Jannick
Google
Unfortunately, a Night with a Nasty Aftermath – Never Again La Regata
We were really looking forward to our dinner at La Regata the Saturday evening before last. The evening started off pleasantly – the atmosphere was lovely, the service friendly, and the food truly tasted great. A small irritation was that the olive oil was removed from our table and only provided in small portions upon request – odd, but nothing to get upset about.
What followed, however, was an absolute disaster.
Later that night, I suddenly became seriously ill – diarrhea, severe vomiting, and fever. I was completely out of action for about 24 hours. As we’re currently on a bikepacking tour and had only eaten a small breakfast and a few energy bars that day, the link to dinner was more than obvious.
For my main course, I had the trout tartare from Lake Garda (“Paccheri zafferano asparagi tartare trota”) – in hindsight, a very unfortunate choice. Before that, we were served an amuse-bouche: a small piece of fish on a dollop of mayonnaise. My partner had the tuna tartare and, luckily, was completely fine.
Today, we went back to the restaurant to raise our concerns.
The first reaction we received was: “That’s not possible.” No sympathy, no surprise, no concern. Then we were asked: “How many people got sick?” – as if that makes a difference. Since I was the only one affected, they eventually offered us a 50% discount on our next meal. No thank you! After some hesitation, they offered to refund the cost of only my dish – but not once during the entire conversation did anyone say a simple “sorry.”
At no point were we given the feeling that the restaurant might have made a mistake.
No sense of responsibility, no sincere regret – nothing. Just a defensive stance and the attempt to smooth it over with a discount.
Conclusion:
The evening started off well – the food was flavorful, and the service pleasant. That’s why we had chosen the restaurant in the first place – the reviews are excellent. But the way they handled a very serious health-related incident was deeply disappointing. We truly hope this was a one-off and that no other guests were affected.
