Zaza — Restaurant in St Albans

Booked a table for 2 online for a birthday. Great. Upon arrival, man was slow to find my name and time on his list, as if I just walked in without booking when I did prior. Lovely decor. An elderly couple were moaning to one side of us. The misery was quite off putting as we were celebrating a birthday. It was awkward to try not to hear them.

We ordered drinks. Table water, a juice with ice and a small red. My wine glass was dirty. White bits of tissue on the inside.

I asked if he could please change the glass. He did, reluctantly. We then ordered food.

To start i ordered olives and bread. We ordered 2 chicken pasta with the sauce with pine nuts, a side dish of garlic mushrooms and a side of green beans.

He asked if we have any allergies. I said yes, to peanuts but this dish is fine.

Three mins later a lady came out and said sorry, she can't make our food knowing that there is an allergy to nuts.

She asked us to chose something else? To my shock of the lack of knowledge or doing this on purpose I replied, "No, pine nuts and peanuts are not the same".

For anyone who isn't aware: Peanuts are legumes, while pine nuts are seeds from pine trees. Peanuts are also not in the same plant family as other tree nuts like almonds, cashews, or walnuts.

To which she said ok. Are you sure? I said yes, definitely. I would not of ordered it otherwise. To which she then said ok and went back.

7 minutes later, our food arrived. No olives and bread? He 'forgot' our starters. I can only presume he wanted us in and out so did this on purpose as time is consumed having starters but they did not even come out with the main. He said he can bring them? I politely declined.

Pine nuts were included. But due the comment made from lady trying to inform me with false information...the other person I was with picked out and avoided the pine nuts like the plague as much as possible.

Disappointed that they felt they had to do that. The person who is allergic to peanuts was absolutely fine as they are different.

We finished. The sauce very nice. The chicken was sparce. As in not much of it stufffed inside the pasta the big pasta shell in tiny bits. Maybe a dish that saves them money and time? However, the portion was good. The garlic mushrooms were very oily, had to drain them before putting onto my plate. The green beans were so so. Presentation good. Then we were asked about dessert, if we would like? I said not for me as giving up sugar but as its a birthday as mentioned when booking, I would like to order the complimentary Tiramisu?

He said yes. As I gathered, it comes out with happy birthday and a candle to which they sing Happy Birthday.

It would of been handy then if they asked for the name before singing happy birthday. I mean, if you are going to do something, do it well, no?

So according to the person having the dessert, it was nice and they enjoyed it and the 2 raspberries. Healthy portion. We waited 10 mins after eating to see if they came for the bill but nobody did. So we went to the till area where there was a different man standing. He asked us to check the bill before paying. I did. It said the complimentary Tiramisu was almost £8? I said this was supposed to be complimentary for a Birthday?

He said you may of ordered it as a normal desert? I did not.

I specifically said. He said there may of been a miscommunication? I said not on my part. He said ok and took it off. I was going to say get the other guy who took the order but he wasn't around, coincidentally.

Honestly, this felt quite disappointing because of the staff. Discrimination comes to mind upon face value. Perhaps learn about the ingredients and allergies if you genuinely do not know about them or perhaps not discriminate people in the first instance?

It's simple. Would I come back? Yes. To give them a chance to redeem themselves in all fairness if we are in the area. I am sure they can do better.

Fancy decor alone does not make up for the rest of it in this case. We do hope...

My favourite restaurant & all branches are superb. We visited the Harpenden branch on this occasion. However I've visited 6 of them so far and they are all the same - truly wonderful!

The food is so delicious, which is always consistent too, never a bad meal! All courses were beautifully cooked & served, with perfect sized portions, and a great selection on the menu. The mushrooms for me were the winner, fillet steak also fantastic!

10/10 all round & I'm fussy when it comes to eating out. There were 9 of us in our group, and every one of us had 3 courses and raved about the food, clearing our plates clean.

The service was spot on, very attentive without being annoying or hovering. Nothing was too much trouble with friendly, polite, happy staff, who all seemed to work excellently as a team. The staff all look like they enjoy their jobs there. The service was nicely paced and we didn't have to wait between courses, but also wasn't rushed. The staff were really lovely towards my children too (as our group can be noisy having little ones and a baby). It's always a cosy, relaxed atmosphere even though every table is always full, so it creates a lovely vibe.

The food is really fairly priced too, we went with the Mothers Day menu, which worked out very good.

I can highly recommend Zaza's as you won't be disappointed. Thank you for a lovely...

I was visiting my family in Harpenden today and decided to Dine in a nice restaurant, not knowing that Harpenden is limited with good quality restaurants . My other astonishing information was that many Restaurants in Harpenden close on Sundays or close early afternoon ! I have found ZaZa Italian restaurant which is in a great location . Zaza is a classic Italian restaurant with exceptional decoration with two massive and beautiful olive trees inside the restaurant and dining area . Staff were very friendly and attentive . We have been directed to second floor and been served by Roksana . She was very informative and helpful. We order a few drinks , Gin and Vodka as appetizers and had starters as well main courses accompanied with Red and white wines . Every single food was served carefully, tasted fresh and delicious. I finished my dinner with a exceptionally brewing espresso with nutty base and a smooth finish, nevertheless perfect temperature.Good verities of vegetarian options as well gluten free menu . I’ll highly recommend ZAZA and will definitely be back .‌Good value for money . Thank you

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