Osteria al Duca — Restaurant in Verona

Reviewing Osteria Al Duca is a difficult task because a proper review touches on some very important and emotionally-laden issues related to culture, tradition, transition, and values. Al Duca has lot to recommend it. The location is wonderful. The dining rooms exude history and honor the traditional place that the Osteria has had in the life of the city. The food is well prepared and well presented, The wine list is excellent and includes delightful regional wines and a broad selection of great wine from the rest of Italy. If you go there you will eat excellent, traditional Veronese food made from the freshest ingredients and you will drink great wine. You will also pay a very reasonable price for this wonderful food and drink. The drawback is that Al Duca has decided to move to a 2 seatings per night format which means that that you will need to choose a slot from 7:30-9:00 or from 9:00 to 10:30. In other words, you will need to be prepared to eat a meal that is designed to last for 3 hours in an hour and a half. Under this format, the service is rushed--how could it not be? One course follows another with mechanical precision. There is little time to savor the food or have a decent conversation. The whole operation is designed to make sure that you will be gone before your appointed time is up. There are plenty of people for whom this is not a problem. If you decide to eat at Al Duca, make a reservation because it is always packed with these folk! For me, however, having a table set with wonderful food and wine, with friends around and not being able to have the time that is necessary to enjoy the experience is a punishment best relegated to lower levels of Dante's Inferno. I fear that in time all the Osterias in Verona will move to this two seating model. The opportunity for doubling nightly profits is a hard thing to resist, To be fair, Il Duca has not compromised on the quality of their food. It is exellent. But, food alone does not make a meal. For now I will frequent the places that offer both great meals and the time...

Anticlimactic is probably the best way to describe this restaurant. I’ll preface by clarifying I’m not a food critic, however I have travelled and eaten a fair amount in many different countries.

I have to admit that when I saw a primi and secondi menu for 25€ all in, I knew I was walking into a tourist spot. Nonetheless, the praises were so high, I figured why not. Little did I know, the people reviewing have a junior palette..

To begin, the location is quaint, the sitting area is fine too, I’d say it’s actually quite cute! We ordered our primi pastas, and the dishes came out astonishingly fast.. curious.. the penne arrabbiata was nothing to write home about, the homemade tagliatelle with duck on the other hand was quite nice. Thick cut, flavourful ragù and well portioned.

Now, the part that really disappointed. For the main, we ordered the horse steak. Ecstatic to find this on the menu we were expecting a steak. To much of our chagrin, a 2 maybe 3mm cut resembling a schnitzel cut came on a plate with some potatoes. The flavour wasn’t terrible, the cook was decent but the portion and presentation overall was more synonymous with an American diner in the midst of a recession.

I cannot say that this was a terrible experience, I cannot say it was a great one. All in all, 25€ per person was slightly steep for the quality...

From Outstanding to Disappointing – A Letdown After 12 Years

We first visited this restaurant in 2013, and it was one of the best dinners we've ever had. The horse tartare and Salad Juliette were unforgettable, the service was warm and attentive, and the setting was perfect. We couldn't even finish our meal back then – there was no room left for dessert!

Fast forward to July 14, 2025 – we returned, excited to relive the experience and ordered the same dishes. Unfortunately, the magic was gone. The food was mediocre at best, and the service was almost nonexistent. We were served the wrong dish without any apology, and when the correct one came, it was just dropped on the table without a word.

We asked for a good wine and were offered the house wine. I agreed, saying “if it’s good,” but there was no follow-up, no interest in whether we liked it or wanted something else. The whole experience felt careless and impersonal.

If you're in the area, I strongly recommend walking around the corner to Osteria La Fregola instead – we had fantastic food, friendly service, a charcuterie board, a bottle of champagne, and a delicious panna cotta. A completely different level.

Sadly, the restaurant we once loved seems to have...