Premiata Gnoccheria Risotteria Varese — Restaurant in Varese

I was the first client to enter at 12:05 and from the first second I felt something was not quite right about this restaurant.

The owner and the waitress were poker faced and the low light on the table though aesthetically nice is not comfortable to the eyes (whatever happened to candles?) so I switched it off.

The menu was given to me by the waitress and I struggled to understand the Italian.

It is only after a few minutes when I was searching for the dessert menu is when I realised there is an English translation that proceeds the Italian one.

I opted to start with black angus and I asked the waitress who had a good command of English that it should be made medium.

She nodded in agreement.

I felt it was a little strange that a steak is offered as a starter but I thought it is a small cut and it was surely more appealing than the rest of the menu which had a lot of exotic items such as octopus and blueberries in a savoury dish which I was surely not going to eat.

When the starter arrived it turned out to be carpaccio.

I don't like carpaccio and there was nothing on the menu indicating it was not a steak (unfair especially considering the waitress confirmed it will be cooked medium and there was not a single client besides me in the restaurant and so she heard me loud and clear).

I walked to the front of the dining hall and said that I was not aware it was carpaccio and so kindly wrap it for me so I can take it away.

I did not ask for a discount and did not show in any way that I was frustrated.

I said I am happy to pay for it and take it home.

I asked to see the menu so I choose another dish if the ravioli with asparagus is not large enough to fill my hunger.

Instead of handing me the menu (I was standing literally half a meter from a pile of menus) the waitress waited for me to return to my table and then came with the menu.

This time she indicated that there is an English menu after the Italian menu (I knew that already. Had she told me when I was first seated it would have been better).

She also insisted it says carpaccio on the menu (it doesn't in the English version) and from that moment onwards her behaviour was unapologetically rude and snotty.

In contrast the male waiter was very friendly and so I made sure to give him the tip in cash and ask him not to give the waitress any of it.

Now for the food - the risotto with a local cheese is tasty but it is too mild for my taste. I ate risotto made with local Padanian butter in a friend's home some years ago and it was better than the version at Premiata (the proof the taste of that risotto is still on my tongue).

Thankfully I carry my organic Indian herbs, spices and dry red chilli wherever I go so it was tasty but honestly I can't fathom what the hurrah is all about when it comes to North Italian cuisine that is bland and also lacking contrasting flavours.

The ravioli asparagus had so little asparagus in the filling (if that was in fact the filling) it could have been anything really.

It was also over salted but thankfully the portion was small so it was edible but not at all pleasurable.

There was also no spoon to eat it with so I suppose one must dip the bread in the cream which I did.

The tarte tatin was the best part of the meal but the vanilla ice cream was more of vanilla slush because it had large pieces of ice in it.

Perhaps this is also connected to some regional tradition I am ignorant of but I personally prefer a good quality cream with tarte tatin.

The dining hall is beautiful but it got crowded fast and as is the case with large wine cellars in old houses the acoustics will make you prefer you were not there (unless you enjoy this ambience which I am sure many do else the restaurant wouldn't be...

This place is very popular, would recommend to make a reservation... we came for lunch without one and were offered two place at the bar, which we didn’t mind at all. Very friendly and helpful staff and they spoke good english. I was looking forward to the risotto, and it did meet my expectations, but I think the gnocchi was even better... you can order 3 kinds of risotto/gnocchi for two and I would really recommend doing that. The food was heaven. Ee had saffron risotto, pumpkin risotto and gorgonzola gnochhi. So good. We also loved the goat cheese appetizer. And the house white wine was great, a but sparking...

Premetto che l'errore iniziale è stato nostro: siamo arrivati al ristorante con circa 25 minuti di ritardo, poiché trovare parcheggio nelle vicinanze si è rivelato più complicato del previsto e, per nostra mancanza, non abbiamo pensato di avvisare telefonicamente.

All’arrivo, un dipendente (presumibilmente il proprietario) dopo aver controllato la nostra prenotazione, ci ha accolti in modo piuttosto freddo e poco cortese, facendoci notare il nostro ritardo in termini che, a nostro avviso, sono risultati poco simpatici, soprattutto considerando la presenza di altri clienti.

A quel punto ho fatto presente che, se la situazione non fosse stata gestibile, avremmo accettato senza problemi di rinunciare al pranzo.

Ci tengo a sottolineare che, se dei clienti arrivano in ritardo, il ristorante è pienamente legittimato a decidere di non accettare il servizio o a imporre delle condizioni. Quello che trovo invece poco accettabile è il tono giudicante e il modo poco educato con cui è stato fatto, soprattutto in presenza di altri clienti.

Detto questo, al netto dei giudizi non richiesti siamo comunque stati accomodati, con la premessa di terminare il pranzo in 40 minuti. Il risotto che abbiamo ordinato non era niente male e il servizio è stato rapido, ma purtroppo il modo in cui siamo stati accolti ha sicuramente reso l'esperienza non delle migliori.

Nel complesso un buon ristorante con un ambiente intimo e riservato, peccato davvero per qualche...