Piazza by Anthony, Leeds

I have visited the Piazza several times in the past, but have also been turned away due to a lack of tables a few times. A had never been, and after a couple of glasses of Prosecco in Veritas, we decided to make our way down to the Corn Exchange and give it a whirl for a late lunch.

We were asked if we had a reservation when we arrived. It was a Wednesday lunch and we had only just decided to eat there, so a definite no was the answer. The waiter looked a little alarmed, and then said she would set a table up for us. Thirty seconds later, another waiter turned up and said he would take us straight to a table. Eh? So we followed him and were quickly seated.

The menu is fairly long and varied. It looked like it had changed since my last visit so I gave it my full attention. We decided to share the charcuterie platter to start, followed by lamb cutlets. I ordered a glass of my favourite white Pinot Grigio, and settled in for a pleasant lunch.

The charcuterie platter was a mix of meats, cheese, olives, coleslaw and bread – a good combination.

For main, the lamb cutlets came with a crushed potato and pea mix – my favourite part of the meal, in fact. The cutlets were served pink, although A commented that one of his definitely had a raw element to it.

I had asked for another glass of Pinot when the starter was cleared away, but it didn’t appear. Mains were served and still no wine. So I asked a passing waiter if it was on its way. It wasn’t. Then it was but it was a glass of blush. So that went away and then the white Pinot arrived. I don’t mind the odd service error in a restaurant – it is not life and death. No one is removing a kidney or landing a plane. But I have to say I have noticed a bit of a shambolic feature to the service in the Piazza before. At the end of our meal, it was a long time before our plates were cleared away and partly for this reason, we couldn’t be bothered with a pudding. In fact, we didn’t even wait for the bill and went to the till to pay, as we felt we had been left way too long.

Despite this, it was nice to get out and about after the Christmas break. Apart from the Pinot incident, I would recommend Piazza for a pleasant environment and good food at reasonable prices. Although the lamb was slightly too pink, I have had great meals here before.