Piccolino Cocina Italiana — Restaurant in San Juan

Disclosure: it takes a lot for me to write a negative review. This is the first time I have never tipped at a restaurant.

The service my group received in simple terms was “horrible”. Me and my group of 6 came here to celebrate Mother’s Day for my mom. Sadly my mom’s Mother’s Day dinner was at most disrespectful. First we were seated into the smoking area, which we asked to be changed because of certain health needs in the group . While waiting for our host to find other seating for us, some workers behind us were talking loudly in Spanish “why come here if you don’t want to sit down” (not knowing that some of our group members know Spanish). Our waitress Shirley only checked on us at max 2 times during our visit, mind you this place was not anywhere near busy. We were seated at 8:10pm and did not receive our food until 9:42pm (picture attached for proof.) We were told before hand by our waitress that our food would take awhile because everything is handmade. A male bald headed worker with ear piercings made rude belittling comments, especially when he asked for feedback of how our food was tasting. Shirley tried rushing us when paying for our bill…we had to explain to her that we were currently sending money to the payees account, as told by her that “they do not split the bill, only accept one method of payment, and does not accept cash.” She also stated that an automatic tip would be applied to our bill because “the handheld carder reader automatically does that”, which is not stated anywhere on the menu nor on the websites that sounds fraudulent if you ask me, due to more time being needed for us to calculate the divided funds, she left and a older-aged gentlemen came back within 5 minutes to collect our payment. When he was told that we would not be tipping he argued “that tipping shouldn’t be based on what you think of the food” and we had to explain why we would not be tipping (lack of service and disrespectful comments), which also contradicts what Shirley said about tipping. Shirley also said, “I already expected this from you Americans.” upon being told the truth about her service and RUDE comments. As we were getting up a man wearing a white shirt approached us to hear our concerns he was surprised to hear the racist comment that Shirley made as he stated that he himself is an American from LA. Shirley denied her wrong doing while standing next to the I’m assuming manager in the white shirt. While we walked out the older-aged gentlemen was holding the door open for us repeatedly verbally harassing us saying ”Horrible, horrible, horrible!” “Oh Mexicans no wonder”. Not one person gave any apology. So if you are an American or Mexican who wants to hear racists comments and be treated poorly stay far away from here!!!!!!! Legal action is already in the process, no need for the owner to write a response back to this, instead I highly recommend you use your energy towards your team...

Went today on Mother's Day. Very disappointing experience. I'm forced to give it one star but I'd give it zero.

Completely dissability un-friendly. My mother-in-law could barely get in because they had NO ramp. Had to move a bunch of people from their table so she could try to get her in (which was understandably uncomfortable for her). Regardless of the fuss, they finally figured out they couldn't get her in with her walker, so they expected us to sit outside in the heat, instead of inside (having and eldery lady and two kids with us). We obviously said no, and then they figured they move us into the cigar lounge instead.

They had us wait for our order for an hour and a half or more. Also, they mixed up orders and brought me someone elses plate before the rest of the party (which bizarrely happened to be the exact same order as mine) and then forgot completely about the rest of the party at the table. No one passed through so I almost had to phone in from my cellphone to get a person to come to the table. We finally complained to a random waitress that passed by and was rather defensive instead of apologetic.

In summary: They were disorganized, unattentive, if you have a disability or a movement impairment don't bother to go, not apologetic and WAY too expensive for the quality and service.

We left disappointed and 200 dollars poorer for lousy service and not that good...

An Unforgettable Culinary Experience

We visited Piccolino Restaurant for the first time today and were absolutely delighted. From the moment we arrived, Shirley —our waitress— provided us with outstanding service. She was attentive, kind, and her recommendations were simply perfect.

We started with a melted cheese appetizer, but this was far from the usual kind. It was rich, flavorful, and so delicious we didn’t want it to end. For the main course, I had the duck-filled Sorrentinos in a red wine reduction sauce —a sophisticated and beautifully executed dish. My wife ordered the Stracciatella Fettuccine with shrimp, which was equally delicious and perfectly balanced.

For dessert, we shared a tiramisu and a Manchego cheesecake, both of which were excellent.

We want to give special recognition to Shirley for her warm and impeccable service —she truly elevated our entire experience. We will definitely be coming back. Honestly, we felt like Anton Ego in the movie Ratatouille when he tasted the dish that brought him back to his childhood: that’s how memorable...