ASK Italian - Taunton — Restaurant in England

Absolutely shocking and I say this with much consideration. At 5.00 pm on a Wednesday there were only 5-6 guests in the restaurant and nearly as many staff but trying to get the attention of a waitress, once we were seated, was not easy.

The young lady that served us tried very hard to rescue what was an awful meal. It was not her fault but when you pay extra to have chicken added to one of the pasta dishes, as is an option on the menu, you expect to see more than two small pieces of chicken. When we pointed this out she pointed her finger and said like a Faulty Towers sketch "There's a piece of chicken" like she had found a nugget of Gold. To be fair she was very polite and understanding, went away and came back with a small bowl of chicken. However by this time the meal was spoilt, cold, and we just wanted to leave. My pizza was 'OK' but very average and only luke warm.

This establishment needs to take all their staff to have a meal at Zizzi in Taunton to see how a pizza should be made. "Ask Italian" has no idea about presentation or customer service and this (I am sorry to say) is the worst meal I have ever had in an Italian restaurant chain. Zizzi in Taunton has just turned over 90% of its staff and they are still so much more on the ball with service than Ask Italian even with new staff settling in.

God knows how Ask Italian would have coped if the restaurant had been busy if at 5.00 pm on a Wednesday they were churning out food this poor.

Absolutely disgraceful, overpriced, and we wouldn't go back if it was free! I am posting this review widely because Ask Italian don't...

The best dining experience I've had in years. We booked a last minute meal for my husband's birthday. Our daughter is recovering from surgery so we weren't sure whether we would be able to celebrate so it was a last minute booking for 14 people, 6 of which are aged 7 months to 4 years. As you can imagine, with so many young kids it can be rather chaotic, but the staff excelled in catering to our needs and keeping the kids happy and entertained (subsequently making the parents happy!). They put out decorations on the table to mark the occasion and Ella, who I believe was a manager, could see we needed to get the kids settled so proactively suggested she brought out their starters to give us time to select our food, with less distraction from the kids. Everyone had a great time, the food was some of the best food I've had in ages. A hugely varied menu despite being an Italian and all empty plates returned. I brought cupcakes for my husbands birthday, which they kindly brought over to us to do the usual happy birthday song and blowing of candles and they presented it beautifully on a board, decorated with strawberries. The staff just got it and got us. They could easily have perceived us as a large difficult party (and I wouldn't have blamed them!) but instead they were just a dream to us. Couldn't have asked for more of them and already seeking and excuse to return. I really hope head office see this review with special mention to...

A really lovely old building that’s been well renovated to be modern but yet kept some of its charm and period features.

We come here every week since we tried it for the first time as the pizzas are sublime!! Honestly, the margarita is hands down the BEST I’ve ever tried & I’ve had serval made by Sicilian people. The pizzas have a thin base that’s dusted with semolina for a perfect crisp. They’re light & bursting with flavour & that’s just the base!! The tomato sauce used isn’t too sweet or cheap tasting, it’s got a really natural Flavour that compliments the mozzarella which is generously portioned. My husband has the Vedure which is heavily topped with artichoke, olives & lots of lovely other vegetable, for the price it’s incredible.

The cheesy garlic chips are also yummy. Covered in a garlic flavour with a Parmesan type cheese that compliments the other flavours well.

I have to complement the team. They’re all really friendly & make a proper effort to chat to us & make us feel at home every week. I’d also like to commend the chefs too as they’re highly talented. Our last 4 meals have been spot on & I can’t fault their skills.

Overall a great place to visit for a nice...