Antica Trattoria Al Falcone

Why did I trust lonely planet on this one, ?! Cousin Falcone paid someone??? Worst meal in Italy over many many years of many visits. Poorly cooked food, rigatoni beyond al dente chewy, fish soup was an oil slick w chewy calamari and mostly empty shells, just sad and such poor service, that may not be unusual, but it also took 20' to get the bill after asking twice but meanwhile our waiter found time to clear the plates?? Skip it!

The staff was very welcoming, and because of the intense heat outside, we thought we had found a gem. The first drinks came right away. However, because there was suddenly such a HUGE lunch crowd (I think several tour buses arrived), the service suddenly went DOWNHILL. The food took a bit longer, which didn't bother us at all because it was delicious. After that, getting another drink or more water was like pulling teeth. We literally asked for our check THREE separate times and were still left waiting. We had to get up and start to leave before our check finally arrived. By that time, we had wasted too much time eating and waiting. We did not have enough time to see the famous gardens of Villa d'Este. By the way, the check was much higher than we had anticipated, so that was also unpleasant.