Osteria Toscana — Restaurant in London

I have been to Osteria Toscana many times, yet never left a review. (Therefore the 5* but please read the rest..)

Service is always impeccable and they try to go above and beyond to satisfy your needs!

As for the food - this is the first time I am left extremely underwhelmed, both the starters and main courses were just not it.

I really hate complaining and have hard time returning a dish. During starters I thought: “oh well there is main course coming..” After a few bites of crab linguini I struggled to find any taste and needed a lot of salt to make it at least a bit palatable.

When I finally worked up the courage to tell the server (after they took the food away, I know - my mistake) I was left with simply “it’s the pasta, we complained about it before”.

I really like Osteria Toscana and hope that today was just an “off day”. I noticed the menu has changed and prices are actually cheaper, however I would rather pay a bit more if it means a fresher/tastier products just like before.

I hope this feels like a constructive feedback, rather than a...

Agressive staff. We were served three scallops starters after what I thought was a clear explanation that we wanted for the three of us to share one as we already had another starter. Perhaps there was miscommunication, but the plates were quickly dropped off at our table and our explanation shunned. Not that we are cheap, but it essentially added 30 pounds to the bill. We felt bullied and embarrassed by the situation, and it left a very bad taste in our mouth. Speaking of bad taste. Let’s talk about my main. Overcooked pasta served on a carved out lobster carcass, except for one mouthful of lobster. This was supposed to be a pasta and lobster dish for 28 pounds. I had no idea discarded lobster was so expensive. The sauce had zero flavor except for a massive amount of mouth numbing salt. Perhaps others enjoy mediocre Italian food. I don’t. An unfortunate restaurant choice, leaving us sad and feeling used as we are locals who believe in...

My partner and I booked this restaurant for a special Valentine’s meal, only to be met with complete chaos upon arrival. A large group of people was gathered outside, all being turned away—including us—because we apparently hadn’t paid a deposit. The restaurant claimed they had called everyone to request deposits, but many never received a call or, at most, a single attempt during work hours with no message left.

To make matters worse, my partner had received an email asking to confirm the booking, which he did. Nowhere in that email was there any mention of a deposit being required. Yet, when we arrived, we were refused a table. The lack of communication and professionalism was shocking, and their attitude toward everyone they turned away was dismissive at best.

Thankfully, we managed to get a walk-in table at Knife, a nearby restaurant who went above and beyond to fit us in and made sure our evening was special after such a...