[James]

Please Vote in this Poll and Add a Reply if you have any comments about this Restaurant

Lorenzo
73 Westow Hill, Crystal Palace SE19 1TX
Open Monday to Friday 12-2.30 pm, 6-11 pm
Open Saturday 12-11 pm
Open Sunday 12-10.30 pm

Web: http://www.lorenzo.uk.com/
Email: eat@lorenzo.uk.com
Phone: 0871 811 1460

[andyb]

This is exactly what a local Italian should be like. Great pizza, great pasta and great prices.

The daytime deal on Saturdays is even better value.

God knows why we still have a Pizza Hut in the area!

[gekko]

This place is not bad at all. It's certainly good value and the staff were friendly. Their coke was flat though and when we asked for it to be replaced we were given one that was just as flat .

Have to say though that on the whole I prefer Il Ponte.

[twinkle]

With Lorenzos its basic wholesome pasta dishes...in mass quantity.... I work up in town and have been lucky enough to work with some famous chefs including Giorgio Locatelli - hence the food is less in quantity but more delicate in taste. Lorenzos at the end of the day is to serve the masses of average salary earning like myself and it fills a hole...its lovely.....and for a fraction of the price of soho chefs.....and theyre great at maing you smile in there too......

[belle]

Great friendly atmosphere. The fact that it's one of the few restaurants in the Triangle that gets packed out during the week shows how relaxed it is - plus it's far cheaper than most of the other restaurants!

Don't go expecting anything fancy, and you won't be disappointed. The only criticism I've got is that some days the food tastes beautifully fresh and other days it tastes like it's been sat there for a good couple of days. It's a bit of a lottery what you get.

They also run out of tiramisu too easily! I highly recommend that you leave space for the puddings (the home made ones) - they're delicious.

[Mingusohyeah]

I went here last Saturday and I was less than impressed. My risotto was made with long-grain rice and was sloppy and tasteless. My companion put on a brave face, but I don't think she enjoyed her meal much either. We both agreed that the icecream was great though!

And the waiter (with glasses) seemed obsequious to the point of mocking...I'll try it again and have a pizza, but not for a while.

[rachel]

Ah that's a shame - the pizza is superb! Lovely calzone!

Rachel xx

[Dazza]

Fortunately the rest of the Palace community put on a brave face making Lorenzo's the busiest restaurant in the palace area.

Lorenzo a Palace mainstay for years to come I feel.

Dazza

[Elmo]

Long live Lorenzo's! I was in again last night and had the tiramisu for the first time... lovely!

[Mingusohyeah]

Dazza, on Oct 10 2004, 09:23 AM, said:

Fortunately the rest of the Palace community put on a brave face making Lorenzo's the busiest restaurant in the palace area.

Lorenzo a Palace mainstay for years to come I feel.

Dazza

Well, excuse me for having an opinion that contradicts yours. I can only speak from my experience.

[Dazza]

If you are unhappy with you meal you should always complain at the time regardless as you will get more satisfaction that way. I'm sure the owners would appreciate constructive critisism at the time rather than giving a negative opinion on a forum like this where you are jeorpardising the owners livlyhood especially as this forum is now getting so much traffic.

Dazza

PS I sent my cold coffee back several weeks ago & they replaced it without question.

[JGX]

Without a doubt, one of the very best!

Have been going there for more years that I care to remember and have never had a bad meal!

Cheers,

JGX

[minnieminx]

Having agreed with Dazza many times in the past - I have to disagree that Lorenzos livelyhood will be damaged by one persons negatives comment. I too have eaten at Lorenzos for many years. Gourmet it is not - but cheap and cheerful it is. At the end of the day risotto is rice with stuff in it - ok it can be done well but it's difficult to muck up. If you want gourmet Italian food go to La Barca in SE1 - you'll pay at least £10.00 to £15.00 for a pasta or risotto dish - know where I'd rather eat! (have rice and a bottle of red!)

As Dazza rightly points out - they are always busy even on a monday - which is renowened as being the quietest day for eating out in London.

[Mingusohyeah]

Dazza, on Oct 11 2004, 09:47 AM, said:

I'm sure the owners would appreciate constructive critisism at the time rather than giving a negative opinion on a forum like this where you are jeorpardising the owners livlyhood especially as this forum is now getting so much traffic.

Causing a fuss in a restaurant is so very unenglish. I find it very hard. And besides, the only option was to say that they'd not made a very good risotto, go and make me another or get me something else, which would have meant eating out of sync with my partner. Your cold coffee was a little easier to deal with (although a tad concerning - if you can't get that right, etc). My dinner wasn't horrible, just not very well executed and a bit bland. I'm sure if I tried their pizzas, which everyone says are great (and Lorenzos is listed in the Yellow Pages as a Pizzeria, not an Italian restaurant, so the owners know their strengths) I would have enjoyed my time there much more.

Dazza, would you rather we were all dishonest boosters of all CP businesses, good or ill? I didn't much enjoy my evening at Lorenzos, but many people have as evidenced by the poll results. I call them as I see them. I can't see that my isolated comment will affect Lorenzos' trade, just that people will have a better picture of what's good there or not. I'm not the first (or the last) to say it's not haute cuisine.

And I did say that I will go back there at some time in the future. I won't be able to until the New Year (long story), but when I do, I'll report back as if I'd never been in there before.

[gekko]

Quite right Mingus. This is a thread for restaurant reviews of Lorenzos, good and bad experiences alike. You can't pretend it was amazing if it wasn't. When I went to Lorenzos I got given flat coke. When I asked for a replacement, I got another flat coke. So much for confronting the situation at the time. I'd rather read honest opinions anyday than just comments from people who liked the place.

There's an Italian restaurant in town that I used to patronise regularly when we lived there. I loved it to death. For me, the pizzas were cheap (a rarity in Covent Garden), excellent quality and the service was impeccable. On many occasions I recommended it to friends and colleagues. However, not everyone loved the place as much as I did and a friend complained the risotto wasn't up to much. That's life...you can't please everyone.

My point is that tastes are different. You'll never find a restaurant that everyone likes and even the best restaurants have off days. A search on the London Eating reviews site is testimony to that. Some of the most exclusive (read hyped) restaurants get slated. But, that's why we have so many places to eat in this city, to cater for differing tastes. One or two bad reviews shouldn't put people off. In fact, it's pretty hard to find any restaurant that has 100% glowing reviews.