I've always wondered what the purpose of Spaghetti House was. Is it to bring a taste of Italy to…read moreHong Kong? Nope, for that you should go to Sole Mio or Piola. Is it to provide a quick lunch menu for office workers? Nope, the hole in the wall noodle shop is better for that. Well, whatever they are doing, they seem to be doing it right. There are loads of branches all over HK, and they seem to always be full of local Hong Kongers.
For me, it is all about "fast food" pasta. In the same way Pizza Hut chuck out mediocre pizzas, compared to say Paisano's, Spaghetti House chucks out mediocre, but always consistent, pasta for the masses.
Look, it's perfectly fine. I come here for the same thing every time, lasagne and chips, which reminds me of school dinners. However, I have slowed my rate of attendance of late, as it is seemingly getting more and more expensive. It used to be cheap place to fill you boots on "home style" Italian food, but it's actually starting to get as pricey as some of the joints in Soho. Especially when a lot of the Soho Italian restaurants do Super Monday. At last visit, my lasagne cost HKD118, plus service.
The restaurants themselves are perfectly fine. They are nothing to get excited about, merely providing a place to sit and eat, which is reasonably clean. The staff are generally OK, a bit under paid perhaps to really care about good customer service, but perfectly pleasant if not efficient. They don't speak much English in these restaurants, which reinforces my notion that it may be Italian for the local masses. They also do a loyalty VIP card, which give you money off, if you think you may be visiting a lot!