La Fenice is a good Italian restaurant…read more However, it has all the makings of a GREAT Italian restaurant if it could succumb to a few simple tweaks. I went there with friends recently. The vibe of the places squeals 'style', the friendly smiling attention of the servers likewise. Then we we given the menus. The combination of low light, nothing specific illuminating our table and pale grey printing on the pages of the menu meant... well, it meant we couldn't actually see what was on offer! I am not making this up when I say to read it we had to spark up a smartphone and hold it over the pages and then lean in as a combined trio to pore over the contents. So simple suggestion 1:- Quickly reprint the menus using good old fashioned black ink and save your diners the embarrassment and awkwardness of having to squint like a very squinty thing. Simple Suggestion #2:- If you must play music over the speakers, please, please, PLEASE play something that is in keeping with the stylish vibe of the place. I will remember La Fenice's craptastic selection of horrible saxophone solos, cheesy light jazz rubbish, out-of-tune wailers and (at one point an utterly bizarre choice of) German oompah band music FAR longer than I will remember the food I ate there. And the food is good. One of our party had a pizza which looked inviting and was polished off in its 14" entirety whilst the other two opted for the risottos (mushroom or chicken) which came out from the kitchen hot and steaming and very tasty indeed, garnished and accompanied perfectly. The food served to the tables around us all looked terrific and almost everyone seemed to be having a nice time... even if eyebrows did collectively raise when that oompah tune came on. Le Fenice's website - just discovered - states that fish is their speciality. I wish I had known that on the night as its been a long time since I've had a good Italian fish dish. Sadly, the design of the menu meant I never even saw this kind of offering to choose it. Like I said. A good Italian restaurant with all the makings of being a great one. Worth a try if you take along a flashlight/torch and a sturdy pair of music-blocking earplugs!

I love this restuarant! The staff are so friendly and helpful and are able to cater for any special…read moredietary needs. The food is basic Italian, with a couple of English dishes (Steak etc). The price is very reasonable, and the size of the portions is huge! The lunchtime menu is especially good value for money. The atmosphere and decor of Fenice is very clean and modern, it's quite small so on busy nights you might need to book. I reccommend this place 100% it's lovely in every aspect!!

Sometimes you go to a restaurant regularly and you begin to forget it is special, that happened to…read moreme with Piccolo Mondo. My son goes to university in Southampton and every time I visit we go to Piccolo Mondo, as it is his favorite pizza anywhere. I've never had a bad meal but today reminded me how great it is. I started with the burrata special, which was incredible. Not only fresh and hearty portion of burrata, but a ton of prosciutto and great spices, so the cheese did not get overwhelming. I wasn't that hungry so I ordered the prawns as a main, I was in awe at how many very large prawns I got. The butter/oil garlic sauce was also great, and even the salad that accompanied it was special. I've never been disappointed in the service, and this visit was again both friendly and efficient. I heartily recommend.

Without reservations and upon a recommendation by a volunteer at the SeaCity Museum, we went there…read more(just across the street). Excellent recommendation! In reviewing the previous comments, there is really nothing more I can add except it met expectations. A very cozy small place I'd call a hidden gem. Probably should book ahead just in case.

Walked to the area from a nearby hotel looking for somewhere to have dinner. Saw this place had…read moresome nice outdoor seating and went inside. I waited a while before a server came, by then I was ready to order. I was surprised they did not have fountain drinks, only warm bottles of soda. After I ordered, another guy was seated outside. He sat there a while without anyone going to his table and he left. My appetizer took about 20 minutes to come out. I ate half of it with the intention of taking the rest of it with me for later. When the lasagna I ordered was brought to the table, I had been there for almost an hour. I also had to stop the server from taking away my partially eaten appetizer. I was expecting a slice of lasagna, but it appears they made them one at a time in a skillet in the oven. It was served extremely hot, enough that they put a sticker on the skillet saying so. The cheese around the edge was burned, and it ended up being a meat, cheese, and noodle mess. I ate as much as I wanted to, then waited for my server to come back so I could get the bill and box. Eventually, I was one of only 2 tables left in the place, and none of the servers were visible. I saw there was a way to pay with my phone, so I just ate what I was going to take with me, paid, and left just under 2 hours after I originally arrived. Far too long for 1 person to have 1 appetizer and 1 entrée.

The food was incredibly overpriced for portions received. Further, the food we received wasn't…read moregreat. My pasta was gummy and didn't have much meat. By the menu, I thought this would be an upscale experience, it was not. The other food was okay, I enjoyed my husband's lasagna, but again. There were maybe 4 big bites at a pretty steep price tag. With the exception of the lasagna (which was still overpriced), it tasted like cheap eats. I do not wish to be mean, I just cannot believe they're charging those prices for that quality and quantity of food. I truly hope others have better experiences!

A wonderful experience. Very quaint. The 2 servers worked as a team. Very pleasant and…read moreaccommodating. Great food! I had the lasagna with a couple of minestrone soup. My wife had a bowl of the soup. Lots of stock in it.

Fantastic service and excellent food! I highly recommend this restaurant off the main path and…read moreworth the 10 minute walk from downtown area

It was very tasty, i mean Italian dishes are wonderful but this is out of this world great…read more I had their special pasta and burger with my date and it was spectacular Very great reception also

This was the first pizza restaurant I have been to since I came to the UK, I ordered barbecue pizza…read moreI remembered, and after a few times discovering and trying, now I have decided that I favorite pizza here is barbecue since there is no durian pizza or fruit pizza here. By the way, we really enjoy fruit pizza and it is not weird at all !

My husband brought me Puccini's chicken vegetable soup tonight. I was pleasantly surprised by how…read morewonderful it was! Real fresh house made soup! Just what I needed after not feeling well. Bravo chef!

This is a lovely Italian restaurant in Shirley. I went with my girlfriend, who lives very close by,…read moreso the location was perfect. All the food we ate was delicious- bruschetta and garlic ciabatta as appetisers, and pasta and pizza main courses, washed down with the house white wine. I really can't complain about the food or drink in any way. The staff were friendly and quick to take care of our needs. Unfortunately, there was a children's birthday in the restaurant, which made it relatively noisy, but this is not the fault of the place at all. I highly recommend Puccini's, and will be back in the future.

The head chef James madden calls people names on social media if they do not share his ideas about…read morediet. That is not a good advertisement for a restaurant . I have a large family and circle of friends and after that experience I would discourage them to dine there and be instrumental in paying this person's wages.

From the owner: Italian-inspired Charcuterie Platters Small Plates…read moreSharing Plates

We were sat down immediately, and food came out super quick. The restaurant was fairly empty but…read morestill felt rushed when browsing the menu. We ordered the garlic and cheese bread and calamari for starters, carbonara and Diavolo pizza for main, and a honeycombe cheesecake. Couldn't taste any garlic in the garlic bread but there was plenty of cheese, and the calamari which was mostly bland and very nearly rubbery was saved by the tartar sauce. The carbonara was ruined by too much onion- couldn't get out any other flavour, and the pizza tasted soapy (should have taken a picture to add to the review so you could see the bubbles). The dessert came out very fast- but felt shop bought, definitely not worth the £5.50 paid. Service was curt but pleasant, we wouldn't choose to go back, but wouldn't protest heavily if asked to go.

I was taken here by my boyfriend on our first 'date' and I absolutely loved the place. A good…read moreselection of drinks on offer while we sat at the bar before our meal and the staff were great in helping up pick a wine to go with our meal. The food was fantastic. Started off with the bruschetta which we shared and was a perfect amount for two. I had the cod main which just melted in my mouth and I just couldn't get enough of it. My boyfriends pizza was equally as delicious. We didn't get chance to try any of the deserts as we were too full by this point but the menu did look tempting. Overall, it was a perfect place for a romantic meal. The staff were attentive and knowledgeable and the food was just divine.