Prezzo Italian Restaurant Fareham — Restaurant in Winchester

We have visited Prezzo at Whiteley in the past and been very satisfied with the food and service. We visited again on Monday 28 November and found it to be a pretty unpleasant experience.

On arrival, my granddaughter asked to see the childrens menu which appeared to be a great issue for the girl who showed us to our table. On previous visits, my granddaughter has ordered adult portions from the Children's menu which has not been a problem. This time we were made to feel extremely uncomfortable because the girl who took us to the table went away to speak to another girl. It was obvious they were talking about us as they kept glaring in our direction. She kept saying that nothing could be ordered from the Children's menu as it was for Children only. After some time they agreed that the request war reasonable but we were made to feel extremely uncomfortable.

We ordered drinks which we left on the bar for about 20 minutes before being brought to our table.

Our main course was left on the food counter for several minutes before it was brought to our table. The staff were far from busy as two of the girls stood by the bar just chatting for most of the time we were present.

My wife ordered a chicken/asparagus risotto and found a piece of black meat with bone and veins in it. On seeing this she lost her appetite.

At a table next to ours, a very small child fell out of the back of one of the high chairs and landed on his head. At no time did any member of staff go and check if the child had been injured.

Having visited several times in the past, it was noticeable that the staff were new. They could speak very little English and were very rude and impolite. One of the girls was not appropriately dressed as she had all her cleavage hanging out of her clothing.

When clearing we tables, it seemed the norm to brush all the debris on to the floor.

We will not be visiting Prezzo at Whiteley again...

Went here for a Birthday day meal family. Chairs had tears in them sharp vinyl pvc. Not good cut finger on this pulling chair back. After a short wait we ordered food for 6 adults & 2 small children. 47 mins later still no starters. Complained to waiter. Young seemed out of his depth . Starters finally came out after children's meals. So children had already eaten alone. Then had to wait whilst adults had their food. Starters what takes 47 mins for Calamari 7- 9 bits deep fried no presentation at all. Shocking. Also missing a starter . Menu said ? Pan cooked king prawns ? Really. After chasing down waiter again. Where's the other Starter. Finally arrived after everyone else was eating their Starters. A small metal skillet dish. Some over cooked chilli slices in oil. Two small pieces of bread . Crouton size. 6 - 8 rubber cooked prawns. Again why 47 mins for these 6 Starters. Main were 20 mins behind Starters. So 1 hr 17 mins for food for both courses. When I couldn't help notice people after us were getting served before us ? The worst Spaghetti chicken Al Forna carbonara. I've ever had. Chicken chunks rubber obviously out of a packet Spaghetti congealed together. No sauce no taste. Shocking. Crab / lobster ravioli. Dry hard paste type substance inside. No bisque? Again looked like a microwave job. Deserts we're offered we declined . What wait another hour. Manager discounted drinks however service charge still added. When by law you have right to have taken off bill. In my work I cover 35- 40 pubs restaurants and month. This has to be one of the worst . Again asked of large chain. No quality foods. Will never return. I would highly recommend avoiding this restaurant. Especially at prices very high for poor poor quality. London restaurants cheaper per dish. Also fresh...

A busy half term Friday night in this Italian chain restaurant: how nice to see lots of staff bustling around! Our waitress was everything you could hope for - friendly, competent, efficient.

The four of us had starters and mains, everything was brought out hot, fresh and well presented. I had prawns to start and there was a generous amount with beautifully fluffy bread to soak up the garlicky oil.

My main of gnocchi with nduja and burrata was absolutely delicious, see picture for full droolfest. The nduja was charred on top and the gnocchi was "pillowy", a texture I never manage to achieve at home.

There was a little wait between the starters and mains but not excessive, especially given how busy it was. Plus we had some nice drinks to keep us company (👋🏽Ciao Ignuza).

My pathetic family had no room for dessert so I had to forgo a sweet treat or face looking like a glutton but I'm sure dessert would have been delicious given the standard of the rest of the food.

The restaurant was warm and cheerful in decor with a big circular feature light on the upper floor.

Overall, a fantastic experience and so nice to see a place that doesn't automatically add a "service" charge (yes of course we tipped but it's the principle of UK eateries adding this Americanism that bothers me).

The food was pricey (£9 for a starter and £18-£22 for a main) but it was totally justified for the quality and taste of our meals. This would be a treat occasion for us...