Cafe Capri — Restaurant in Reading

This rating is for mostly due to the server, but the overall three/star review still feels apt. We had a problem with two of the meals, one of which we can’t tell is a server issue or a kitchen issue but at a minimum, there was an obvious communication issue with the server.

One meal was outright wrong. Someone else in our party ordered a marinara dish, so I can only assume she had “parmigiana” on the brain, as two parmigiana dishes were brought to the table, instead of one parmigiana and one marsala. Close, kinda, especially with restaurant din and side conversations at the table…. I get it. But this error would have been caught and avoided if the order was repeated back to us before being placed with the kitchen, so it’s on the server.

The second food issue was the hamburger patty on another dish. We requested medium-well, and it came out not only well-done, but burnt on the outside. Both sides. Because of the issue with the Marsala dish, I felt bad about bringing a second issue to her attention, so assumed responsibility for the miscommunication because, in her defense, there was a little bit of chaos with two other adults at the table carrying on their own conversation, and “well done” was said first, by the child who ordered it. We (two of us, adults) corrected this and said “medium-well.” So it appears that it just didn’t register with the server.

For both orders, when the issues were brought to the servers attention, the response felt very self-righteous and argumentative, not “oh no, I’m sorry, what would you like to do?” Or something to that effect. Let’s just say, for arguments sake, that both communication errors were on us. Is defensiveness the way you respond to customers? Although she asked if I wanted an order placed for the Marsala, it felt very much as though she didn’t want to do it and, because of the pushback, I even stated that we would pay for the errant entree and bring it home as take-out instead (knowing my husband would eat it). I didn’t mention this, but I did so because I’m always nervous about calling attention to a mistake, so I rarely do, in fear from horror stories about what happens in the kitchen with complaints about orders, and I nibbled on fries while I waited for the right dish to come out of the kitchen, which was fine.

The second, “remedied” order for the burger came back just as charred on the outside, and only slightly less-cooked on the inside, and still not what any of us would consider medium-well. Perhaps this is the way they make their burgers… on the charred side, so just be warned if you aren’t a fan of charred burgers.

The Marsala and the parmigiana were both ok, as were the third adult entree… a wrap I believe, and the take-out order of parmigiana that my husband ate the next day. Not bad, but nothing stellar, so food felt overpriced for what you get.

Service was slow, having to ask for take out containers and the check rather than her “reading” the table, nor did she ask any of us how our dishes were after a few bites, so I can only hope that the server is new and just needs time and guidance on speed, accuracy and...

Not sure how to rate this with stars because my review is mixed -- This place has THE BEST pizza I've had in Reading -- very good, always fresh with lots of toppings and delivered quickly and hot. The other food, however, has not really been impressive. We've ordered from them a few times and it has been anywhere from just OK to bland and tasteless. The value on the pizza is really good but not so great on the other food (other food prices are about the same as you'd pay at a sit-down restaurant). We also went in to eat there once and it was very odd -- they had us order and pay up front and then go sit down like it was fast food -- very odd and it took forever! They're definitely good at what they do on the delivery end and far superior to the number of Roast Beef takeout...

This is our go-to place when we feel a need to escape from my cooking. The food is good, the environment is friendly and low key. At Capri, I can eat real pasta dishes, and generally find them to be nice. My gluten-free spouse generally gets a salad of some kind or steak tips, and seems quite happy. The prices are ok. It's fun to see families with small kids and geezers all in one place. I think it's a good sign that I can go back time and again, a number of years actually, and generally see many of the same wait staff. Some of them have been there so long that I've learned their names. There's something to be said...