Il Buco — Restaurant in Sorrento

Our dining experience was off to a rocky start as soon as we arrived. We were shown to a table buried in a dark stairwell filled with an endless parade of pedestrians exiting the local marina. The space was dark, noisy, echoed loudly of the road traffic below, and really unpleasant.

Thankfully, they were kind enough to move us to another table that was also outside along a pedestrian walkway. The setting was much nicer though. The only problem was that we were in the middle of a heatwave. Within a couple minutes, we were sweating like crazy. It was pretty unpleasant to eat in a sauna. By the middle of the meal, our bodies were coated in a thin sheen of sweat.

The bar around the corner was also pumping loud techno music with heavy bass. The music was great for a club, but not befitting a white tablecloth dinner.

The service was very mixed. A few of the servers were very diffident and had zero politeness. Many of the waiters didn't even look at us as they were speaking to us when explaining the dishes. It felt borderline rude. Our head waiter was nice though.

We paired our meal with a bottle of the Pietradolce Archineri 2018.

The complete menu was:

1. Brioche with eggplant mousse
2. Zucchini muffin
3. Bread with tomato sauce and sausage meat
4. 7 different types of homemade bread and breadsticks
5. Steamed lobster on crispy waffle with fennel and paprika cream served with puntarelle salad and confit tomato. The dish was topped with freshly shaved black truffle, a lovely touch. However, This dish should have been much better. It was strange to serve cold sauce over warm lobster. Also, parts of the fennel was tough and the waffle was underwhelming
6. Seared octopus on Luciana saucе, served with black olive soft bread, broccoli, and mandarin mayonnaise. This dish was ok. Good but not really a standout
7. Risotto with sea plankton, mussels and almonds. Another ok dish
8. Linguine with lemon scented scorpion fish roe fish and sundried tomato. The pasta was cooked way too al dente (too undercooked for my liking) and the sauce was just a tad too briney. Not delicious at all. Barely edible.
9. Because we couldn't really eat the previous dish, they were kind enough to serve us an alternative pasta: Homemade tagliolini pasta flavoured with red pepper, clams, river chillies and ginger mayonnaise. This dish was quite good
10. Seabass fillet flavored with lemon potato nocerino onion and crunchy vegetables. The fish was super fresh. This just was solid and my favorite of the whole lineup.
11. Apricot cake with caramel topping and vanilla cream
12. Creamy lemon dessert with a froth of limoncello
13. 3...

I was here in the spring, treating myself to a nice vacation. And ended up having an upset stomach during my meal. Which was in no way in any way related to the restaurant, I think it's because I had too much wine the night before :-)

They were exceedingly accommodating, both willing to not charge me for the additional courses that I had ordered, But I was there intentionally, and incredibly interested in actually trying the food. They ended up graciously accommodating by letting me take the next couple back to my hotel with me. And as my stomach settled I was able to enjoy some of the most delicious food that I've ever had.

I felt embarrassed to ask, I felt like I was insulting the chefs by asking for their intentionally, exquisitely detailed and crafted dishes to be presented ultimately in a cheaper way, that isn't true to their own initial vision. But I didn't feel judged, I felt the team was very understanding. And I was grateful.

In my early twenties I worked for a Michelin chef in New York. I have immense respect for everybody who works with an a Michelin organization understanding the extreme amount of planning and work that goes into you every single service. And I was humbled and grateful for the accommodation.

I can't wait until many years from now I hope I have the opportunity to revisit this restaurant without any stomach upset, and fully respect the chefs as they deserve.

Even as takeaway, the food was freaking fantastic. I still think about the flavors playing on the fish dishes. Gorgeous.

Thank you everyone.Thank...

Il Buco benefits from a nice location, and the initial impression created by the first dining room adds a distinctive and charming touch to the restaurant’s atmosphere. However, we were seated in a back room, which unfortunately lacked the same refinement and ambiance, making it feel more like an ordinary restaurant rather than a Michelin-starred establishment. Service timing was uneven. The amuse-bouche was brought out immediately as we sat down, which felt rushed, while the starters followed only after a 20-minute wait. The food itself was acceptable, but it didn’t meet the high expectations one typically has for a Michelin-starred experience—flavors and presentation were fine, but not remarkable. The staff were friendly and polite throughout the evening, which we appreciated. However, the overall service fell short of Michelin standards. Several small but important details were missing: dishes were occasionally served without explanation, no one asked about our wine preferences, and there was a lack of attentiveness in areas like cleaning the table properly between courses. Another distraction was the sound of the dishwasher during our meal, as staff began cleaning up for the evening. This detracted from the atmosphere and made the dining experience feel rushed and unfinished. In summary, while Il Buco offers a pleasant setting and friendly staff, the overall experience did not live up to Michelin-star expectations. Key elements in service, timing, and attention to detail were lacking, leaving us with a sense of...