Sambuca Quayside Newcastle — Restaurant in Newcastle upon Tyne

I feel a bit bad but this has to be written so that management can hopefully steer this in the right direction - venue looks amazing and was very clean - the view is awesome - food was good, sadly a joke was made about my order upon placing it (asking to leave something out) and then my plate arrived with it containing the multiple of said item I requested to be left out - swiftly staff actioned another plate - problem solved - great - but there were lots of smaller elements that left us feeling that maybe staff needed training up - we were not asked at all if we'd like to see the dessert menu or order coffee.. our plates were finished on the table throughout even our kids eating ice-cream after mains - which we had to move finished plates out of the way for and had initiated staff to please take .. we decided after 20 mins of waiting that we would just go get our dessert/coffee somewhere else - then it came to paying ... Which shocked us both - again we got up from the table after a lengthy wait and were bid goodbye - to which we said we need to pay ... So standing waiting for the card reader to load I had my head turned phone in my hand talking to my husband stood by the door and the staff member touched my phone with the reader while I was looking away - without telling me how much the bill was or if I wanted to tip or that the machine was ready - fortunately the card it was default set to was the card I wanted to pay with ..but it kind of unnerved me, I have no doubt the member of staff thought she was being helpful maybe by doing this but absolutely had misjudged that situation, what if I wanted to pay using another card? Or what if I was going to leave a tip? I was going to I always do. But minimum I should have been told how much it was, just being courteous... Again I think it's nothing more than an error in judgement but this could really cause problems if done to someone less tolerant than myself .. the fact the staff member then proceeded to tell me her name and to leave a review on trustpilot made it very obvious that she was oblivious to her mistake. Love the venue & staff do try the focus is more on banter than service though & clearly need guidance, some of these mistakes mean we probably won't revisit...

I'll be honest, we usually use "Spoons" on the Quayside when we stay in Newcastle. Unfortunately/fortunately "Spoons" is currently being refurbished. So it was teatime and we were hungry. Yes, there are a few restaurants on the Quayside. Some however, are expensive for a quick bite at teatime. My grandson who is at university in Newcastle suggested "Sambuca". We really didn't know what to expect. We were very impressed with the restaurant and the staff were very friendly and welcoming. We were soon shown to our seat. We had a lovely view over to the swing-bridge and of course the river Tyne. Oue drinks order was swiftly taken. The drinks arrived equally as quick. Very shortly after the drinks our food order was taken. We decided to take up their two course meal offer. The food was soon in front of us. I had minestrone soup. It was the best I had eaten for quite some time. The other two enjoyed their skin on chips. The waiter was obviously keeping an attentive eye on our progress as shortly after we finished. He was cleaning up the used plates. Our main course consisted of two pizzas and I chose Lasagne. It was very tasty indeed. It was a bonus being able to take in the view whilst enjoying wonderful food. I know next time we stay over in Newcastle, it will be a difficult decision on where we shall dine. The cost of the whole meal would probably have been very competitive with "Spoons". It was an enjoyable tea. The toilets were also well maintained. Not always the case. Even in the more expensive outlets on the Quayside....

I will not talk too much about food as we went for the £7.95 lunch deal and you cannot complain about that at all, but don’t be surprised if you feel that food has no taste and is made from cheap ingredients. When we walked in there was no one there and two ladies who were doing some ladder job pointed to walked further in, so we did. We got instantly told off by the waiter and sent back to the bar to wait for someone there. We then got sat at the table and given the menu. We were told we can have soup or potato skins for starter and pasta or pizza for main. When asked what are the potatoes served with waitress had no clue same as what the soup of the day actually is. When we decided what we will have, another waiter came to take our orders. I got corrected in a bad manner that the veggie cream soup is not served (as told by waitress)and they only have leek and potato cream. Is that not veg? After our starters and mains we asked waitress for a coffee and the look we were given was just something we have never experienced and would usually react to straight away but just decided to leave it as it is and instead just feel happy that we had an excellent view at least. If you want a cheap food and some view and will not be put off by the service, then yes this is for you. But if you are a fan of good Italian food and their hospitality, then avoid...