Giovanni's - Whitstable, Kent
Description
The restaurant consists of five converted houses, providing enough space to seat 80 diners.Style of food on offer: French, Seafood, Italian
Parking: Public Transport Accessible
Bar Facilities: Full bar
Smoking policy: Smoking permitted
Review Summary
Giovanni's has received 7 reviews, giving the following average ratings (out of 10 - higher is better):| Overall: | 3.4 |
| Food: | 4.3 |
| Service: | 4.3 |
| Ambiance: | 4.3 |
The reviews can be seen in full below these details.
Recommended dishes: Duck was tasty None Anything as long as its not here.
Address and Contact Details
|
49-55 Canterbury Road Whitstable Kent England CT5 4HH |
Telephone: 01227 273034 Opening Hours: Tuesday to Sunday 12.00pm - 2.30pm 6.30pm - 10.00pm |
Other Information
Accepted payment methods:American Express
Visa
Diners' Club
MasterCard/Eurocard
Dress code: Dressy casual
Customer Reviews for Giovanni's - Whitstable
Nice Nosh! - review added on Mon 5th Jun 2000
Had a nice evening! The food was tasty especially the starter; mushroom in a cheesy sauce hmmm tasty!
Recommended Dishes: duck was tasty
60's - 70's Throwback - review added on Sun 16th Jan 2005
Still featuring on a number of local websites as having won an award (dunno which one or when) I can't decide whether to utterly slate Giovanni's or recommend you go simply for a bizarre time-travel experience.Once upon a time there were italian restaurants where big leather bars and seats and the compulsory drink before dinner were cool. When you sat down you'd probably order something with cherries on or a dish that was so slathered in cream and brandy and gunk that you wouldn't notice the 45-minute cooked vegetables served fork-and-spoon by the staff all wearing the same bri-nylon outfits. The sweet trolley (not pudding - sweet) would have ornate glass bowls with peaches in juice and a thousand nasty ways with cream based tiram...oh y'know stuff with sherry and cream ad nauseam.Giovanni's has not moved one inch forward in lord knows how many years. It's still pretty full up with people but I cannot for the life of me work out why. It's so hugely out of date from the over-blasted veg to the "we'll give you two more spoonfuls of whatever it is we're serving you even though you've just said "please *really* no more"for the third time just to prove what a homely place it is".Cannot recommend a restaurant in Kent more deserving of the full Gordon Ramsey treatment. For god's sake - *please* give us a decent italian locally that is somewhere towards the current decade!
Recommended Dishes: None
Italian.... Where is the Pizza???!!! - review added on Mon 20th Mar 2006
Talk about going back in time... Service awful, if I want something I ask! Manager was a loud greasy Italian overweight. Food rather un-interesting and boring, also far too pricey for my liking!! Would not recommend.. Thank god for Zizzis opening in the Towns Market Square.
Out of date!? Why is that bad!? - review added on Fri 5th May 2006
I'm very interested to see that the other reviews on this page are critical of the era that Giovanni's is set in. I, however, think that those very traditional values are what makes it the desirable restaurant it is! Perhaps I am wrong; perhaps slovenliness is in fashion now? Perhaps talentless, cheap teenage waiters and waitresses are what people are looking for these days?If being out of date means being looked after by attentive waiters then I am out of date,if being out of date means expecting a high level of service throughout then I am out of date.Give me throw-back any day if that means good service!
Worst Meal Ever - review added on Fri 18th Aug 2006
We went there thinking although it looked dated we would get a decent italian meal. We didn't know that new owners had taken over. We asked the owner/manager for help with the wine list and he said "i'm going to recommend the most expensive aren't I?"and walked off laughing. The woman behind the bar came over and helped us with wine. I had a starter of burnt scallops. Main course of fillet steak (the only fillet steak I've ever had with gristle round it) and tiramisu for pudding - The dregs from the serving bowl were scraped in to my dish. That was 2 years ago and I haven't been back since even though it's a 5 minute walk nor would I recommend it to anyone.
Dreadful Valentines meal!! - review added on Fri 15th Feb 2008
We had the worse meal that we have ever eaten at ANY restaurant last night! The service was truly awful - they ignored us for 15 minutes as we didn't have the usual drink at the Bar! The food was dire, a printed sheet of paper with fixed choices - when I complained I was told that I should have asked for A La Carte if I wanted it - my fault!!Worse cheap thinnest fatty gristly steak , Triamasu slopped onto my bowl - onlt good point was the bottle of wine - would hope so at £23!!! - one of the cheapest on the menu!! DO NOT EAT THERE - unless you like 70's grubby decor, over prices horrible food and rude service!
2nd Worst Meal Ever - review added on Tue 19th Feb 2008
The worst meal I ever had was last year @ Giovannis (why did I go back you ask) I did try other restaurants first but all were booked. Well I thought it must have improved if its still open, how wrong can you be ( I should have seen the signs when I got a table for that same night). It was dreadful we had to borrow a menu from other dinners waited 35 mins to place our order and when the food arrived it was inedible. I quickly rearranged our taxi and left paying only for the wine and pre dinner drinks (£65 for 2 people!!!). Before we left I noticed several other people leaving with half drunk bottles of wine not a good sign. Wait a few months and this place will be closed or have changed hands.
Recommended Dishes: Anything as long as its not here.
Had a nice evening! The food was tasty especially the starter; mushroom in a cheesy sauce hmmm tasty!
| Overall: | 6 |
| Food: | 10 |
| Service: | 8 |
| Ambiance: | 8 |
Recommended Dishes: duck was tasty
60's - 70's Throwback - review added on Sun 16th Jan 2005
Still featuring on a number of local websites as having won an award (dunno which one or when) I can't decide whether to utterly slate Giovanni's or recommend you go simply for a bizarre time-travel experience.Once upon a time there were italian restaurants where big leather bars and seats and the compulsory drink before dinner were cool. When you sat down you'd probably order something with cherries on or a dish that was so slathered in cream and brandy and gunk that you wouldn't notice the 45-minute cooked vegetables served fork-and-spoon by the staff all wearing the same bri-nylon outfits. The sweet trolley (not pudding - sweet) would have ornate glass bowls with peaches in juice and a thousand nasty ways with cream based tiram...oh y'know stuff with sherry and cream ad nauseam.Giovanni's has not moved one inch forward in lord knows how many years. It's still pretty full up with people but I cannot for the life of me work out why. It's so hugely out of date from the over-blasted veg to the "we'll give you two more spoonfuls of whatever it is we're serving you even though you've just said "please *really* no more"for the third time just to prove what a homely place it is".Cannot recommend a restaurant in Kent more deserving of the full Gordon Ramsey treatment. For god's sake - *please* give us a decent italian locally that is somewhere towards the current decade!
| Overall: | 2 |
| Food: | 2 |
| Service: | 4 |
| Ambiance: | 6 |
Recommended Dishes: None
Italian.... Where is the Pizza???!!! - review added on Mon 20th Mar 2006
Talk about going back in time... Service awful, if I want something I ask! Manager was a loud greasy Italian overweight. Food rather un-interesting and boring, also far too pricey for my liking!! Would not recommend.. Thank god for Zizzis opening in the Towns Market Square.
| Overall: | 2 |
| Food: | 4 |
| Service: | 4 |
| Ambiance: | 2 |
Out of date!? Why is that bad!? - review added on Fri 5th May 2006
I'm very interested to see that the other reviews on this page are critical of the era that Giovanni's is set in. I, however, think that those very traditional values are what makes it the desirable restaurant it is! Perhaps I am wrong; perhaps slovenliness is in fashion now? Perhaps talentless, cheap teenage waiters and waitresses are what people are looking for these days?If being out of date means being looked after by attentive waiters then I am out of date,if being out of date means expecting a high level of service throughout then I am out of date.Give me throw-back any day if that means good service!
| Overall: | 8 |
| Food: | 8 |
| Service: | 8 |
| Ambiance: | 6 |
Worst Meal Ever - review added on Fri 18th Aug 2006
We went there thinking although it looked dated we would get a decent italian meal. We didn't know that new owners had taken over. We asked the owner/manager for help with the wine list and he said "i'm going to recommend the most expensive aren't I?"and walked off laughing. The woman behind the bar came over and helped us with wine. I had a starter of burnt scallops. Main course of fillet steak (the only fillet steak I've ever had with gristle round it) and tiramisu for pudding - The dregs from the serving bowl were scraped in to my dish. That was 2 years ago and I haven't been back since even though it's a 5 minute walk nor would I recommend it to anyone.
| Overall: | 2 |
| Food: | 2 |
| Service: | 2 |
| Ambiance: | 2 |
Dreadful Valentines meal!! - review added on Fri 15th Feb 2008
We had the worse meal that we have ever eaten at ANY restaurant last night! The service was truly awful - they ignored us for 15 minutes as we didn't have the usual drink at the Bar! The food was dire, a printed sheet of paper with fixed choices - when I complained I was told that I should have asked for A La Carte if I wanted it - my fault!!Worse cheap thinnest fatty gristly steak , Triamasu slopped onto my bowl - onlt good point was the bottle of wine - would hope so at £23!!! - one of the cheapest on the menu!! DO NOT EAT THERE - unless you like 70's grubby decor, over prices horrible food and rude service!
| Overall: | 2 |
| Food: | 2 |
| Service: | 2 |
| Ambiance: | 2 |
2nd Worst Meal Ever - review added on Tue 19th Feb 2008
The worst meal I ever had was last year @ Giovannis (why did I go back you ask) I did try other restaurants first but all were booked. Well I thought it must have improved if its still open, how wrong can you be ( I should have seen the signs when I got a table for that same night). It was dreadful we had to borrow a menu from other dinners waited 35 mins to place our order and when the food arrived it was inedible. I quickly rearranged our taxi and left paying only for the wine and pre dinner drinks (£65 for 2 people!!!). Before we left I noticed several other people leaving with half drunk bottles of wine not a good sign. Wait a few months and this place will be closed or have changed hands.
| Overall: | 2 |
| Food: | 2 |
| Service: | 2 |
| Ambiance: | 4 |
Recommended Dishes: Anything as long as its not here.
Review What You Eat uses modified ChefMoz data as well as our own - you can add entries direct to ChefMoz via the following links:
|