Portofino - WIRRAL

We did a last minute booking for 5 on a Saturday evening and we really enjoyed our meal. The sharing platters (one seafood and one antipasto) were generous and delicious. All 5 of us loved our main courses which were clearly cooked fresh on the premises. We also liked the house wine. Portions were generous so no room for desserts! Service was pleasant. The restaurant wasn’t full which seems a shame for them as the bill was very reasonable and lots of choices on the menu. We’ll definitely go again when we’re in new Brighton.

I used to frequent this lovely Italian restaurant with Italian staff and delicious food, but my recent visit was disappointing. The staff seemed inexperienced and struggled to take a simple drink order, resulting in a long wait and multiple attempts to get what we wanted. The quality of the food had also declined since my last visit, with dishes lacking flavor and proper presentation. Even as a regular customer, I was let down when I brought a guest all the way from Budapest. The garlic bread with cheese was not as good as before, and most of our mains were bland. My son's carbonara lacked pepper and parmesan, requiring me to add extra seasoning just to eat it. The salmon was overcooked to the point of being inedible. Despite expressing our concerns to the staff and manager, they did not offer much of a response. Feeling embarrassed and disappointed, I quickly paid the £115.10 bill (which turned out to include an extra drink charge) and left. I reached out to the restaurant through their Facebook page, but I doubt I will receive a response as they seem uninterested.

We used to go here quite a lot, but not for years, for no particular reason. So we decided to give it another go, The food was well priced and very good quality. The service was excellent. It’s a very comfortable restaurant with the background music level just right. Will definitely return more regularly.

Really disappointing meal, poor service, toilet s grubby and unkept absolutely would not return bill practically through at us

We have been going to Portofino for many years now, and the food has always been excellent, even through various changes of management. This weekend however, the experience wasn't so great. The food was still good, but the staff management seemed very chaotic drinks orders forgotten, being asked 3 or 4 times if you have ordered yet, being brought the same order twice and also not asking if you are ready to order the next course. None of the staff seemed to know which tables they were supposed to be looking after. Just small stuff, but it's what makes a restaurant average, rather than great.