Gió Cucina Italiana — Restaurant in Amsterdam

Had high expectations, but very disappointed with the experience.

The restaurant squeezes tables in to the extent that it is almost impossible to move, with staff reaching over your head/body to get menus.

The 2 rows of tables nearest the door were absolutely freezing, with diners having to keep their coats on during dinner! Use of double curtains or even a heater over the door would make the environment much more comfortable.

Upon arriving we were seated and then nobody came to our table for about 10 minutes, with the staff seemingly more interested in chatting and joking with other diners rather than actually working.

Eventually our waiter took our order for starters, main and drinks (wine and water). The wine arrived and was pretty decent - but we had to remind twice for the water.

Our main dishes then arrived - before our starters! We refused the mains and asked for the starters to be brought. The waiter then came back and asked that, since the mains were already prepared, could we have the mains now and then followed by the starters.

I’ve never experienced anything like this in my life! If orders are messed up then I understand it happens - but how you deal with mistakes is paramount. The restaurant should have simply brought the starters out and then prepared new main courses, rather than expecting their customers to compromise.

Shocking customer service that ruined our whole evening!

All 3 waiting staff were then seeing involved in attending to a table of 10, leaving all the other tables unattended to for around 5-10 minutes.

During this time we asked for our bill 3 times before we were given it - this is something that the table next to us also experienced earlier in the evening.

Overall the food was actually very nice - but the restaurant is severely let down by its staff, who don’t seem to understand the concept of making a customer happy.

Would...

Happiness. That is the feeling I had leaving Gio’s.

Over the course of the night I had three different items, but before having my first bite i was already enjoying the night; between the incredibly caring & nice staff, and the cozy and quaint ambience of the place.

The parmigiana was my first dish, and it tasted sublime. Fresh from the oven, I could not recommend it enough. From the first bite I had, my senses were overwhelmed with the fresh taste of each ingredient. I followed that up with their tenderloin, which was just as exquisite. A piece of meat that highlights the strength of the restaurant, highest quality ingredients with the delicate care given to its preparation. And to finish off the dinner, I had to go with the tiramisu, as I believe that is the hallmark of Italian food. After the previous dishes my expectations were sky high. The tiramisu was yet another pleasant surprise, with the perfect consistency, and rich deep flavor with every spoon.

Depending on the daily changing menu, I might not get the opportunity to re-taste the incredible dishes I had this night, but I have full faith that whatever the staff recommends next time I go will be just as incredible.

The one complaint of the night is that I only had one stomach to fill. My thanks to Gio for bringing the true taste of Italia to the...

Horrendous experience. We came in for drinks on an afternoon when the restaurant was fairly empty. The waitress was extremely rude when we said we just wanted some drinks. We stayed anyway because we were waiting for a tour that was starting close to this place. They offer only wine and nothing else, no coffee or soft drinks which is weird. Again, when I asked about other drinks she rolled her eyes. Edit: I most certainly left a review on a correct restaurants page. They’re just trying to spin the story now. I specifically asked for anything besides the wine but the waitress said they have only the wine. They do have coffee since it was just offered to a table next to us, but the waitress just wasn’t gonna be bothered with us I guess. What a shame.

If in your opinion the guests who just wanna sit for a quick drink don’t deserve the same service as those who come for lunch/dinner, then don’t take them in. The restaurant was more than half empty. It’s not forbidden to sit in a restaurant for just a drink. And considering ordering something else per your suggestion in the reply, why would I ask for another type of drink when I was already told there’s only wine? Makes no sense. I rated the service, not the food, so the rating isn’t false. I won’t be going back and forth over this anymore. Hope your service...