Persello Pizzeria — Restaurant in George

Who ever sais here that this is authentic Italian food, does probably not know what that is. We walked in for the first time today Thursday 6 February at 19:30. The (big) place was empty, apart from one 6p table. The waitress and the owner was super friendly and attentive. I asked for a glass of prosecco, they did not have any by the glass. Only bottles of SA sparkling. We order a small bread with tomato, thinking it was a bruschetta. Out came a large pizzabread with garlic and tomato. The pizzabread was excellent. Thin, crispy perfectly baked. It had some garlic and rosemary on it but not too much. The tomato was flavourless. No seasoning. Next I ordered a Capricciosa pizza with tomato, mushroom, olive and ham. A classic. The look of it was not very appetising, brownish, slathered in cheese, no trace of tomato sauce. I took a bite, liked the base, again crispy. But the toppings were not of the best quality, and tasted bland.Even after scraping off all the cheese the ham, olives and mushrooms did not stand out. Ordered the only red housewine by the glass, a merlot. Was pretty sharp. The owner was very nice and came to explain that south Africans like it this way. Which would explain the positive reviews. Then again, if they like it so much, where is everybody at 19:30? Would love to see this place get out of its outdated comfort zone and get in touch with 2025 where visitors are demanding a better selection of wines and fresh, flavourfull, better quality...

What an insult to Italian food.( and the great service and food we have had on the garden route in general during the holiday season) 1stly you cannot give a waitress absolutely no training on your menu, and it would be preferable if the English could be an adequate proficiency to actually communicate for the industry. ( The waitress was friendly and trying but no knowledge). The manager was present but not managing. 2ndly the menu is very limited far less choices than other restaurants in the area. 3rdly the pasta was really terrible in terms of seasoning and badly prepared with low quality sauces and then on top of that with 2 people getting sick afterwards and no one wanting to finish the meal. (The pizza was fine) ps food not salted either. 4th Drinks and food took long to be delivered to the table. 5th The area has degerated into what feels uncomfortably compromised with numerous beggars outside. This restaurant used to be good years ago but seems to be resting on historical laurels and the competitors down the road so much better that they can't accommodate all...

Great Italian on the Garden Route. We, a group of 6, spontaneously stumbled upon the Persello in the evening an hour before closing time and felt immediately welcome. Especially the staff, but also the interior design played a big role. The service was excellent: courteous, polite, helpful, fun.... The food was also great: large portions, top taste. The penne arrabiata were perhaps a little too spicy for the European palate, but on request we were still brought free bread to eat up the remaining sauce. The dessert was also impeccable, absolutely on point. Positively I must still emphasize the beverage selection: In addition to the usual beers, local craft beers are also offered, absolutely great! All in all, for me culinary one of the best evenings in 3 weeks...