Il Fiume Ristorante Italiano — Restaurant in England

Please don't let the reviews fool you, Il Ponte is distinctly average. Hop over the bridge for a far better Italian dining experience (at the time of writing has 4.7 from 171 reviews). The setting, overlooking the water, is lovely and the staff are very friendly and efficient. Sadly that's where the good points finish. Seems to be relying on location rather than their food to generate business. My wife and I both opted for pasta dishes and were both hugely disappointed. Both our dishes lacked any flavor and tasted as though they were from a jar - if they are, that's shocking, if they're not, then the cooking is shocking. (A quick glance at the other well-known review website and you'll see others complaining about things having a suspicious 'shop-bought' quality about them.) My dish, the "Penne Il Ponte" was advertised as having crispy bacon and chicken. The bacon was limp and simply stirred through the bland sauce and the one bit of chicken that I found tasted as though it came from a packet of processed sandwich filling from the supermarket. The Parmesan also had that horrible taste and texture found in the pre-grated packets. Finally the portion size was on the small side for £12 a bowl. All in all, when presented with a bill for just shy of £40 for that and two drinks, we did not feel that it was anywhere worth it. It's relatively new to BOA but somehow feels tired already. Hopefully they'll polish up their offering otherwise I'd be surprised if it lasted in a small town with with an incredible Italian restaurant that offers significantly better, authentic dishes than Il Ponte literally the other side of the bridge (I'd recommend there if you're looking for Italian in BOA) and an equally amazing pizzeria a short stroll up the road. We would not return, not even to try their pizzas which I have subsequently heard from friends are a notch above Il Ponte's pasta offering. Il Ponte is the kind of place, and this is what the people that we know who have eaten here have done, that you try once because it's new but...

We came here for lunch as our last day on holiday We are sat at a table with a exelent view of the bridge and water, we went for the £11.50 offers a starter and main for starter we had breushetta witch was really nice and flavorful but were asked if we wanted cutlery and then were never given napkins then it went down hill from there.

For mains we had the spaghetti alla carbonara and the rigatoni con pollo with a side portion of fries

The carbonara there was plenty there to eat for lunch was quite a lot for one person but its italian so..... It had flavour and was creamy but its not the best in my opinion,

The rigatoni con pollo was very lackluster the sauce was very runny and had no heat from the chilli, the pasta was well cooked maybe slightly over due to it starting to fall apart, the chicken wasn't the best it's like cheap chicken has been used but ok.

The side portion of fries what can I say there fries light golden with the right amount of crisp and fluffyness I wish I could say this!!!! For being a professional restaurant who Burns fries then sends them out to the table burnt? That is unacceptable with such a basic skill in cooking fries; if a 16 year old macdonalds worker can cook fries then surely your fries chef can.

The waiters are friendly and helpful a little slow between courses when you have a little baby with you and having to go up and ask for the bill then have to go back up to ask someone to be able to pay that bill??? A little unorganised.

So I've given them a two star rating that's just for the breushetta in my opinion I wouldn't eat there again and maybe eat at one of the meny other places around...

Have walked past this restaurant a few times, and tonight we finally popped in for a bite to eat after work.

The entrance is a bit hidden away from the main road, but easy to find and accessibility doesn't appear to be an issue.

The restaurant is painted quite darkly, but with the glorious evening light flooding in it felt light and airy. High ceilings with interesting light fittings. We were shown to our table and were sat directly by the River Avon as it ambled its way through Bradford.

We ordered deep fried mozzarella and the breaded mushrooms, both of which were superb - nothing like the pub versions you might think of.

Mains were a couple of pizzas. I went for the Milanese - goats cheese, onion chutney and rocket - whilst the hubbie went for the Pescatore - prawns, anchovies, clams & tuna. Both were flavourful and bright. My only tiny downside is that they felt a little floppy - another couple of minutes in the oven. I'm being really picky as we devoured both of them with vigour!

Dessert was a tiramisu for him and a brownie for me. Both were excellent.

I will definitely be returning in the near future, if you are looking for somewhere to eat in Bradford on Avon then this place is well worth a try.

They also have an outdoor area, which I didn't feel...