A little on the spendy side, but well worth it if you want a great Italian meal. I've walked past…read morethis place dozens of times, but it wasn't until I had a craving for it that I decided to give it a try. They probably don't get a whole lot of walk-in traffic because it's down a long alleyway between Oxford Road and the Hexagon Theatre. Welcomed warmly by the (manager? owner?), I was brought to a table with a lovely view of the restaurant and the massive wine racks. But wine wasn't what I wanted today and I went with a pint of Italian Peroni beer. When it was delivered, the manager started to tell me about the specials when I interrupted him. The starter he mentioned - thin sliced parma ham with melon and fresh figs - sounded so appealing that I knew I had to have it. And when he started listing the mains, it was the scalloped veal that caught my attention. The ham was fantastic. Simply amazing. With the sweet melon and the soft figs, I cleared my plate down the glaxing. And the veal! OMG, so much garlic and so much flavor. I was tearing off pieces of bread and chasing the last few bits around the plate to get all of it. Simply heavenly. An excellent, excellent meal. If you're looking for a romantic date night or perhaps entertaining business colleagues, Pepe Sale is the place for you. Truly magnificent!

This Sardinian restaurant is one that I passed last time I was in Reading, but I judged the book by…read moreits cover and decided to pass since it was located in a semi sketch "alley" and nobody was in the restaurant. Well this time around our host planned a group dinner there and had good things to say about the restaurant. There were 11 of us and we were immediately seated when we arrived. The waters came right away and throughout the evening our servers were very attentive. I started with the antipasti plate that had meats and cheese and it was really good. For my main I ordered the chicken wrapped in bacon and stuffed with mozzarella and it was amazing. The chicken was juicy and full of flavor. The food was great and all my colleagues enjoyed their meals as well. The only annoying thing was that the server kept correcting our pronunciation of every menu item. None of us tried to pretend we were Italian and did our best to pronounce it, but he was kind of being a jerk in his reprimanding of our poor language. But even with that annoyance, I'd go back when I'm in Reading.

Great Pizza and a lovely bloke who runs the place.read more

Terrible place, very old and very dirty. The toilet is full…read moreof dirty. The food is nice but when you arrive and check the restaurant you think. take out please? The owner/cook is not too bad quite submissively. During the week the stuff is Italian I believe, you can feel their love for the food and is more genuine than other Italian restaurants.

Great range of pizza, pasta and other Italian-style dishes. Homemade lemonade is just delicious!!…read moreThe food is somewhat pricey, but it's definitely of high quality. For those looking to save- they usually have a 25% offer during certain times, plus there is a lunch-time menu. However, you have to go to their site to know about it, as you are just given a regular menu. Service is usually quick and super-friendly, and they had a nice heating on during the winter ;)

I pass by this restaurant all the time. I have avoided it because for some reason I allow myself…read moreto go to other chain restaurants every now and then, but this one didn't make the cut (partly because I have a thing against paying to eat pasta in a restaurant unless it's going to be really good). I will be the first to admit I made a mistake. The decor is great, the wait staff are friendly and the ambiance is buzzing. We had some bruschetta capra to start (olive, tomato, cheese, oil, vinegar) and a few Peroni Gran Reserva. Excellent! I had the ravioli marittimo and my girlfriend had a caprina pizza. My ravioli was alright (reason for the 4), but the pizza was great. Cooked well, great flavor. We'll be back for the pizza, bruschetta and peroni!

I have been treated very unprofessionnally in this restaurant, and I will not step foot in there…read moreagain. I politely said to the manager that my dish had a strange smell (the meat seemed off), and not only he didn't accept it, but he made me feel really bad. Plus, at the end, he charged us the full price even if I returned it after having 2 bites. We didn't accept to pay of course and he got really crossed!!! There are many ok italian restaurants to chose from in Reading, so you are better off going somewhere else...

this is a nice restaurant in reading with a very convenient location If you are looking place to…read morehave coffee and do not like overpriced coffee chains, then give Dolce Vita a try. their expresso based drinks are excellent and the service was good. They also have a very good selection of cold drinks and cakes and nibbles, which is great if you have children in tow. Their service was great and they warmed up my baby milk for my friend without too much fuss, unlike some other coffee shops. The waiter was really helpful and the ambience was good.

Great spot for a quick lunch and coffee, they have a variety of italian sandwiches and focaccia…read more The staff is super friendly. They also sell a bunch of italian specialty products, anything from pasta and biscuits to cheeses, dips and sauces.

We went there for a birthday celebration and had a company of 20. We were very well taken care of,…read morethe staff were attentive despite our indecisiveness and the busyness of the place on that night. The food was good, the pizzas were not thick and one pizza per person was definitely filling. The pastas were huge, definitely worth the money paid. To top it off, we could use a discount voucher (they constantly updated their website for these vouchers) and we only paid a meagre sum per person although we had much to eat and drink. The ambience was fantastic as well. If there was no large crowds like us, the place would be fantastic for a dinner date.

I had a terrible time last time I was there…read more The fire alarm was going off for at least 30 minutes (it had broken apparently), so you couldn't hear yourself think. Noone came to apologise or anything in that time, just ignored us. When we did get our food (about an hour after we arrived) mine was cold, so I politely sent it (with some salad now on the side) back. And - you've guessed it - they microwaved the whole lot!!! Including my salad! When I said something, they just shrugged and walked off leaving me with it. Noone came to see us, so we just paid and left without finishing our meal. I wish I'd persevered and complained more at the time. Will probably give it another chance at some point as it might have been a one-off but nervous

Not sure how many times I have walked by this place, but it's on my list for a second visit…read more Classified as a pub, but should be classified as a Mediterranean restaurant as well. Restaurant is upstairs from the pub. Pleasantly surprised by the decor. Good selection of Italian and Greek options. Our waitress was extremely nice and helped me make a tough decision on my main course. I had the veal escalope with tomato sauce and mozzarella. Was done quite well. My girlfriend had the tortellini and it was excellent.

Il Gusto is one of the best italian restaurants I have been to in the UK…read more they serve authentic italian pasta that is cooked to perfection :ie al dente. I had the salmon pasta, with creamy sauce and salmon bits and it was as good as the one i ate at a famous restaurant in Italy. the interior of the restaurant is also a plus point as it looks like an old cottage and the upper floor dining are is just really nice. They have an excellent selection of wine, and the waitress is very attentive, making sure that we are settled and enjoying our meal. Highly recommended. It is also family and children friendly, so excellent for a family night out.

Can service be this bad..... I'm visiting from out of town and I hope to god British service isn't…read moreas bad at other restaurants then this place! No one greeted me, took over 20 minutes for a member of staff to even notice me sitting at a table, food was "meh" and I kid you not I've been waiting here for over an hour for my bill and no one has rechecked back in with me for anything. If the term dine and dash were ever true, this would be the perfect time to do it! I mean they wouldn't even know I was gone. If I had to give less then one star I would. A terrible, terrible place with bad service. Thank god I live across the pond from this shit hole.

Good offering of Italian Pizza and Pasta…read more Staff are friendly and seem to be able to cope well even when they are busy. Food is of a good quality and the price is quite reasonable. Great for a lunchtime fix. I've since moved away from the area and this is one of the places I do miss.