Sapori di Casa — Restaurant in Hart

Visited here last night, a party of 8, for an 80th. The staff were perfect, officious not overbearing yet very attentive.

The food was below par, plenty of it but that is not always a good thing, especially when the spaghetti, looks like it has been tipped out of tin with a little grated Parmesan on top. The breaded chicken (schnitzel) was a tad chewy, and half a packet of rocket, or as they call it on their printed menu ‘rocked’ for garnish. No prizes for presentation, a toddler could have done a better job.

The cheesecake, however, was delicious, and plentiful, lovely texture.

Not sure the ‘Denby’ style crockery styled the food advantageously, white linen, white/light crockery.

Atmosphere is always a difficult one, immediately you are greeted by…

The outside of the building, it is a tip, old pods full of broken furniture dumped in the bushes in the access leading from the overflow car park, so you have to walk pass them on your entrance, not attractive, uneven roads leading from overflow car park which are not well lit, I am surprised there haven’t been any insurance claims yet! The covered seating area by the patio doors, was a mess, unwelcoming, not lit, faux plants that have seen better days, absolutely no ambience.

Then you walk into the bar area, cosy/cramped, cleanish but no appeal, the back room for staying guests, the pink tables need a good scrub down or repainting, most of the art on the wall, does not fit the Italian them, lower lighting needed to add to the end of the night feel.

Toilets need attention, not dated, just attention.

Haven’t a clue what the rooms are like, although four of our party were staying in them!

So back to atmosphere, if you are with people you love and want to be with, you could be in a shed, and have the best evening ever…but the difference is you aren’t paying to eat in a shed in the middle of a tip!

I last visited here 10 years previously when owned by Marco Pierre White, the only thing that has changed is the interior is lighter. I would be ashamed to have my name attached to this business, as the owners, or the chef! The chef can create the meals but he needs to be cooking them or watching over those that do.

The perfect surrounding…the beamed building is what it is but the mess surrounding the building is unacceptable, and would take very little man power to cure, if you don’t want the pods sell them, take the broken chairs to the tip, it truly is that simple. And have enough staff to maintain the outside seating areas, so they look like they are in use, not derelict. And lighting, inside and out for safety and ambience. If you can’t afford the business…don’t run it!

My final words, had I not been an invited guest, I would have walked away as soon as I saw the mess by the rear entrance to the main restaurant. And I would not be coming back, which probably is a good thing.

Remember, this is my own personal opinion, I would not say I had the highest of standards but a place has to feel loved, and this was not loved, I not sure it was...

Took my wife and family for a birthday meal yesterday, all started well. Starters came, they were great, drinks were slow, but we we are in a kinda lockdown in pods with it raining so allowance was made for this. Then we waited for the main course with anticipation, and waited……tried to get a drink… had to leave the pod to get some attention. Then the food came, average, with the pasta meal being exceptionally sub standard. We all tried it and concluded a 4 year old would have put together a better offering. It was supposed to be pasta with Italian sausage etc, we found only gristle and a sauce totally devoid of any flavour. The Spanish waiter tried to help but we just said we can’t wait an hour for a replacement. We were looking forward to a nice sweet, but judging by their performance to date we decided to call it a day. Cocktails were nice, but I suppose a £10 a shot you’d expect it. In conclusion, nice drinks, starters great, main need serious review, not what I expect for £240! Boss Chef needs to have words or his resume means nothing…….best of luck...

EDIT: When the restaurant reopened a few years ago, it was a breath of fresh air versus the tired and mostly empty Marco Pierre White steakhouse.

We enjoyed a couple of okay meals early on, although all had their quirks - disingenuous price changes, dish availability problems, and multiple lost bookings (the restaurant denied our bookings existed despite us having emails). Something went wrong every meal, but the food was a nice change.

Gradually, though, the food has lost its appeal and the strange events weren't worth battling through. The final time we went, it culminated in Chef Lucas telling us that a carbonara was meant to be runny and tasteless - apparently that's the Lombardy take on it.

Our experience, and that of our local friends, is that the customer is always wrong at Sapori Di Casa.

Yateley desperately needs a good Italian restaurant - this isn't,...