Ristorante Giglio

Let me start by saying that the food is so amazing that I had to give it 5 stars in total - BUT the service here is below subpar for a restaurant that prides itself on the michelin star it used to have. The service is probably a big reason why it doesn't have that star anymore. The waiters seemed to be very busy and some staff members were straight up lying. Small things like forgetting to remove the bread crumbs from our table, a glass that was broken on the rim where you put your lips and forgetting to come back to explain the food we just got. The part that made it very bad was in particular one waiter who came with the food and just said "enjoy" without explaining what food was, twice. The first time he did it, I asked him what dessert we just got - he said "it's ice cream". I asked him what kind and he said "vanilla ice cream with strawberry on top". We tasted it and didn't taste like that at all. I asked another waiter what dessert we got and it turned out it wasn't a dessert at all, but a pallet cleanser - a type of ice cream that was smoked on wood with olive oil etc. which gives it a sense of cheese mouthfeel. Either way - the first waiter had no idea and decided to just explain what the dish looked like instead of saying "I don't know but I'll find a waiter who does" or something like that. My wife was pregnant and so her food was well done - that waiter could have probably mixed up the dishes which could have been bad. Either way... The taste and creativity makes up for it. But as I said, if they want their michelin star back they need to fix the waiter situation first.

This restaurant offers delicious Italian fare in an elegant setting. The service is attentive but not intrusive. Love the outdoor seating with a view of the piazza!

Heated rumors of a great tasting menu. Read their philosophy about menus and made a reservation the next day! Loved it. Paired wines worked perfectly. Portions were perfect so that you were satisfied it not over full. Flavors and combinations were creative and evoked memories. A perfect sensory experience. Service was friendly and professional. Don’t hesitate. Come enjoy the creativity

Very nice food and the service was great. A friend recommended this place and was not dissapointed!

I don’t normally leave a poor review but I believe transparency is key. As a huge foodie and having ate at many Michelin restaurants, this restaurant’s food was mediocre at best, especially at the price you are paying in Lucca. Firstly, I had the chestnut mushroom pie which I believe is one of their selling points and that dish was phenomenal, but the sea urchin pasta on the other hand was alright - nothing spectacular. In fact, I got an allergic reaction after ingesting the sea urchin pasta. Secondly, the service was horrific - the servers looked tired and absent. It was impossible to get their attention, so there are times when I had to get out of my seat in order to command their attention. Considering that half the dining room was empty, it didn’t make a lot of sense to me why I couldn’t get their attention. Also, the order of service was wrong. Water should be served before wine and not the other way around; I did not get the water I requested until after the appetizer was served. Honestly, this was a small mistake so forgivable. The biggest distaste of the entire meal was the fact that there was one server who looked highly judgmental and sluggish, and I noticed he behaved like that with all tables. I’m not sure why the service is so subpar, despite having achieved a Michelin star in the past and then renouncing it for the sake of maintaining a casual dining atmosphere. The atmosphere certainly was nothing like a casual diner - it felt pretentious and slow. The only thing casual about it was the service because it was highly unpolished. I would not recommend going here! There are plenty of other good restaurants in Lucca.

I recently dined here, a small and charming restaurant that had some great dishes, as well as a few that were not as enjoyable. The service was friendly, although somewhat inconsistent. The wine menu was interesting. Based in my experience, I would recommend ordering a la carte rather than opting for the tasting menu. Of the dishes I tried, the trottole with rabbit offal ragout, sweetbreads with carrots and ginger, and the smoked eel with beetroot and sour cream were all excellent. The sole with black truffle and Champagne was favorite. If you do decide to try the tasting menu, I would recommend keeping an open mind and being adventurous. The sweetbreads were a surprising and delightful dish, with interesting flavors and a very tender texture. However, I found the lamb and artichoke to be disappointing, as the meat was quite gamey and the artichoke had a strong liver flavor. The timing between courses was also quite slow, especially toward the end of your meal.

Old review from last year. This experience was top-notch from start to finish. A true 5 star tasting menu with excellent service and great wine. The sommelier was very helpful. The location is beautiful with a nice outdoor seating section right in the square. I could not recommend this spot enough if you plan on being in Lucca.

Came here with a party of 6, beautiful atmosphere, and food presentation was impeccable. Service and overall taste of food could be better. I loved chicken and the beef tartar, all other dishes she tried were underwelming. The food was nice for taking pictures though!

I thought I would wait till after I had eaten at some more highly acclaimed restaurants before I provided this review. I do not like leaving anything negative. We thought with a Mechelin star we would get the service that would be expected and food to match. I was so disappointed in all aspects of this place. We chose the 6 and 8 course pre fix. Start was ok and the wine steward was knowledgeable. Everything went south from there. Even though we sat next to the entrance and service stand I had to ask too many times for wine service and any regular service. The food was ok at best and under seasoned. Best dish was their take on spaghetti cacio e pepe. I have eaten in places half the price with better service and meals. I hope this was the only time this occurs but sadly I believe it will continue. Do not eat here.

My mother recommended Giglio, so I tried it out for lunch when I was in town. It's a fancy restaurant, especially if you sit inside. I felt horrible walking in like a stupid tourist, but they very nicely took care of us despite being underdressed. (I probably should have eaten outside with the other underdressed tourists, but it was hot, and I was longing for air conditioning.) The menu is typical Tuscan. I had the fried chicken and artichoke and a side of the white beans. The fried chicken was excellent, but I hadn't expected it to be deep fried (I thought it would be pan fried), so it was a little heavy. The beans were perfect. All that food with a glass of the house red made for a very sedating meal.

Fantastic lunch. Came here on recommendation from a family member that had been here before. Great service and the waiter was very friendly and helpful with ordering. I would highly recommend if you want a great authentic Italian meal in a gorgeous location.

It is def a great restaurant. Traditional cuisine in a beautiful plaza in front of a Theatre. I took my family here and sat outside. We had tordelli lucchesi, steak and capesante. All delicious. Very pricy but I guess you pay for the location.

Housed in part of the 18th Century Palazzo Arnolfini, this elegant restaurant offers the choice of a beautiful dining room or an outside terrace with views across the square to the Giglio Theatre. There's a light lunchtime menu at 16,50 Euro if you wish, or a la carte at all times. Dishes are mainly Tuscan, and include Salmon Trout Carpaccio, Green Pasta with Rabbit Sauce, Pork Brochette with Garlicky Turnips, and the formidable Florentine T-Bone Steak (enough for two!). They pride themselves on the Wine List and do not confine the choice to local produce, with over 150 wines from all over Italy and even a few French and New World favourites. The local Montecarlo area produces good stuff from San Giovese, Merlot, Cabernet and Syrah grapes. As ever, and in stark contrast to British restaurants of this quality, the markup is reasonable and 15 Euros will bring you a very good wine. An all-round quality act, the Giglio charges a small premium over somewhere like the Orti for its position and ambience. I rather fancy that the Orti has the better chefs, too.

One night in Lucca and we decided to go to a 4 1/2 Star restaurant 2 euros and regretted it. We ordered 3 pastas, one bottle of water and my mother ordered a glass of wine. We got the pastas, one tasted like lemon candy, one was soupy, and one was bland and no flavor at all. Later, my mother finished her glass needing a refill. We still haven't seen our waiter so I got up and asked to refill my mothers glass. Later, we wanted our bill, and still no service so far through the dinner. So then I GOT UP AGAIN FROM THIS CHARMING DINNER to ask for our bill. 10 minutes later, no bill yet, someone asks if we wanted anything else YET WE ASKED FOR OUR FREAKING BILL! Finally, our bill comes, hallelujah, and there is a service charge of 3.50 euros per person YET THERE WAS NO FREAKING SERVICE! I WISH THAT I COULD RATE THIS RESTAURANT ZERO STARS. I DARE YOU TO COME HERE, YOU'LL HAVE FUN!

Glamorous room,terrific helpful staff and expertly prepared food my second meal in Lucca all I can say this town rocks. Set in the middle of s lovely plaza you maybe tempted to eat outside don't inside elegance not to be missed. Rabbit raging over home fettuccine,chicken liver mousse w raspberry crackle and toasted brioche, shared spring pea porridge,pigeon with white asparagus with a compari cream sauce and ravioli bolognanese tirmamedu and a glass of vin santo . Including a bottle of vermentino105 euro wow what a steal

Service should have been excellent, it wasn't. Meal was good. Vitello tonato was different, but good nevertheless extensive wine list. Probably would not return but I would go back to la Buca di sant Antonio around the corner where the food and service was excellent and the sommelier knows his wines.

The little town of Lucca is enchanting with its high walls that surround it, with its the numerous bikes whizzing by through its narrow lanes, and for this lovely restaurant set in the middle of it. From the outside it looks like every other restaurant that has tables outside where people can sip the delicious wine and people watch. Inside the restaurant opens to a beautiful decor that is part modern and part old world British charm that seems out of place to be in a setting such as Lucca. The food, however, reminds you that you truly are in Italy. For my entree, I had the risotto with a Chianti wine reduction. The risotto had been cooked with parmesan and probably magic because it felt other worldly. I have never had risotto that just melts in my mouth, and if it were not for common decency and etiquette - I may have resorted to licking my plate. For dessert, I chose the chocolate mousse. I am not a huge chocolate fan, but I was sold on it by the waiter. I now dream of this dessert. The mousse comes in a bowl with dark chocolate cake or cookie crumble. When you dive into is when you realize there is vanilla ice cream hiding beneath that layer of chocolate mousse, and when you eat it is when you realize that this is the dish that all other desserts will now have to compete with. The dishes were simple; yet, mind blowing - a mark of a superb chef. The waitstaff could not have been more charming. So when you find yourself in this quaint town in the Tuscan province, do yourself and your stomach a favor, and stop by this amazing restaurant!

Overall this dining experience for us was rather uncomfortable but the food was superb! We were initially drawn here by the good reviews and the promise of good food. Upon entering at around 7:30pm for dinner we found that the restaurant was booked so do plan to make a reservation if you are going for dinner on a weekend. They told us we could eat there as long as we were finished by 9:30pm. The interior and the mannerisms of the staff were a bit of a surprise to us given the price range of the menu. We ended up feeling very pressured by a waiter to buy more things. And the distaste was very evident on his face and in his mannerisms towards us. He was constantly circling the table. It left us feeling very uncomfortable and out of place. However the risotto was simply delicious and our desserts were impeccable. I'm sure this would have been an excellent dining experience for those willing to purchase lots of dishes and wine for an extravagant meal.

Came to Lucca and saw this on yelp. Split off from our group to eat here based on reviews. Came about half a mile just to find it closed. They should post something to let people know, bad customer service.

The service is rather snooty. A female server chose to make a snide comment as we were finishing our meal regarding who was paying the check. Madam, it is none of your mother f'ing business why my wife is paying instead of myself. Why is that any of your business? Jerk. (AAMOF earlier in the day I had purchased my wife an expensive purse. Happy now, cafonessa? What if it had been my birthday? What if she owed me money and this is how I chose to have her pay me back? How is this any of your business, you judgmental see you in Tahiti?) I guess since we looked like Americans who would probably not be repeat business (a self-fulfilling prophecy as it turned out!), they felt we could be treated differently than the other, Italian diners.

Excellent food, service and atmosphere. We started with porcini tagliatelle, which you can find everywhere but the porcini were huge and luscious. Also we had the risotto Parmesan with a chianti sauce, the sauce made the dish very unique. Se Cindi we had the grilled ribeye. They showed me the raw steak for approval which was perfectly marbled, cooked, I cannot remember a better steak recently, and we eat steak. Lastly the finale was a sesame panne cotta that is hard to describe but amazing.

I swung by Giglio this evening at 8.15pm based on an overly generous review in Lonely Planet. 20% of the tables may have been occupied at that point, I was told by a gentleman that there is room and he would check. Within seconds, the manager (I presume) appeared and said the reservations are completely full. I looked at the empty area, smiled and left. As I got back later that evening after dinner elsewhere, I wasn't surprised to see plenty of empty spots still. Being a single diner or a person of color are the only two reasons why they didn't have a spot. Plenty of fish in the sea, Giglio. One star is for the younger man who clearly hasn't been influenced enough yet by your senior staff.

Fantastic restaurant. We ate at several Michelin starred restaurants touring through Tuscany and this was our favorite. There was something younger and more energetic about the dishes, the service and the wine pairings. I really love this place.

The food, service and wine were excellent. They staff was very accommodating with my gluten allergy. We were not to able to get in for lunch so we made a reservation for dinner, which I highly recommend doing. I had the rabbit ragu over gluten free pasta which was excellent. Also I'm a fan of pistachio gelato which was excellent. Highly recommend if in Lucca

One of my favorite restaurants of the trip. Elegant without being stuffy. Service was great - a lovely Sangiovese recommended by the sommelier. We had the tasting menu which consisted of a wonderful warm chicken broth; a delicious chicken "thing"; tuna carpaccio; risotto with Parmigiano Reggiano and Balsamic (yum!); veal cheeks with mashed potatoes; a pear sorbet with a delicious digestivo on top; and [the best dessert of the trip] a warm gianduja over vanilla gelato and cookie crumble. €114 for 2 - felt like a steal.

Very disappointed in this place. It says 2 euro and its more like 3 or 4. They have a 3.5 euro service charge per person and we never got any service what so ever. Waited on wine, water someone to check in. Anything. And never got it. I wish i could give it no stars. Soupy risotto and bland pasta. One night in Lucca and I wasted myself on this place.

Upscale and very sound restaurant. The pasta with white truffle was probably the #1 dish of our entire Italy travel.

The food was excellent, the service gracious and friendly. The Pappa Al Pomodor was one of the best things I have eaten in Italy, and that is saying a lot.

I went here in on my last evening in Lucca after an opera evening at the cathedral and had a fabulous meal on the piazza. The food and wine was outstanding and the service good. Would definitely go back.

Delicious food and very gluten-free and egg allergy conscious. My best meal so far on this trip (jugged wild boar in polenta).