Osteria Cucina di Amici — Restaurant in Lisbon

Great food as always. But service was below expectations. We booked a table but on arrival were told we needed to share a table with another couple (with one spot in between) thought there were other empty tables available (Covid times). We were told that that table was for 4 but less then 10 minutes after there were 2 people siting there (the waiter did apologize about it as soon as he realized what had just happened). Also completely noisy.

Answering to the reply from the "owner" below:

Thanks for the quick reply.

Nop, you don't remember correclty, we were still having a cocktail and some focaccia when the other table got sit down. And, as a suggestion, you could have asked us before sitting down the new guests if we wanted to move to that table as we did voiced over our request upon arrival. So, we did our part, which was letting you know we would prefer that table (instead of not saying anything and just complaining in the end) upon arrival, and you missed yours (which was making sure we had precedence as your pre booked guests didn't arrived and you just moved new, unbooked, guests into that table when other guests, that arrived priorly with a reservation have asked for it).

Also, and this is the most important, your notion of "a separate table" is a little off what's even recommended by DGS and AHRESP (whom basically you should, at least, try to follow): "Sempre que possível, a disposição das cadeiras e mesas no interior do estabelecimento tem de garantir uma distância de, pelo menos, 2 metros entre as pessoas e, no corredor entre mesas, uma distância de, pelo menos, 2 metros;"

I can assure you the distance was not of 2mts at all, you use tables of 80cms (at best) and the distance to your other guests was one extra table and 10 to 20cms of space (so, luckily, 1mt or half the recommended distance by the local health and restaurants authority).

We do understand this are the most challenging times for everyone (guests and moslty owners) but it doesn't invalidate that: 1) your food was great as always and 2) your...

Liked it but didn't love it. Cool place down a side street/alley, so it was quiet and enjoyable. Feels like a true "local" place. Broken up into 2 separate dining areas, one across the alley from the other, with some outdoor seating in nice weather. Staff was very nice, but seemed a little understaffed based on how busy it was.

Menu has several unique items, which we liked, but is quite light on actual pasta dishes, so beware of that if you are really craving a lot of pasta options. Everything we had was tasty, but 2 things stood out to us: 1) all 3 items came to the table just barely warmer than room temperature, and 2) portions didn't seem to reflect the price point. Quality ingredients, and excellent flavor, but I expected a bit more for the price of each individual item. We were the 2nd table to sit and order for the evening, so we were ahead of the "rush" and thus expected our food to be hot when it arrived. We have heard the same criticism from friends of ours that went there as well.

Will likely give it one more chance since we live 2 blocks away. I would rate it a 3.5 if 1/2 stars were available. Not worthy of 4 stars based on our experience, so I chose to round down...

Too expensive for what it offers.

The atmosphere is quite nice; it gives this roots vibe of cucina and Italy.

However, it has three main problems that make the overall experience not very good:

1. Service After we sat, we literally waited 30 min for someone to approach us and ask what we wanted. This is after 10-15min trying to call the waitpeople.

The food took a long time to arrive, and not all plates arrived on time. So prepare to eat a small portion, wait for, I don’t know how long for the next one, and so on.

2. Food portion What was explained to us was that the portions were to share. So order multiple plates and share them with your friends.

The problem, as already mentioned, are it’s one plate at a time, you wait a lot for it to arrive, and when it comes, it’s over in minutes.

3. Price It’s expensive. Period. Considering the portion size and other experiences, it’s costly.

Additionally, they don’t take cards. So you must pay with cash (the paper thing) as the Incas and Mayas used to do.

Is the food good? Yes. Is the price worth it? No. Will I...