pavlvs-rex

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  10      Value  8     

Excellent. Italian dining in Canberra has been redeemed by virtue of this one establishment.

Casual yet refined dining, delivered with the class and finesse one would expect from a much more upmarket (read: expensive) establishment.

From the cured meats to the dessert (the chocolate torte was a masterpiece), I was extremely impressed.

The service? Outstanding. Value? Let's just say I thought that they deserved the particularly generous gratuity.

Mar 03, 2011

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

2.5 Not Recommended

Food  1      Ambience  2      Service  5      Value  2     

This place is also listed as Cipriani's Restaurant. At least the invoice says that. What can I say but utterly awful. An insult to food.

They advertise organic Angus beef from Murrambateman on the menu displayed outside. We had an osso bucco that was drowning in oil, with undercooked carrot, zucchini and partially raw potatoes. A steak that was equally submerged and overcooked with the same disgrace to vegetables on the side. The carpaccio itself was ok for texture, but flavourless (menu said lemon and garlic, all they did was drop exactly three drops of oil, around which the carpaccio was placed on the plate).

Service slow until time to collect plates, at which time seagull service arrived. I can't blame the wait staff, all of Indian extraction as it turned out, for the poor food. Following on from that, I can't blame them personally for their performance suffering under either appalling management and a woeful kitchen.

All in all, in a city full of mediocre eateries, this is the worst by far. I took a business guest out for dinner and was embarrassed for having chosen this dive of a place.

Nov 18, 2010

8.8 Highly Recommended

Food  9      Ambience  8      Service  10      Value  8     

Excellent. Italian dining in Canberra has been redeemed by virtue of this one establishment.

Casual yet refined dining, delivered with the class and finesse one would expect from a much more upmarket (read: expensive) establishment.

From the cured meats to the dessert (the chocolate torte was a masterpiece), I was extremely impressed.

The service? Outstanding. Value? Let's just say I thought that they deserved the particularly generous gratuity.

Mar 03, 2011

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

2.5 Not Recommended

Food  1      Ambience  2      Service  5      Value  2     

This place is also listed as Cipriani's Restaurant. At least the invoice says that. What can I say but utterly awful. An insult to food.

They advertise organic Angus beef from Murrambateman on the menu displayed outside. We had an osso bucco that was drowning in oil, with undercooked carrot, zucchini and partially raw potatoes. A steak that was equally submerged and overcooked with the same disgrace to vegetables on the side. The carpaccio itself was ok for texture, but flavourless (menu said lemon and garlic, all they did was drop exactly three drops of oil, around which the carpaccio was placed on the plate).

Service slow until time to collect plates, at which time seagull service arrived. I can't blame the wait staff, all of Indian extraction as it turned out, for the poor food. Following on from that, I can't blame them personally for their performance suffering under either appalling management and a woeful kitchen.

All in all, in a city full of mediocre eateries, this is the worst by far. I took a business guest out for dinner and was embarrassed for having chosen this dive of a place.

Nov 18, 2010