Coppi Restaurant — Restaurant in Belfast

TL;DR The management team at Coppi are ripping people off by charging more for items on the set menu than they are priced on the a la carte menu. Set menus are meant to be better valued. We ended up paying approx 10 pounds more for our meal than was warranted. My partner and I went for dinner at Coppi on Wednesday night. It was our first time there. We had read great reviews. The restaurant itself is well-decorated, clean, and atmospheric. The staff were overall attentive and polite. The meal itself was good. Our issue lies with the menu, its pricing and Coppi's unethical business tactics.

Upon arrival, we were given two menus - the a la carte menu and the December set menu. The set menu was placed on top of the a la carte menu to encourage you to look at that first. The set menu offered three courses for 35 pounds or, as the maitre d told us, we could get two courses for 27.50. We went for the three-course meal, thinking it was better valued as set menus always are. However, after we left the restaurant, I looked at the bill and realised that the set menu items were more expensive than they had been listed on the a la carte menu. For example, I ordered feta fritters as a starter. These are listed as 6 pounds on the a la carte menu, but I was charged 7.50 on the set menu. Similarly, I ordered the smoked chicken tortelloni. It would have been 16 pounds if I'd ordered from the a la carte menu, but I was charged 20 pounds for it because I had ordered from the set menu. So for those two items, I paid 27.50 when I could have ordered both from the other menu for 22 pounds. This is on top of a 'discretionary' 10% that was added to the bill and, as we all know, isn't really discretionary.

I'm furious at this sneakiness. With the cost of living crisis raging around us, going to a restaurant is increasingly becoming a treat for people like my partner and me. A set menu is supposed to offer value for money, but the Coppi management team are tricking people into thinking they are getting more for less. Unacceptable and unethical. Sort it out and treat your patrons with more respect than this, you thieves, or I might knock on Joe Lycett's door and see what...

I visited Coppi for dinner over the weekend with family for a birthday dinner. We had booked a table in advance for 7pm and arrived on time to a very busy restaurant. The server informed us that the people before us at our table were just finishing up and directed us to a waiting area beside the bar. We didn't mind at first as we were still waiting for a few members of our party to show up, however it ended up being over a 20 minute wait which was not an ideal start. At the end of the night when the waitress brought the bill, she said she took the two desserts off the bill as an apology for the wait. We thought this was a very thoughtful gesture especially as we hadn't complained about the wait at all.

When we did get seated at our table, the waitress that was taking our orders was very friendly and chatty and made us feel very welcome.

For a starter, I ordered 3 Chichetti - Feta fritters, duck fritters and arancini. All three were incredible! They were so flavoursome and the perfect portion size. I could have happily sat and ate them all night!

For a main, I ordered the Calabrese Sausage Risotto. Once again, this was very tasty and enjoyable. However, it is worth noting that the sausage is quite spicy (which is to be expected of Calabrese sausage).

Finally, for dessert I ordered the amaretto panna cotta. This was a lovely, light and sweet dish to finish the meal off. The one downside though was I found the fruit compote on the top to be a bit overwhelming and therefore I couldn't really taste the amaretto flavour of the panna cotta, which was a shame.

Overall, my family and I loved Coppi and really enjoyed every aspect of our meal. It was great to see the restaurant so busy especially on a Sunday night! I can't wait to return to Coppi in the future to try more of their dishes. I would highly recommend...

Coppi

Since opening its doors in St Anne’s Square in 2012, Coppi has been one of our very favourite restaurant recommendations in the city centre. The contemporary New York style subway tiles, aged wood and subtle lighting create an intimate and relaxed vibe. Bicycle handlebar coat hooks pay homage to the restaurant’s namesake, Angelo Fausto Coppi.

Using many local ingredients, the talented chefs at Coppi have created an array of tempting Italian style dishes catering for all dietary requirements.

We started our meal with Cicchetti: small savoury snacks, typically served in the traditional Bacari Bars in Venice. The moreish Feta Fritters & Truffle Honey have been on the menu since the beginning, and we believe there would be an outcry if they were ever removed! We also loved the Tomato, Basil & Mozzarella Arancini, the King Prawn Pil Pil, and the Chilli Hummus with Pasta Crisps, all accompanied by crunchy Italian Breads and Tapenade.

For mains we had the Seafood Agnolotti stuffed with delicious Portavogie Prawns, Scallops & Crab in a rich Shellfish Bisque. The Slaney Valley Lamb Chops were perfectly cooked and came with Pepperonata, Crispy Gnocchi, and Pistachio & Mint Pesto. There was also a beautiful fish special of Pan Fried Seabass with Crispy Gnocchi, Peas, Chard, & Sweet Roast Pepper Sauce.

Thanks, Coppi, for a wonderful evening of...