Trattoria Italiana — Restaurant in Rother

Firstly I would like to say I am not the one to usually complain as I also work in hospitality but I understand the standards that should be met and there was no way I couldn’t inform people about this appalling experience we received!

We first visited this restaurant back on New Year's Day which left us utterly disappointed and questioning our decision to return. Despite our anticipation for a delightful New Year's Day meal out, our experience was unprofessional from the start.

Upon arrival, we were greeted with dirty glasses and cutlery- a foreboding sign of what was to come. Despite reporting this to the owner, our concerns were dismissed and blatantly ignored, leaving us feeling disrespected and undervalued as customers.

Against our better judgment, we decided to give the restaurant another chance in March to celebrate my birthday with friends, hoping our initial experience was just an unfortunate anomaly. However, our optimism was quickly shattered when my partner discovered a metal staple in his main course. This unacceptable oversight not only compromised the quality and safety of the dish but also left us deeply concerned about the restaurant's hygiene standards.

To add insult to injury, the response from the staff was lackluster at best. Instead of offering any meaningful apology or complimentary drink for the appalling experience, we were met with a "sorry about that” and a replacement meal. Before we even had the chance to take photos to report to environmental health, the waiter quickly took the staple off us! This token gesture did little to rectify the situation or restore our trust in the establishment.

Regrettably, we have concluded that Trattoria Italiana does not prioritise customer satisfaction or basic hygiene standards. Despite the recommendations of friends, we have decided not to give this establishment another chance. Our dining experiences should be enjoyable and memorable for the right reasons, and unfortunately, this restaurant failed to meet even the most basic expectations.

In conclusion, we cannot in good conscience recommend this restaurant to others, and we will not...

Do NOT eat here if you are pregnant - served mud in food. Or just don’t eat here in general if you value food safety.

We ordered the spinach as a side and realised halfway through eating it that it had large (like 50p piece sized clumps) of mud inside. I am 4 months pregnant and like most pregnant women have been very careful to avoid toxoplasma risk by carefully washing fruit and veg, cooking meats thoroughly, etc.

After all this I couldn’t believe I and my baby had been put at risk after how careful I’ve been. The fact it was full of large clumps of mud show that chefs do NOT wash the veg before cooking. We also had a caprese salad so I am concerned whether any of that was adequately washed.

The actions of the staff were even more concerning. The waitress just said ‘I’ll bring you another one’ - when in fact the correct action would have been to recall the entire dish across the whole restaurant rather than expose anyone else to risk. I did not feel like eating anything further after this so we asked for our bill and did not finish our mains. Incredibly after putting me at risk they billed us for our drinks and starter, which we paid for as we had eaten them, but I can’t believe the lack of empathy and understanding of the risks of a dish full of mud and the stress this can cause to a pregnant woman, and then to make us pay for the experience.

I now wish I’d told the other diners but it all happened so fast and I was so shocked. They whisked the food away before we could take a photo but I attach a picture of some mud on the table that we wiped off the spoon.

I went to this restaurant a lot when I was younger with family but will never eat here again and will warn others in the area of the same. The actions of the staff did not reassure me that they will be assuring the safety of other diners after flagging the contamination of this dish. All they care about is money and not your experience or even basic safety.

I will be complaining to the local food...

Frustratingly bad service which nearly ruined our romantic date night. This is a nice looking Italian restaurant well located on the sea front. It was busy, but there seemed to be plenty of staff and the place had a great vibe and lots of good reviews. A beautiful evening, so we sat at one of the many tables outside. So far so good. It took ten minutes to be offered a menu, drinks took a further ten to arrive. Starters took another 20 minutes. The scallops were delicious, the rucola and Parmesan salad a bit sad. The wine list / offers of further drinks never materialised. We were left, waiting, and waiting and waiting, watching large takeout deliveries being picked up from the kitchen. No one came to check on us, our neighbouring tables were left waiting to pay their bills. We wondered whether we should just leave (we should have!). We eventually managed to flag down the surly waitress, who shrugged when we asked where our food had got to. We politely asked her to find out. 10 minutes later (at least 45 minutes after our finishing our starters) we went inside to complain. My partner rarely gets angry and he never complains - I've never seen him so livid! While were were complaining his pizza (mediocre) came out, we followed it back to our table. Another five minutes waiting for my food and the wrong dish arrived. I told the waiter, but was too hungry to send it back. We wondered what they might do to salvage the situation. We said no to a coffee. The bill in full arrived. We paid but...