06/18/09

Good food; lousy service

by Fil

i am a confirmed restaurant curmudgeon and I must say that my scallops with risotto was the best restaurant dish I have had in Pittsburgh for years; on the other hand, my wife's salmon was a platter of grease. The $18 Coppola wine for $36 was a fair price + good. The lemon ricotta cheese cake was a lovely desert. The coffee was good but not refill was offered. I was happy; my wife was just glad I wasn't negative.

Basically Lucca is gastronomically better than it has ever been before. But the wait staff need to be more cordial and attentive. Service has always been a problem at this location, even long before it was Lucca. The curse of surly service just goes on and on and on. The management need to wake up and pay attention.

The general air of things is that the chef is in the kitchen and the owner is in las Vegas.

• Pros: my food excellent; my wife's fair
• Cons: Jason our waiter just did not give a damn

05/14/08

A HORRIBLE EXPERIENCE!!!!

by shalotts4yo

The food there may be ok (I say 'may be' because I did not enjoy it because the service was so bad), but the SERVICE WAS HORRIBLE!. My waiter dented me in the face by mistake (must have been hungover or something) when filling up my water glass, and on top of it he DID NOT APPOLOGIZE. Completly unprofessional. I mean, come on, if you're not going to be sober at your job that's one thing, but try to leave your customers unharmed. This happened at lunchtime. Also, the hostess (main server, whatever she was) was snooty and cool towards me and my party, and made me want to sit her down and give her a lesson on customer service, or just teach her how to smile. Hmm, hello, Lucca's, we now live in a world in which customers are coming to expect just a 'little bit' of service quality from your staff, and your service just WON'T CUT IT! I highly recommend you go somewhere else rather than at Lucca's, or if not just eat a frozen dinner, in the comfort of your home. Better service is guaranteed :)

09/24/07

What am I missing?

by marks2l

I have dined at Lucca several times over the past few years, and am starting to wonder why I keep going back. Sure, the food is very good (although pricey), and the ambience is warm and inviting. But then there is the service..it has started to move from indifferent to almost hostile. Why do none of the employees ever smile?

And I'm kind of tired of the attitude that the terrace seating is the ultimate privilege to diners. Just this week, we waited for over an hour while a table for four sat open on the terrace. After much sighing and rolling her eyes, the hostess said "I guess they're not showing." and let us have the table. (Was she waiting for a tip?)

I have even been 'bumped' from a terrace table because the "owner was bringing guests". Hmm, maybe I should have learned then.

Finally, on my last visit, I asked the waiter about something unfamiliar in my side dish. He glanced over from the next table and snapped "It's just rice!".

Sorry folks, when the bill tops $60 per person, I expect better service and at least a hint that I am welcome.