Via Italia

[carol.b]

well, well, well! Went there a few times but last years i had two very bad meals. I wondered how long it would take ,people not going there anymore! Such a shame , but location is not everything! Saying that. . . . .0 patio!

[garrygrimshaw]

We visited Via Italia 3 times last week and the place was busy every night. Yes, we found the restaurant enjoyable - the food was very good, although whether it stands up to 'authentic italian restaurant' food I will never know because I am not an expert. However, if you take it for what it is, then the food was very good! I may not know about authentic italian food but I know the difference between a good meal and a bad one. Put it this way, the monkfish and prawn pasta was so good, I had it twice.

Taking other points into consideration - the atmosphere was nice and cosy caused by the nice decor and lighting... the staff were really nice friendly including Gaetano who didn't think it beneath himself to visit your table, take your plates away and ask how everything was. Not many restaurant managers do that! The location was good too - a nice vantage point from the hill overlooking the street and high enough to get the best of a nice sunset.

People may have a valid argument about the pricing, depending on their standpoint. However, faced with a 16 euro steak from one of the many 'grill restaurants' or a 13 euro pasta dish I mentioned above, I'd choose the pasta anytime. Cheaper and better!

We liked it, and that's our opinion.

[Michael Crane]

...We liked it, and that's our opinion.

Well said garrygrimshaw, and that's the most important thing, isn't it? Just because one person has a bad meal or experience in a restaurant doesn't mean it's a bad restaurant. I often read the reviews but they don't influence me in where or what to eat. I have to make up my own mind on that. It's all part of the holiday dining experience.

[Bruce Wallis]

We visited Via Italia 3 times last week and the place was busy every night. Yes, we found the restaurant enjoyable - the food was very good, although whether it stands up to 'authentic italian restaurant' food I will never know because I am not an expert. However, if you take it for what it is, then the food was very good! I may not know about authentic italian food but I know the difference between a good meal and a bad one. Put it this way, the monkfish and prawn pasta was so good, I had it twice.

Taking other points into consideration - the atmosphere was nice and cosy caused by the nice decor and lighting... the staff were really nice friendly including Gaetano who didn't think it beneath himself to visit your table, take your plates away and ask how everything was. Not many restaurant managers do that! The location was good too - a nice vantage point from the hill overlooking the street and high enough to get the best of a nice sunset.

People may have a valid argument about the pricing, depending on their standpoint. However, faced with a 16 euro steak from one of the many 'grill restaurants' or a 13 euro pasta dish I mentioned above, I'd choose the pasta anytime. Cheaper and better!

We liked it, and that's our opinion.

You know when I read reviews like this for what has to be one of the 2 worst restaurants in the area, I just have to shake my head in disbelief.................Is it a joke? A windup?.....The owners family??....Well he did say he didnt understand Italian food

[Bristle Si]

My wife and i have been visiting Carvoeiro for 8 years now and we haven't been to Via Italia for 5 years. We prefer Villa Medicini up the hill opposite Hotel Mirachoro.

[garrygrimshaw]

Is it a joke?

No.

A windup?

Definitely not.

The owners family??

Unfortunately no, otherwise we may have received a healthy discount!


I appreciate people don't like Via Italia, I also appreciate some people do - and I bet it's a lot more than you'd think but unfortunately we will never know if they don't visit this forum and express their views too.

Taking on board Bristle Si's suggestion of Villa Medicini, then we'll definitely try that one also next time we are there. Oh the freedom of choice!

[Barry]

Now, would anyone like to put in a good word for O Boteco?

[SAM SPARKLE]

Wild horses wouldn’t drag me back to this place, very sub standard.

[Bruce Wallis]

Now, would anyone like to put in a good word for O Boteco?

Garry might

[garrygrimshaw]

Now, would anyone like to put in a good word for O Boteco?

Garry might

lol - do they do a good 16 euro steak?

[Canada]

Don't know about you....BUT I couldn't make head nor tail out of his posts.
A friends of ours loves that reataurant so needless to say we don't go there with them. It's a shame because it is a fabulous property!

[Barry]

So is O Boteco. Shame about the food.

[zhit]

We always love to come to "Via Italia" when my wife and me are on holiday in Carvoeiro. Gaetano and his staff are always friendly and we never had a reason to complain anything. So, I absolutely agree with garrygrimshaws opinion. We are hopefull to come back to Carvoeiro in September or in March next year and will eat at "Via Italia" for at least one time.

The only thing that really disturbes me is they way some people behave in this forum. Some comments so are arrogant and self-important. I find it embarrassing, that obviously some people have forgotten that they are still guests in Portugal or - at least - have forgotten how to behave in a foreign country. There is no reason to giggle about the way Portuguese try to write in english. The illiterates here should learn their own language first...

[EMM]

We have looked at this restaraunt but as there are so many to chose from we have just not got round to it yet.
It is true to say as that 80% of comments on this forum come from a very small number of contributors the value of their opinions can easily be given far too much importance.

We all have good and bad experiences when eating out.
Having read all the rave reveiws for Ela and Ela we thought we would give it a try.
It was certainly nowhere near the best meal we have had in CVO and it serves certainly the worst house wine we have had in 5 years of visits to the Algarve so would will not rush back. but thats just our opinion.
Bad or unpopular restaraunts even with a good summer trade don,t survive for long just look at Medina and the other empty spaces around town and Monte Carvoerio.
Via Italia must be doing something right or it would have gone out of business long ago.

[Horzah]

My wife and I visited Via Italia with my daughter and her friend. We went in the left hand door and my wife asked a young man if we were in the right place for the restaurant as it looked like a takeaway area. The young man grunted and motioned upstairs - I was on the verge of about-turning but my wife went upstairs anyway. I was not impressed with this initial lack of manners but was hungry and my mood improved upon being shown to a table with a fantastic view of the resort. We ordered some soft drinks and were given a menu each. Soon after the soft drinks arrived we were each given a small dish each which had 3 or 4 small potato balls and a pancake-type thing which on inspection contained mince. This was not ordered and as none of us eat red meat it was not eaten - the small potato balls were nibbled by the kids.

We ordered 3 pizza's and a penne arabiatti (spelling?). I asked if there was a sweet menu but the girl just rhymed off a list of items - the two girls ordered the profiteroles. These arrived covered in chocolate sauce/mousse. I then asked for the bill. 67 euros!! This included a charge of 8 euros for the unsolicited starters (couvert) - if I had wanted starters (I informed the girl) I would have chosen something that we could have eaten!! The profiteroles came to 12 euros for the pair and had me wishing that I had seen the price list for the sweet menu which I had requested and was not shown. After deducting the cost of the starter the bill came to 59 euros and that was the exact amount that I left - I had no motivation to leave a tip of any description.

The pizza base was like toasted nan-bread, the tomato purree base was thin and almost non-existent, the cheese was tasteless and the mushroooms (in mine) were thin sliced and it must have taken one mushroom exactly. We were NOT impressed and decided that the Via Italia had been our worst meal during our 9-day stay in Carvoeiro.