Alforno Madeira — Restaurant in Funchal

Very rude owner! We went there as a group of nine, one of whom had a certified "companion dog" with proper medical documentation, making it legally admissible everywhere. Despite this, the owner started inventing supposed municipal rules or laws that supposedly prohibited him from accepting dogs. There were no signs outside the restaurant indicating any such restriction, either. Both I and the dog’s owner tried to explain the situation calmly and politely. Of course, it’s his restaurant, and he can technically do what he wants, even if it goes against the law. However, when you attempt to discuss something calmly and the other person not only refuses to listen but also interrupts you, it’s frustrating. When I politely asked him to let me finish speaking, he responded, “This is my restaurant, and you cannot ask me to let you talk. I do what I want!” To make matters worse, when I pointed out that his behavior was rude, he replied, “If you don’t like it, you can leave.” That was simply too much! I’ve been living in Funchal since 2008, and I’ve never encountered such a disrespectful restaurant owner. Your pizza might be good (I wouldn’t know), but if you treat clients—especially locals—like this (perhaps he assumed we were tourists, though that doesn’t justify his behavior), you won’t last long in the Madeira market.

UPDATE - December 10, 2024 The police had to intervene after the owner refused to provide the mandatory register of claims (a legal requirement in Portugal). The situation escalated when the owner became enraged and threatened me, claiming he knew where I lived. Perhaps he finally realized that I am not a tourist, as he might have assumed initially.

One of the officers calmly confronted him, saying, “Do you want to talk here, or would you prefer to come with us and discuss this elsewhere?” It was both alarming and, in hindsight, a little surreal.

The owner’s response to my review was equally bizarre: “Dogs are not allowed in restaurants!” I’m not sure where he’s from, but this is Portugal, a country with its own laws—not the ones he seems to make up.

It’s now confirmed: this individual is both rude and highly aggressive. I strongly advise staying away from this...

The food here is good, but the service experience often takes away from it. We’ve been to this restaurant several times and, unfortunately, there’s usually something that goes wrong.

On our most recent visit, we ordered pizzas and pastas and specifically asked for the pasta to be cooked al dente. The waiter didn’t seem familiar with the term and even asked us what it meant. We mentioned it would be helpful for him to know — but instead of acknowledging this, he responded with a dismissive “Well, I’m new”, in a tone that made it seem as though being new excused not knowing. In reality, he should have been better prepared before being placed in a position to serve customers. We suggested he could just check with the chef, since the chef would certainly know. After waiting quite a while, we asked another staff member to follow up with the kitchen about our order since it was taking so long. She said she would, but never came back with an update unless we approached her again. That lack of communication made the wait feel even longer.

Eventually, after about 45 minutes, the food arrived. Unfortunately, all the pastas were overcooked. By then, everyone was disappointed, though we didn’t feel we could wait any longer for replacements. That said, one waiter in particular — Gabrielle — stood out as the MVP. We approached him this time because on a previous visit, when we had another issue, he was the one who resolved it for us — and once again, he didn’t fail. He stepped in, communicated with us, and genuinely tried to make things right. If the restaurant had more staff like him, the service would finally be on par with the food.

Overall, while the food is good, the inconsistency in service makes the dining experience frustrating. It’s disappointing when a potential long-term client has repeated bad experiences and decides not to return. While it’s important to cater to foreign visitors who come for a short vacation, it’s equally important to value locals who are likely to return often and recommend the place to others. With better training and more “Gabrielles” on the floor, guests wouldn’t leave with mixed feelings...

Huge dissapointment, for an “italian restaurant” of this ranking. Pasta alfredo was just basic overcooked pasta with some cream, chicken and sweetcorn. That’s a meal students make in dorm rooms and not something that should be served in an italian restaurant. Calzone also looked better than it actually was. And the pricing of the meals is riduculous, 15€+ for a meal The desserts were the worst: sweet pizza was not a dessert size meal at all, there should be a disclaimer somewhere- it is actually a fully sized pizza dough covered in nutella. It was also decorated like it was childs 5th birthday: with whipping cream and rainbow sprinkles. The hot brownie was not actually even warm, as the majority of the dessert was ice cream - my guess would be at least three scoops; which makes the dessert ice cream with some brownie and not vice versa. And we have the ongoing theme with the whipping cream and rainbow sprinkes again. The waiters were absolutely not proffesional, the only thing they know how to do is type in the riduculously big tablets they have for ordering. And don’t get me started on the typo at hot drinks. Expresso really? I think the italians would not claim this restaurant even if would be the last...