourist. I am not and they will feel sorry for their behavior towards me. Quite a few Michelin rated restaurant in the WORLD have lost their status with Michelin after they verified my comments. All of above has been fully...

I have been going to the taverna over the past decade, taking friends and family to a special place and whenever I was in Siena. This year, I believe it was the last time. Not for a particularly bad experience but rather for the realization that the taverna di San Giuseppe has reached an imbalance in quality and price that made it not a good choice anymore. This place is overrun with tourists from overseas, mainly USA. Not a problem per-se, but it does feel like missing out on a true Toscan experience. You also have to book well in advance and most likely only to get a table in the second 9pm slot. Also not something that would be dramatic, but the hectic buzzing business of catering to a completely packed taverna doing two full runs of feeding people each day. Accordingly the staff is sprinting from tables to kitchen and hustle among the busy and lively place, missing on small things but also occasionally not being able to serve all at the table at the same time. So the industrial scale and maximization of revenue with running two rounds of guests per evening, the ever slightly eroding quality of the static and unchanging menu offering diverse and typical Toscan food, and the sensation of being rather somewhere in NY than Italy, were the reasons to bid the taverna a farewell for good. I will save my time and budget for the benefit of the many and ample better options. If you haven't been there, sure worthwhile a visit, if you can get a table, good food, slightly overpriced, yet a stunning taverna by architecture, but hectic and filled with other tourists. An ok choice, but not worth a...