La Piazza — Restaurant in Venice

NOTE: 12% service charge applied to all bills, in addition to already high prices.

We booked a table for 7:30pm but were about 10-15 mins late as it took us a little longer to walk than we expected - we were waiting outside for another 10-15 minutes to be seated, but were given a complimentary glass of prosecco. While we were waiting, a tourist approached us and asked if this was the queue for the restaurant, and the hostess/greeter of the restaurant was quite abrupt with him and said she can answer any questions he has as she gets paid for this - it could have been that she was trying to avoid customers being hassled but her manner with the gentleman was a little off putting and it was clear that he and his companion felt the same.

We were seated upstairs - the restaurant was clean and the atmosphere was good. It was also very busy. We had a good view over the ground floor of the restaurant. We ordered a ordered soft drinks and a bottle of water, along with calamari fritti to share (€26), lasagne (€21) and a proscuitto pizza (€17). Our soft drinks arrived fairly quickly but the water didn’t materialise, we eventually had to ask for it again (I noticed the table next to us also ordered a bottle of water when they sat down and they also had to request it a second time). The calamari portion was very large and we did not finish it - the calamari was cooked well (i.e. tender, not at all chewy) but my boyfriend did not enjoy it and said it was at the lower end of calamari he has had (he said “quantity over quality”). The lasagne was nice enough but not the best we have had, and my pizza was served a good 10 minutes or more after the lasagne, with no explanation or apology. I actually spotted a proscuitto pizza downstairs (in what looked like a dumbwaiter/lift for the food) around the time the lasagne was served, and noticed it was just sitting there for a while. I saw a waiter pick it up, take it somewhere downstairs out of view, presumably to try serve it to a table, then he came back into view and brought it upstairs and served it to me. I was surprised it was still fairly warm. It was the worst pizza I’ve had so far on this trip (we have visited Rome, Florence and Venice so far, and have eaten pizzas that were significantly cheaper, and significantly more enjoyable in each city). We ate one slice each and left the rest. We waited a long time for our plates to be cleared and were then served a complimentary small portion of sorbet which was almost entirely melted. We requested the bill and waited quite a while for it - when the waitress asked how our meal was I said it was okay, she asked what the problem was and I couldn’t really be bothered to go into everything so I just explained about the significant delay in the pizza being served. She said this is normal because lasagne and pizza have different cooking times and this should have been explained to us by the waiter who took our order - I didn’t bother to mention that I had seen the pizza sat waiting to be served for quite a long time. I just said this was fine, but she knocked €7 off our bill as a gesture of goodwill. This was appreciated, however the 12% service charge was €10.50, and I really do not think a service charge was warranted based on the standard of service we received.

Very disappointed in our experience here and would not...

⭐ Not Recommended!!! Beware of Fake Reviews!!!⭐

I am writing this to warn others about the deceptive practices of this restaurant. We chose it based on its impressive near-20,000 reviews and 4.7-star rating, assuming it would be a fantastic meal. We were sorely mistaken.

Upon being seated, we learnt online how they achieve this rating: servers explicitly offer a discounted meal, a complimentary dessert, or other incentives in exchange for a 5-star review. This immediately made me worried, as the dishes we ordered were not cheap, and it felt like the entire rating system was a manipulated transaction.

The service that followed confirmed our fears. The waiter served our wine to the next table. As an apology, we each received a glass on the house, which was appreciated, but then they proceeded to serve our starter to another table shortly after. We waited about half an hour for our main dishes.

The food was a major letdown. The spaghetti with squid ink was okay, but the lobster paccheri was deeply disappointing - the lobster was hard to take off the shell and lacking any of the sweetness you expect from fresh lobster.

The bill automatically included a 12% service charge, which was a normal practice for most restaurants in Venice while 12% is not cheap. For a service that was inattentive and made multiple mistakes, this fee felt completely unearned and unjustified. It's a mandatory charge, not a discretionary gratuity, so be aware that your final bill will be 12% higher than the menu prices suggest.

You'll notice many tourist reviews praising a server named "Aldo." He is likely the gentleman out front hustling for customers on the street. While he may be friendly, it doesn't change the overall experience or justify the automatic fee.

This restaurant did not earn its stars honestly. The food was passable at best; I might give it a 3.5 on its own merits, considering the high prices and poor service. But it is absolutely never a 4.7. I feel misled and wish I had known about the review scheme and mandatory fee beforehand. Save your money and go somewhere that earns its...

It’s a restaurant with good decorations, and they know how to take care ppl by giving free drinks. The food quality is average , but presentation is nice The service is tricky , cuz they pretend to be nice by giving free drinks but when on table, specially as a tourist, they “help” with advices without rly clearly explaining their prices . — They recommended us a starter without mentioning that the price figuring in the menu is actually per person (30 euros for the Royal Seafood plate per person) and when we realized it and ask him back for changing he just said “we are already preparing it (too late)” … then since we are just looking for a nice moment together we didn’t rly cared but just adapted ourselves to the overpriced starter and order one main course for sharing between 2 (a way to balance the final price). — we finished the diner with a tiramisu which we really liked, thick texture and sweet. The payement moment went well until the moment that the waiter ask me to review the restaurant with a contactless card that direct us to Google reviews (that’s why they might have so many reviews, good technique tho). Again they come with free drinks , this time 2 lemoncello glasses. — However the moment of giving the review we felt a pressure from the waiter “give 5 stars, we are giving free drinks” . Since we didn’t want to make our night stressful, we just gave 5 stars and left.

Now I am back here to edit this review and let you know our real experience.

Total price for one shared stater + one shared main course + a tiramisu + bottle of water + 12% for the service (yes they charge for service, or for the “free drinks” ? ) = 123 euros

Overall the staff is nice and they smile all the time , but now I ask myself about their sincerity. The food is average to good. The price is high for what you get. And just remember about the vulnerability we have as tourist and the lack of care from their part in case of questions...