Café Murano - Covent Garden

We arrived at 930pm and were seated in a largely empty section by the door and next to a table with a child playing a video without speakers. When we asked to be moved they played the “restaurant is fully booked card” but miraculously a table had just left and we were re-seated at the back. Not another table arrived during the 1.5 hours we were there - why do they pull this nonsense?

We ordered a bottle of wine from the back of the food menu, and when the bill arrived it was £11 more than the price on the menu. When I asked to see the menu again it became clear that the price quoted was for a carafe, not a bottle. The waiter had not pointed this out, and the manger - while agreeing to reduce the charge - also tried to argue that there was just no room to put the price of a bottle on the page! While she made good the extra charge, her argumentative stance made me wonder why she bothered as she lost all goodwill.

The food was mixed but on whole food: pasta starter above average; chicken Milanese very good, lamb rump disappointing; tiramisu average, orange polenta cake excellent.

So based on service alone I will not go back, and I’ve changed my mind about wanting to try the branch in Bermondsey Street.

Lovely food and ambience. Waiters didn’t have a clue how to serve an elderflower drink 🙄. I had to explain

We took our 3 and 8 year old for lunch on a busy saterday . Lovely food great service child friendly with childrens menu a brilliant grown up restaurant with a comfortable family vibe perfect I loved it

Food quite tasty but very tiny portions and overpriced for what you got

Arancini were just rice balls -seriously zero taste of mushrooms in it and deserts were simply a shame!
Tiramisu has liquid base it was like soup so moist ;( only chocolate on top was great; we had strudel - the pastry was simply raw ...inside was great...
Overall we won’t go back, and never recommend this place to anyone ..the Murano restaurant is great, but cafe Murano is clearly neglected...

Fantastic food, great service, dog friendly. Hard to beat.

We felt very rushed the table was for 5.45 pm and although we arrived early we were told the table must be vacated by 8.00pm. We were rushed along with the meal and our wine was constantly topped up this was not attentive service we were rushed along and the meal was completed in an hour 2 courses and a bottle of wine. The food was adequate but no different to any other chain Italian sadly

Food is outstandingly delicious, fresh and bursting with flavour, barperson happy to create new cocktail for us, Jason and Stefanie both fun, engaged, gentle and efficient team members. Really lovely evening.

Excellent food not our first visit. Staff very attentive I was unwell and couldn't eat very much but my husband enjoyed his meal. Thank you for the earl grey tea and attention. We will be back. PS Orange and Polenta Cake 10/10 to die for.

Delicious food, good service. Relaxed dining

WE LIKED THE OVERALL FEEL OF THE RESTAURANT AND THE FOOD WAS GOOD. TABLES RATHER SMALL AND CRAMMED TOGETHER

I’ve been here a number of times over the last two years but the ser

Portions were minuscule and it was so over priced

Angela Hartnett's food and the service at Cafe Murano (Covent Garden) never fails to impress. The menu of the day is particularly good value.

The lady on the door was very sour and unwelcoming which wasn't a great start but everyone else was lovely and the food was as great as always.

An underwhelming experience. The menu was uninventive and the food was actually not good at all. My beef carpaccio was tasteless and the texture was off - too thick, the gnocchi was overcooked. In a restaurant with a good reputation like Cafe Murano I expect the food to blow me away - it didn’t even reach general standard. Very disappointing.

Had an enjoyable evening, food and service very good but the I considered the wine was overpriced at £38 a bottle,I also think service charge should not be added to wine and drinks when sat at the bar as we were.

pre-theatre for us and a really good experience will try again when we have more time. The staff we attentive and took care to ask us about our timings. The food was excellent and the whole experience was most enjoyable. It would be good to go back with a bigger group of people next time.

All good apart from the noise level.

Great food and a really great team. We were initially sat at the top of the restaurant which was a little cramped, but we moved to the bar. Was a nice social spot.

It was the perfect pre-theatre place to meet and eat. Good atmosphere. Busy but not over-crowded. Very attentive waiting staff. Only a tiny bit overly attentive which meant our conversation was quite stop start. Food choice was excellent. Something for everyone with gluten free and vegetarian options too. Very happy with our meal and would definitely go again.

Nice meal ,had the set menu, portion size could have been bigger for me except for sweet which was enough enjoyed our experience

We had another lovely evening at Café Murano in Covent Garden. The highlight is the service, which was warm, welcoming and attentive. The food is terrific too, but perhaps one notch below the food served at the St James location, another favourite of ours. But make no mistake, the food is very good here, and you will be very well fed!

This is a lovely place to eat pre theatre. Delicious food. Friendly and attentive staff. The only slight problem was timing for pre-theatre. We arrived at 6pm and had the two course menu with coffees. It was tight getting to the Opera House for 7.30pm. But we would certainly eat here again.

A great experience and much better quality than the tourist traps around Covent Garden. Have also been to Mayfair Murano, which we loved.
Highly recommend, fresh, well cooked and great looking food, with excellent friendly service also.
We had a baby in a buggy and were very well looked after! Thank you

Very disappointing visit. I booked it for a pre-theatre supper and was excited to try a venue associated with Angela Hartnett. We were a party of six people. Firstly, our table was in a brightly lit ‘corridor’ near the entrance which didn’t feel like part of the whole restaurant. Every time the door opened there was a blast of cold air, despite the curtain covering the door. The real restaurant and nicer tables with better lighting appeared to be at the back beyond the bar. We chose two courses from the set menu as it appeared to be good value. How wrong we were. The mushroom bruschetta consisted of two very small portions of bread with a grey pile on the top. The other option was a soft Treviso cheese and picked pear salad. The ratio of leaves to cheese and pear was very mean. Once I had found the 2 slivers of pear and about 3 tiny blobs of cheese, I had to contend with a remaining pile of boring leaves. This didn’t auger well for the next courses. The Strangolapreti spinach dumplings with Cabbage and sage sounded promising, but on arrival was just a bowl of green lumps, quite dry, with a strong sagey flavour and no contrasting taste or texture. We agreed that the dish could have been lifted with the addition of roasted tomatoes to provide moisture and a contrasting flavour. The beef stew with polenta was liked by those who had it, but again, it was a very plain dish. Everything just felt mean... the portions, the ingredients. We left feeling hungry and cheated.
The staff, however, were very polite and efficient, and I couldn’t fault the service. Overall, however, I would probably not return.
Also, a quick footnote that unless you just want salad, the menu is not vegan-friendly.

A great place for a pre performance meal. Simple food with carefully sourced ingredients. Lovely Italian sausage ragu with pasta and a cracking pork chop with beans and salsa verde. We will use next time we go to the ROH.

Great experience
good food and service
we had a good day out

The service for the main course was slow but the staff were very nice. We were going to a show at the Opera House so it was a bit stressful.
Pasta was a bit stodgy so could only eat half of it.

We have been twice and both times we have been seated near the entrance which is not good, there is little room to receive guests and the wind blows the curtains. It feels very crampt. Try and get a table towards the back.

Great location for our theatre trip. They were able to vary our booking time at short notice. The food was wonderful.

A good ambience Italian restaurants. Good and attentive service. Prefer if they have more choices for the set lunch menu to choose. Definitely good to return for next visit.

Delicious!

We sat at the Bar this time and it was heaps more fun than a table! Great bar staff, very attentive and we had a really good evening.

We were greeted warmly at the door and led into a long softly lighted room. Our seats at the bar were comfortable with a view of the dining room. The service was polite and informative, we relaxed in this atmosphere quickly and looked forward to our meal.
The food was delicious,all questions about the menu were answered with good detail helping to make good choices. Great wine list by the glass. Dessert was a unbeatable tiramisu.
When you want a great cut above Italian before or after a show this is a great choice.

This was our second visit this December, one pre theatre and this one pre the ROH. The service was friendly without being over the top. Perfect menu for eating so early! Also super wine list with choices for 500cl which again is just right for pre theatre.
We’re looking forward to eating at Cafe Murano at a “normal” time!

We have eaten at Café Murano before and had a wonderful experience but this time the service was very poor. The food was great but the staff need a lot more training. Our barman/waiter was actively inattentive and the curtain across the door felt very unwelcoming.

Fabulous welcome loved the professional laid back happy staff. Food was excellent it was a perfect sanctuary the Sunday before Xmas. The risotto delicious with a side of his pizza cabbage.
Spot on thanks for a great visit

This place is such a gem. Cosy, non pretentious,
Child friendly. Delicious, authentic Italian food.
Cant wait to return

Restaurant was full of children jumping around on the seats. Food quality was a bit basic in particular the presentation of the torteli - I expect a bit more effort for a £17 plate of pasta - and a sloppy, distinctly average tiramisu.
Service was very slow - maybe not enough staff employed for level of custom?