Lugarno Seafood

1.5 Not Recommended

Food  1      Ambience  3      Service  1      Value  1     

Should have went with my gut feeling after reading all the reviews on this place but was stubborn and thought to give it the benefit of the doubt and give it a shot anyway. Just came back from there for my husbands 30th birthday with our families.

Service was an absolute shocker. Can't believe the lack of attention to detail and the rude staff. Wouldn't hurt if the senior staff cracked a smile either. Just got a bad vibe about the place from the moment we walked in.

Food is lousy! For what you pay it is definitely not worth it. We ordered the set menu and I am very disappointed at the quality of food. The veal was dry and flavour was not even close to standard. The tortellini was lacking flavour too. Not much of a break between starters and mains feel like they are just rushing.

The lighting in there is a shocker, just seems to get darker as the night progresses, seems as though they are trying to cover up all the mistakes by keeping you in the dark!

We took a birthday cake and gave it to the staff on arrival to bring out later. Once our plates were cleared after mains, all of a sudden one of the waiters comes up with the birthday cake and candles lit up without even asking us if we were ready for it or wanted to order any coffees etc and then places the birthday cake in front of my father in law who mind you is in his 60s instead of my husband and on arrival they asked me who the cake was going to and I told them, they couldn't even get that right!

Once I pointed out the the waiter how rude and unprofessional that was for not even asking if we were ready, his answer was "I thought you wanted a surprise". My blood is absolutely boiling after tonights experience. What an embarrassment, what was meant to be a nice and memorable night out with family for a special occasion ended up a disaster!

Basically, the Only good thing about this place would have to be the location/ view. Even that is not a reason to be going there. Don't even bother wasting your time or your money!

Jan 26, 2012 

1.8 Not Recommended

Food  3      Ambience  2      Service  1      Value  1     

Horrible experience a few years ago and haven't been back since, one dish was cold when it was brought to the table and after asking the waiter for a replacement he took it into the kitchen and brought back the exact same plate a few minutes later. Obviously had not been cooked fresh again and our thoughts were it was reheated. Senior staff refused to accept this and ended up causing a scene, And expected us to pay for the dish. Not recommended.

Jan 24, 2012 

1.8 Not Recommended

Food  4      Ambience  1      Service  1      Value  1     

In short, don't bother. The food was quite nice but expensive for the small servings. The lights kept getting dimmer the longer we were there until we were practically eating in the dark.

The service was abysmal. The wait staff were surly and there was a long wait between each course for dinner and while the alcohol was delivered promptly to the table I had to ask for water 3 times before it arrived. I honestly felt that it was an imposition for them to have to wait on us. A totally underwhelming experience and we won't be going back.

Jan 08, 2012 

5.3 Average

Food  5      Ambience  5      Service  8      Value  3     

Quite average. Didn't read any reviews going there but was expecting a lot more. The seafood platter just doesn't cut it. Cheap plastic trays for serving don't belong in the kitchen anymore. Zucchini flowers and mussel hotpot were nice but for $280 for 3 ppl, definitely not worth it. Won't go back.

Dec 02, 2011 

8.3 Highly Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  8      Service  9      Value  8     

My boyfriend took me here for my birthday dinner and after reading some of the reviews we were a little bit concerned about what to expect. The negative reviews seem to be very harsh after experiencing it for ourselves. We ordered the seafood platter which was delicious. Every element on the platter was perfectly cooked, however we just wished we had a little extra. The service was fantastic and they were very attentive to our needs. The food came out very quick and the waiters were all very friendly and helpful. We loved the owner at the end thanking us for coming and asking us if we had a nice meal. We wouldn't hesitate coming back to try other dishes.

Sep 30, 2011 

1 Not Recommended

Food  1      Ambience  1      Service  1      Value  1     

We paid $700+ for 3 serves of garlic bread, drinks and we were advised to have BBQ seafood platters. The platters were sent back because they were full of butter. Not recommended to anyone unless you like clogged arteries and heart problems. On top of this the owner did not even offer an apology. No value at all, I'm not going again and my friends 40th birthday was a disaster.

Sep 29, 2011 

7.8 Recommended

Food  8      Ambience  7      Service  9      Value  7     

Contrary to recent reviews, our family had a delightful dining experience on 28 July for my mother's birthday. There were 6 of us and all were impressed with the food which was tasty and well presented. The waiter was delightful, attentive and professional and with a wonderful sense of humour. We have booked again for another birthday celebration in October. Yes the decor is a little dated but the quiet riverside location is very relaxing and it was a beautiful sunny day.

Sep 01, 2011 

2.3 Not Recommended

Food  4      Ambience  2      Service  2      Value  1     

Our dining experience was very underwhelming. It started with the valet parking attendant racing madly at us as we attempted to park in the empty carpark. He insisted on parking our car up the street for reasons unknown. It still didn't become clear after we asked the 'Front of House' lady who was sullen and far from welcoming. Later we saw her walking around the restaurant munching on biscuits looking extremely bored.

While waiting quite some time for our drinks, we were given someone else's drinks and then when ours arrived, they got them mixed up. Both the women waiters were nice but the young waitress kept calling me "love" and wasn't terribly professional (to say the least!). The male waiter was unfriendly and abrupt.

Our entrees/mains were reasonably nice but average. Desserts were less than average. My daughter ordered creme brulee which was a completely liquid consistency. If it was mine I would have sent it back but I didn't want to spoil it for my daughter. Overall the food was way overpriced and the quality was less than average.

Throughout our evening we witnessed a number of 'amusing' incidents involving the waiters/service. The restaurant/food is very dated and the service unprofessional. Foodies stay clear! Needless to say we would never return.

Aug 17, 2011 

2.3 Not Recommended

Food  3      Ambience  3      Service  2      Value  1     

Mothers day 2011 will always be remembered as one of my worst dining experiences all time! There were 5 mothers including myself on our table (mother in law, mum, grans. The hubbies treated us all for what we thought would be a lovely lunch by the water.

Where do I start? We had a 2.30pm reservation. We waited 1.5 hrs to be seated. We then waited another 45 mins to be given a menu and order a drink. Lets just say that by 5.30pm we were starving! We had only received the garlic bread we had ordered at 5pm and my little ones were getting very restless.

Not only was the service excruciatingly slow but one of our waiters was very rude. I had ordered the beef and when the meals finally came out to us at 5.45pm I got the salmon! (I hate salmon). When I pointed this out to the waiter his response was "you ordered the salmon". When he was quickly corrected by the very annoyed members on my table, he failed to apologise and rudely shoved the plate back to me saying "just eat it and I'll get you the beef too".

I will never go back to this restaurant again. The food was average and certainly not worth the money we paid! we were also charged for the plate of salmon that we did not order or end up eating! Very disappointing.

May 16, 2011 

4 Below Average

Food  4      Ambience  5      Service  3      Value  4     

We usually dine here once or twice a year but this visit will be our last.

Service has always been a bit lacking and prices a tad high, but the great location and fresh seafood have always kept it on our roster. We decided to splurge to celebrate a special occasion.

Looked like new staff all round (again) and in a freak incident a large bottle of tap water sprung a leak "amidships" as waiter #1 approached our table. It was like it was peeing... all over my wife and her plate. The waiter was stunned, walked off and returned shaking his head but never asked if my wife needed a napkin etc.

Entree's were fine although I was not impressed when waiter #2 clumsily clanked my long tasting plate on my cutlery and I got an unwelcome whiff of his ashtray breath as he rudely leaned across me.

There were only about a dozen diners in the joint but what should have been a refined relaxing atmosphere was ruined by an odd choice of music. Rod Stewart crooning some Cole Porter numbers was fine but Bryan Adams belting out "18 til I die" was cringeworthy - sadly Bryan was on high rotation all night.

Waiter #1 and waiter #2 didn't seem to be working well as a team. After our entree plates were returned to the kitchen there was a loud collision as waiter #2 came barging out and knocked all the plates and cutlery from waiter #1's grasp. They never even acknowledged each other after the incident.

Things started to go downhill soon after the mains arrived. My fish (and that of our friend) was simply prepared and nicely cooked but my wife's veal topped with seafood looked much the worse for wear. Quite obviously spent too much time under a grill keeping warm, the seafood was shrivelled, the veal turning up at the sides and what appeared to be a splodge of melted cheese was actually congealed hollandaise, with the whole dish drowning in a sea of brown sauce.

My wife ate a few mouthfuls but then pushed the plate away complaining that it was so salty that she couldn't continue. I had already taken a hit from the savagely over salted mushroom side, and after tasting her veal I had to agree.

It was politely sent back as unpalatable. A short while later waiter #1 returned, asking what was wrong with the dish as "he had tasted it himself and it was fine" - he even had the gall to ask my wife if she had put the salt on it herself !!!

When the dessert menu came out the olive branch was extended and a complimentary dessert offered. We ate our sweets and then sat back to enjoy the show as liqueur coffees were prepared at the table (much too sickly for me, I’m only ever a spectator). The production was a major flop - the two waiters couldn't co-ordinate their parts and when all was said and done there were two glass cups, one full to the brim and the other no more than 2/3rds full. They just looked at each other, shrugged their shoulders and walked off.

Meanwhile Bryan was croaking out "Summer of '69" ... "those were the best days of my life ..."

When the bill came I was appalled to find we had been charged for the veal, so I summoned waiter #1 and politely informed him that I was not prepared to pay for it. He left without saying a word and returned several minutes later with a new bill with the veal removed and the complimentary dessert now added to the bill!

I saved myself any further aggravation, paid the bill and walked out knowing that we would never return.

Mar 04, 2011