ASK Italian - Finchley in Barnet

Come here fairly regularly and not just because of the amazing food but the service is impeccable. We have kinda made friends with a few of the waiters and waitresses but Sacuatore always goes above and beyond for his customers. And it definitely doesn’t go a miss.

Despite the restaurant being quite full as a result of the start of the school summer holidays a seat was found for us and we were served very quickly. Our waiter was helpful without being too over attentive, but didn't miss a chance to upsell in a very polite way. The meals were well presented, warm and tasted nice, there was no rush to leave the restaurant.

Amazing service from Georgiana, very accommodating to little kiddos. Lovely food and amazing service 🥰

Excellent service and amazing food

Fantastic visit, we entirely enjoyed

Been coming here for decades. Very disappointed with the food, pizza and pasta both were very bland. Even the chilli oil was tasteless. Service was mediocre. Doubt I'll visit again.

Had to wait for our order forever. When finally food arrived pizza looked good but very average and pasta had one shrimp and inedible. I understand it’s a restaurant but to wait for your meal for just under an hour is unacceptable, it wasn’t even busy. Will never go back again.

A relaxing place for delicious Italian food. The staff are pleasant, nice, and helpful. It was an overall wonderful experience.

We attended North Finchley Ask today for my daughter’s 10th birthday. The staff were incredible gave the girls a huge amount of attention and made the dinner very special. So impressed and the food was delicious. Little shots of fresh lemonade for the girls when they arrived which made them feel very grown up. Excellent service.

The manager and team were amazing. We went on 22 Aug and they took great care of me and the two kids. Food was fabulous and really great value too. They had kids meal with starter, pasta and ice cream. Emma said the lemonade was the best drink she ever had. The complimentary shots enabled her to try something new. We will be back again very soon. Thanks, Chi Lam

Always great service here, our waitress Georgiana is amazing, so kind and attentive. Food is always fresh :)

Food was ok. Not at its best, for example, toppings were not spread out as well as they could have been and excess cheese had cooled and gone hard. We usually buy the pink lemonade as a main drink, but we drank the complimentary shot and felt that it was really watery. Service could have been so much better. Not a busy restaurant, but seated at a table that had squashed food on the floor. I had to ask for it to be cleaned up, which it was, but not very well, as it was wet and a broom doesn’t remove it. Had a Prima pizza and it was considerably smaller than the other pizzas. I asked was that how it was meant to be, as I thought it was meant to be a better pizza, and was told prima pizzas are thinner and longer not round. So I’m not actually sure what the benefit is of having a prima pizza if this is the case. Finally, I asked for my free tote bag, as a new member, as the bill arrived and was told I should have requested it before the bill and to save it for the next visit. I think I could have accepted all of the above in a very busy restaurant, but it really wasn’t. Maybe 25% full, which didn’t seem full enough for me to be happy with the quality I must add, it’s been much better in the past.

The pasta was delicious however my.order of a margarita pizza was completely disregarded. So I sat and watched my partner eat while thinking my food would be coming until the end when we discovered I wasn't getting anything. The bread as a starter that we ordered was completely burnt. It was quite enough in their to get the order correct and cook it correctly Came to 33 pounds for bread pasta a beer and mojito. Won't be coming back to experience children screaming and running around not having my order being listened to and just awful slow stupid service never again.

The restaurant is in the leisure park, not far from the A406 (NCR), so it has loads of parking. The downside is that it is not near the town centre. We came for lunch and knew that we could rely on the quality of food and drink. My wife had Pollo Milanese and I had Beef Brisket Pappardelle, and we tried different versions of the craft lemonades (always a good choice). It was a Friday afternoon and it was quiet, so service was good too. Probably a bit more expensive than I expected or remembered.

Very slow service and salad leaves were limp and old. Main course was Ok but not stunning

My sister and I love Ask Finchley. The staff are lovely to us especially Salvatore. He was even cooking delicious food last night though he is usually a waiter. Jane

The food was delicious! Our server Mehj was so lovely and attentive. It really makes all the difference having amazing service. Great restaurant! The dessert menu is top tier. Will definitely be back soon. Shoutout to Mehj!!!

Haven't been to Ask Italian for a while, and we enjoyed coming back It's s a shame so many branches closed.

I stopped by this restaurant to have a little lunch before I went home. And then I met Georgiana, my waitress who served me with best pizza I have ever had. Georgiana went above and beyond to make sure she will put a smile on my face from her incredible service! Many thanks to her, well done my dear! 😘

Really nice experience, had a lovely meal and the staff were great. They really went the extra mile to make sure we enjoyed our time there!

Friendly, helpful staff and good food.

Amazing place, food is delicious.

We had a nurturing lunch, Georgiana was perfect

Was served by Georgiana. Very nice service. And great food!

This was delivered 2 hrs ago. Unfortunately ate some of the Tiramisu prior to realising it was covered in mould. Vomitted the meal, psychological trauma I realise, but still feel ill.

Lovely pastas and pizzas and one of the only places at the Vue complex where you can sit and have coffee.

Salvatore and Georgiana has gone above and beyond with the service, he is always very attentive but never disruptive. The food is excellent and the freshness is unmatched, I would highly recommend coming here to the Finchley branch of Ask Italian. I will be coming back very soon!

We booked a table for 8 and we got the approval but when we reached the place they denied serving us saying they don’t have enough staff . Also they say the approval was automated by the computer and they have no part in that . We came for an anniversary party and was great disappointment .

Excellent pizza and pasta Good staff

Thank you so much to the team at Ask Finchley for supplying Food Bank Aid volunteers with a delicious lunch. We really appreciate everything you do for you!

Staff were very friendly and helpful. Food was great.

Definitely the worst meal I have ever had The food was inedible The salad was ALL croutons saturated in sauce. The croutons were burnt The chicken salad had no chicken The food took 90mins to arrive The desserts never showed we gave up After two hours we missed the start of our film It was like it was run by people not only with no experience, but like they they had never been in a restaurant. It was really that bad. McDonalds would have been a gourmet alternative

We always have a wonderful time here, great food and have been coming for years. Salvatore is the funnest and kindest host. Good times.

The staff was very friendly, and the food was amazing !!!

Definitely recommend staff 10/10

As always the team at Ask Finchley have been friendly and efficient. We always enjoy our meal here, great food, good value. Thank you Salvator and the team! 🤩

some fantastic food and great service

A really nice meal on a Saturday night before going to see a film. The prawns in garlic butter were delicious as well as the slow cooked beef ragu on the pappardelle. Service was excellent - friendly, helpful, and our waitress Georgiana looked after us well, swapped out one dish immediately when it didn’t seem properly seasoned. Overall a great start to a Saturday evening before going to see a film next door.

Great place, very friendly and the food is amazing. Credit to the team.

Tried to call a number of time to order for collection, no answer. I walk in and make my order guys very friendly, waited 15 minutes and get home. My mushrooms and truffles calzone had no taste of truffles and hardly any mushrooms in it. A lot of cheese true , but I didn’t want a bread and cheese dinner. Plus hair found in it half way through and completely put me off! Just tried to call again and speak to someone, no one answered. Shame as this is not the first time I eat/ order here. Complete dissatisfaction after such an effort to get something I really fancied.

We had to wait an hour for our food and instead of simply telling us that the chef forgot, the waitresses assured us our food would be the next one coming out and apologised for the delay. However, the next lot of food that came out wasn’t ours and we were sat waiting another 15 minutes after we were assured our food was on the way. Regardless, they offered free drinks to which we declined as we just wanted our food and as a result to ‘compensate’ for the poorly delayed service, they took off our two drinks… which were only two cokes?!?! Very disappointing as we come here often and had reservations elsewhere for the evening and this delayed our time massively. Safe to say we won’t be coming back anytime soon!

Food as good as you expect from a pizza chain. What nice in this venue is the service. Seems that they always have a relaxed, happy Italian servers which make the experience much better.

The staff were 10/10 delivering great service and food was cooked to perfection. Great atmosphere and really great portion sizes. Shannon and Lucy special shoutout to their hospitality :)

Situated on the cinema complex, so parking is not a problem Booking is not essential. Great quick service, so ideal before visiting the cinema and also ideal for dining after a film. Large menu of Italian favourites. Food was delicious and well presented. Would definitely revisit Cannesdid .... surfing syd

First time at Ask and loved it. Delicious food, friendly helpful staff, always smiling and ready to answer any queries. We had Beef Brisket Pasta and Firey sausage pizza. Highly recommended

Fantastic service! Salvatore is amazing, so friendly. I highly recommend!! Thank you, we always look forward to coming to Ask Finchley!

Favourite place to go, Salvatore is so kind and lovely and we love coming here with our babies!

Very very average with poor service.

Good ambience. Good food and many options to choose from. Good service, would definitely go again.

Salbatore of Finchley was amazing. Kind and friendly. Gets along with and knows the customers very well. Would definitely recommend the restaurant and will come back again because of him! Couldn’t praise him any higher!

We went for bowling and then we decided to have a pizza when we turned up the place was completely full and we were told that there is no place up to 5pm. After explaining our situation for Ask pizza`s lovely kind and understanding manager Salvatoro he went above and beyond to find us a table it made our kids so happy we are very great full to Salvatoro for his kind understanding the food was great and came in no time we all had a great time and all the credit goes to the manager Salvatoro Thank you. This place is lovely

Love this restaurant we have been coming for years very family and child friendly , clean , spacious calm atmosphere and really nice food cooked fresh from their kitchens. We love when (Salve) is here Salvatore friendly brilliant with children and welcoming he is very friendly and happy guy .

I have to say, the whole visit was excellent. The welcome, seating, service and food were beyond expectations. Will certainly visit again.

Mediocre at best. As a party of 11 we were required to pre-order our food. Despite them having two weeks notice of our needs they failed to have some of the food we'd pre-ordered. While the floor/table staff were attentive to our drinks needs, the kitchen took ages to prepare the meals, seeming (at least to me) to prioritise online orders over dine-in customers. The meals themselves were filling and hot but insufficient to compensate the fact that in some cases, they weren't what was wanted. Given the poor atmosphere, we decided not to stay for dessert, nor to pay the automatically added service charge. Despite it written in the menu that the service charge is optional, I was further taken aback when I was demanded to provide the reason for me refusing to pay that optional charge. I won't make the mistake of visiting Ask Italian again...

EXCELLENT FOOD QUALITY AND PESENATION

Excellent place, food is up to standards and service is amazing, very friendly

Went with my friends for dinner and we had great time. Absolutely amazing service from Salvatore and food was fabulous. Thank you all team for make our night special.

ASK Italian is a true gem in the world of Italian dining, offering an exceptional culinary experience that exceeded my expectations. The restaurant's inviting ambience immediately sets the stage for an enjoyable meal. The warm and welcoming atmosphere, coupled with the delightful aromas wafting from the kitchen, made for a fantastic dining experience. The menu is a culinary masterpiece, featuring an array of authentic Italian dishes crafted with finesse and flavour. From traditional pasta dishes bursting with rich sauces to mouthwatering pizzas with fresh, quality toppings, every bite was a delicious journey through Italy's culinary landscape. What truly made my experience exceptional was the impeccable service. The staff were attentive, friendly, and passionate about delivering an unforgettable dining experience. Their knowledge of the menu and genuine enthusiasm to ensure my satisfaction elevated the meal to a whole new level. Moreover, the restaurant's commitment to using high-quality ingredients and catering to dietary preferences was impressive. It ensured that every dish served was not only delicious but also met specific needs or preferences.

We had a very bad experience during our last visit. The food was tasteless and bland. In addition, the staff didn't care about what we have requested. We will not go back again!

I ordered the roasted potatoes but they was not roasted they was just like new potatoes and not cooked fully

The delivery was late. The pizza was stone cold. The courgette frittes were cold, soggy and inedible. I had to throw them away. Same because my previous order with Ask was very nice.

Love this place. Always made to feel very welcome.

ask italian ? you better not food it average they stick everything to the oven hope the dessert will be spared by the oven

I had prebooked the table for 9 people for 1900 hours as it is my sons 14th birthday today and we were having dinner When we entered the restaurant we were sat down at our table and not once were we informed that they were short staffed. We were told that the coffee machine was not working. We ordered our starters and ordered the children pizzas as we wanted them to come out with our starters. Well, our starters came out after 30 minutes and we ate our starters and the children's pizzas had not come out and we specifically said we wanted the pizzas to come out with the starters. It took another 10 minutes to bring out the pizzas for the children. More and more people were coming into the restaurant and it had been 1 hour and 25 minutes since we entered and we had still not got our main meal. My brother in law went up to the manager and explained to her that we were not satisfied with the service as others had come into the restaurant much later than us and had been given their starters and main courses and we had not yet had our main courses. The female manager apologised to him and he had come and sat back down at the table. The manager then went to the kitchen to speak to the kitchen and staff and came back to us and said she was really sorry for the delay but the food would be another 15 minutes to cook. This was at 2025 hours and we had bowling booked for 2100 hours. We were served our food at 2040 hours and had to rush our food so we were not late to bowling. By doing this all of us dis not enjoy the food as we should have and also never had any time to order desert for the kids as it was my sons birthday today. The bill came out and the manager had given a £50 discount on a £200 without any deserts. The manager need to learn customer service and inform staff to let people know that there are delays due to staff shortages and that there will be a waiting time for food this way we would have had the choice to either wait or go somewhere else. There was no excuse because as I said it got busy and people got their food before us that came much later. It's a real shame as I said the food was quite nice but after spoiling my sons birthday as we were all silent and upset I will not be coming here again.

Food arrived cold. Pizza toppings sparse and distributed unevenly

Lasagne was extremely disappointing. I've had better frozen versions at a fraction of the cost. Didn't look appetising and was below average in flavour. I found it high in salt too. Nothing like the image they advertise on their website. The vegan lentil ragu was ok, but lacking in flavour. The courgette fritti were nice. But again the chips and rosemary and olive oil bread were salty.

Hi I have been twice in this place both of time I felt so great-full good athmoshere very relaxing I love the style x lovely staff I felt proper in Italy the Italian Salvatore is very kind charismatic and well welcoming he is very friendly and professional very lovely with my son too he really suggested me good things to eat he is very professional and very good at to public relation I love it all the stuffs very professional and lovely the ambience is clean and I really enjoy food especially pizza and the lovely amazing chocolate dessert with outstanding presentation omg it is something that all of you must try and I really had proper Italian fluffy creamy cappuccino oh wuaooo…. Definitely I will back again an again thank you so much X

Visited on Sunday at 3pm. Welcoming, polite and attentive staff. Sorry didn't catch the name of our waiter. The food was fresh and tasty. I liked the fact that this branch has an open kitchen and is spacious. The bill was provided with no service charge quite surprisingly....(we have often been presented with service charges for appalling service in other restaurants)...in our opinion the staff at Ask Finchley deserved over and above a service charge tip for their hard work, exceptional service and for maintaining cleanliness, high standards and a smile. Well done team and see you again

Thank you Lazlo and Kostas for the yummy 😋 meal. Everything was delicious especially the risotto.

Great experience, recommend this place 👉🏻🥇

Visited ASK Italian last night with my family for dinner. The atmosphere was quite nice, it was not very busy and the waitresses were nice and welcoming. We ordered our food but had to wait around 45 minutes for the food to come, appetisers had come after 15 minutes. Unfortunately, my brother got the wrong pizza and had to wait another 10 minutes for a new one to be made. The manager was really sweet and offered us the pizza for free, they really tried to make up for their mistake, which can happen, we are all human. The food was very good but it was just unfortunate what had happened.

Very friendly staff and lovely environment in the restaurant. Popped in unexpectedly and they (and in particular the manager Laszlo) were very helpful and food delicious. Lovely to have a great Italian restaurant in this area, many thanks!

LASZLO thank you for the best service!!

Every now and again we have a pizza at this casual local restaurant. We started with a bowl of olives and some arancini, then we shared a vegetarian pizza. The food is fine, not gourmet, but you don’t expect gourmet in a chain restaurant like this. Where they excel is the desserts. My partner always looks forward to the tiramisu. I chose a lemon tart. We usually share desserts, so we can taste both; they were really yummy. I also had some deal code which meant I received a free Aperol Spritz which was pretty good. The staff is always pleasant and helpful, although our favourite waiter seems to have gone back to Italy. Prices are quite reasonable.

Came in to have some quiet lunch. Lovely experience. The staff are so lovely and attentive to needs. The manager was so funny and made some good recommendations of what to eat. Great service and great food.

The food was cold and the chicken was not fresh it was frozen already made one from bag you just deep fried

The quality of the dish and unlike the last order less ingredients. not tasty

Thank you Salvatore (and team) fir making my first experience at your branch a fab one! We’ll be back

Salvatore was amazing! Best customer service experience

The food is okay but the garlic bread wasn't very strong the service wasn't very good too and took a long time to get the bill

Parmesan cheese and cutlery missing.

A wonderful place, with a great choice of food & drinks. Good value for money.

Over processed food nothing lol proper Italian food. In fact an insult to have Italian in the name. Zucchini fries that you had to play hunt the zucchini to actually find any in all of the over cooked batter. Dirty bathrooms too made for an altogether not great experience.

Really lovely food and great service, always enjoy ourselves when visiting here. If I were to have a criticism, it would be that it would be nice if when given the menus, we were told straight away if something was not available, so that we don’t have to revisit the menu after choosing something that isn’t available.

May 2023 - we went back to Ask Italian Finchley and we had a much better meal after the manager invited us back. Food was freshly cooked this time, and much better quality. It is expensive so we expect the food to be good, fresh with a wide range of options - the menu choices were appealing and all the family enjoyed their food this time. Service was great and friendly. Desserts were really good - the raspberry sorbet and Mount Etna especially, and the calimari was also very nice -fresh, crisp and hot. We would now consider going back there for a local meal as the standard seems back to how it used to be and can compete with other local Italian restaurants. Also, if you are not happy with the food, the staff are very happy to sort it out. They want the custom and they are prepared to work hard for it - which is great. This is a local restaurant that cares about its customers. Thanks to Laszlo and the team. Jan 2023- I was very disappointed with Ask Italian Finchley. The food was processed and must have been reheated as my Milano chicken (breaded chicken) arrived 5 minutes after ordering. The brocolini tasted as if it had been precooked then warmed up in hot water, as it was over cooked and limp. The chicken tasted like a frozen breaded escalope from a supermarket, not a freshly made one. My son couldn't eat the kid's carbonara. I tried it and it was garlicky and the bacon pieces hard and fatty. The only thing he enjoyed was the Appletise. On a plus note, the staff are very friendly and we had a lovely waitress, but the meal was incredibly over priced for such poor quality food. Only the chips were reasonable. When I compare it to The Spaghetti House, where prices are similar, Ask offers a very poor version of Italian classics. I won't be dining here again.

After having probably the worst meal I'd ever had in a restaurant ever in Janurary in this ASK, we came back to try again as the Manager had promised things had improved in terms of the quality of the food. We'd never had a bad experience of ASK before so we wanted to give it another chance. This experience was much better and my family and I had a good meal. The food was fresh and tasty - somewhat rich - but everything was nice (as opposed to inedible last time!). The desserts were good too - we had tiramisu, the mini moments - the raspberry sorbet was fresh and fruity, and the mount elba which was very decadent if you have room after your main. I especially enjoyed the calimari which were crispy, hot and fresh. There was a real difference in the freshness of the food this time. Last time the food tasted processed and re-cooked, this time it was freshly made. The food is quite expensive but you are going to get something tasty and fresh, and if you are not happy, the staff are keen to make things right. The ASK chain is never going to serve Italian food like in Italy, but this was a reasonable effort - it felt a higher standard this time and a place that can compete with the other restaurants in the area. If you want pizza and pasta and Italian classics like lasagne, calzone and tiramisu, ASK Finchley does a good job.

We were in a rush and only had 30 mins to eat before going to the cinema, they sat us at the back made sure we could eat quickly and we’re so warm and welcoming, sped our food up and it was amazing. Laszlo and Salvatore were amazing. Thanks for the pocket brownie.

I often dine with my two daughters. They love the food and the staff are always great especially Salvatore. Highly recommended if you have children.

Such an amazing experience I had. The food from starters to dessert absolutely delicious 10/10. Italian lovers this is for you

Service was great Salvatore treated us so nicely. Food is great

Always great service and great food

Food was very hot and tasty. Felt a bit on the expensive side and will get as a treat in the future

We love coming here. Especially as they offer a discount for Blue Light Card holders during the week. Friendly waiters. Tasty food.

Love it when the waiter starting making jokes, it lights up the mood! The place were looking fancy. This restaurant are suitable for couples and families to enjoy.

Excellent food and service, a great alternative to the often noisy and full of kids' parties Pizza Hut opposite.

Good all around but the pizza was really small

1st time writing review but felt had to, as the level of service from staff is very good. Manager Laszlo is excellent, provides such a warm, friendly service really makes the customers feel special. As a result, we go very regular. Food is consistently fantastic, best pasta you could ask for at reasonable prices. Thank you Ask team and especially Laszlo, for making it such a delightful to visit your restaurant and we shall carry on attending very often!

I ate here today with my son after the cinema and was very, very disappointed. The food was processed and very over priced. My chicken Milanese was a processed breaded escalope, not freshly made. It arrived 5 minutes after ordering with some limp, over cooked brocolini which seemed as if it had been reheated. The chips were OK but none of it was worth the £16 + price. My son didn't eat any of his kid's menu carbonara. It was garlicky (I've never known carbonara to be full of garlic) and the sauce wasn't fresh and the bacon chewy, fatty, hard. He had to spit some out. The only thing he enjoyed was the Appletise. We did have a lovely waitress, the only positive part of the experience. This place does not serve Italian food! It's over-priced, processed food which you could make better at home.

I usually do not write reviews but I felt the need to give a big shout out to the staff especially the manager and assistant manager Laszio! for the excellent service they offered us on that evening. The restaurant was busy, I arrived without a reservation with 3 children under 9 and the assistant manager was very accommodating told us there was a wait of 20minutes, however we was seated within 5minutes and served promptly. Food was perfect , large selection and the assistant manager was able to give us recommendation on the meals esp desserts. Honestly made our evening having such warm friendly staff, the restaurant was clean and service was fantastic and very friendly and warming to children. Definitely our regular family restaurant from now on...Thank you Ask Italian especially the Assistant Manager Laszio the dessert was the bomb! ( Few pics added that my 8year old daughter took)

Very disappointed the portion way very small like half of what I normally get and it was cold