Italian is rarely my cuisine of choice when I dine out – it’s easy enough for me to make it at home that I resent handing over a tenner for someone else to do it for me.
So I’m even more annoyed with Pulcinella who took my tenner (and a bit more) and served up some tomato slop.
I should have known better when my companion and I walked into the Italian next door (The Amalfi) and found it heaving, while Pulcinella was half full at best. Another indicator would have been the waitress, who I can only describe as dim, rather than wilfully unhelpful.
After a brief tour of the restaurant, comprising of places we could sit which didn’t involve her serving us (a choice she made, not us) we were finally led to our seats, sandwiched so tightly between two other tables, I managed to treat some other diners to a nice view of my arse as I squeezed past them.
The poor service set the tone for the rest of the evening. The music sounded like a Worst-of of Turkish European Song Contest entries from the last 10 years.
Then there was the food. The Gnocci in tomato and ricotta sauce was so soggy it could have been pre-chewed. Served on a plate that felt like it was fresh from the fridge didn’t help much, neither did the ridiculous sprinkling of parsley. The Bruchetta also displayed attributes of sogginess – perhaps this was a theme I was missing?
Their famed pizzas didn’t seem like much either – they’re so low on toppings they have to list oregano as one.
The wine was generic, the décor beige and, yes, the service was utterly crap.
Food: 3/10
Service: 2/10
Cost: £40, for 1 course, including 2 glasses of wine
Pulcinella
Old Compton Street
London, W1d 5JX
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