Carluccio's in Cambridge

Strange Menu Looks like an authentic Italian restaurant but actually is not at all. The restaurant had a lot of non Italian style cakes in the display. The menu provided American style burgers too. Weird. Has packed ink pasta for sale too. Slightly disappointed that the restaurant does not put ink pasta into their menu. Found a mini leaf on the table when being seated. The staff must be too busy at different tables therefore missed the details. Saturday was always busy anyway. The menu is quite limited, just standard. The pasta does taste like made from stretch like Aromi does. More like pulled out from a bag, I am not sure. But still, the dishes tastes fine, Standard flavour that suits everyone. Just the portions were a bit too small. Just little confused that the restaurant provides so much non Italian dishes and desserts. Why not focus on the Italian menu? Weird.

Visited on Saturday evening the restaurant was very busy but we had a really enjoyable dinner, very attentive staff and great atmosphere specially the lady manager with long hair she was very professional , kind and respectful I would definitely go back again and I would recommend this restaurant 100%.

Easy to get to, very pleasant decor and the staff were brilliant. The food was tasty and well presented. My only disappointment was the portion size for the money. Mine was fine but my wife's was disappointing.

This place was not very busy and I put it down to people may be knowing that the staff are not very attentive, atmosphere isn't great as its not that busy, loos are not great. Our main meal was defo not a main meal and at practically £17 a piece of chicken and a few mini roast potatoes, although very tasty, was not filling and when mentioned to staff we were told that normally people have it after a starter and before a dessert, however this could be said for other main meals which were much better and had veg included in the cost, which our chicken dish did not. Wouldn't bother going to another Carluccios.

Lovely restaurant with good choice of meals for lunchtime snacks.

Great food, friendly staff and lovely place. Ideally situated for a bit to eat before events at the Corn Exchange.

We four, with a little baby in tow, enjoyed a super meal. It was the best lasagne I have had! The staff were baby friendly and attentive.

Good range of food and the pizza was tasty. Service a little slow but very apologetic.

Had a lovely bit of carrot cake, and a hot chocolate, but maybe a bit bigger cup for the chocolate 👍

Not quite as good as it once was nut still very enjoyable

Ordered the Carlucios burger. Bad choice. It's wasn't greasy, it was disgusting and slimey. Grey, snot coated might have identified as beef at birth, burger. Tolerated it till last few bites. My mistake. But what are the options? Ask the can't be arsed waiter to take it back? No. The reality with restaurants is, if the chef is unprofessional enough to send out the original sub standard order, if he is informed that it's awful, he will not send out his best. And the customer runs the risk of receiving a new meal plus the additional input of " chefs special ingredients " that is, spit. Or worse. Long story short. I paid the bill. No request for cost reduction. I ate the item. The house overheads remain so I paid. But the food was DISGUSTING . My bowel told me that for 3 days. Avoid this restaurant, they REALLY don't care

Needed to get some paperwork done so stopped here for a pot of tea and some water. I was allowed to stay for as long as I liked. Very friendly.

Very average. Nothing to complain about and nothing to particularly praise. It was very convenient to where we were and I was hungry. Overall a win on the day.

Really enjoyable lunch with my Dad. The staff were attentive and helpful. Providing assistance when required for my elderly father. The food was delicious and delivered promptly and hot. The restaurant was busy on a Saturday afternoon, but the atmosphere was calm, relaxing and overall really enjoyable to eat in. Would definately visit again.

Very pleasant lunch time lemoncello spritzer.

A pleasant place for a meal, but the menu and food as a whole should improve

The restaurant was a mess! The waiters walk around all the time, nobody knows what to do while the costumers wait to make their orders or to receive their food! We had to ask several times do make our order and all waiters asked us to wait a little longer. Once the food finally arrived, the carbonara plate was so small, it came with less pasta than the kids version! Our drinks (juices and tap water) came almost after the main course! It was unbelievable! If you look around the restaurant you can see many tables not even clean after the exit of the costumers. I do not recommend it.

Antonio Carluccio would turn in his grave if he saw how bad this restaurant has become. Slowest service ever. and way too expensive and add a £10 service charge even though there was no service.

Food was OK, but the service was lacking. Expensive for what it was. Probably won't go again...

Experience based on 2 diners eating on a Saturday lunchtime. Excellent food, really delicious. Attentive staff who are also very friendly providing excellent service. Will definitely visit again.

Good food and nice service. The food was served fairly quickly and tasted good The premises were clean and well maintained but not cozy in any way. Fast food atmosphere.

Lovley food reasonable prices very welcoming and great service

We were in Carluccio's for the fourth time and were very satisfied again. There is a fairly large selection of food, vegetarians and vegans can also find something to eat here. The quality of the food is very good, we have always eaten well. The service can be improved, it could be faster. Especially in between, hardly anyone asks if you need anything else. If you wave, the staff will be there straight away. We have always found the staff to be helpful and friendly. We also like the ambience. We like sitting by the window and looking out at the beautiful Corn Exchange building. It's a bright place with lots of light, which you don't get that often in Cambridge.

Over priced, and charge service charge jokers ,not italian at all ,these restaurant all went in to administration but some how this one still got the name .definitely won't be going again avoid going

Good food, excellent waiting staff. We were on a tight timetable and our server kept everything on time.

Slow service and quite plain food sadly. Seemed like there weren't enough staff.

One of the best breakfast I had in a very long time.

The food was delicious. The ambiance was special. The employees were very kind.

Lovely food, great staff but however prices have risen

Fab food great great service A must when in Cambridge

Excellent service last night. One of our party had a long list of dietary requirements, and the staff were exceptional in accommodating these and checking and rechecking that the food that was served was appropriate. Thank you.

I visited here on saturday evening with my friends it was great experience service was great food wss great the manager mazz who took care was very super great kudos wish too dine in soon thank you mazz for the wonderful service.

Do not take cash so won't return

Haven’t been to this restaurant in years. Back in the day is was an ok Italian chain. Boy has this chain lowered the bar. Service was slow. Very slow. We ordered carbonara, which when it eventually turned up was quite possibly the worst I have ever tasted. It was inedible. Hardly any sauce, the “meat” (I use the term loosely), was full of gristle and smelled and tasted of rancid fat. In fairness they did credit us for that part of our meal, but £18 for a lemonade a wine and a small bowl of olives … the restaurant (Monday lunchtime in a busy city centre) was pretty empty, yet meals took forever to arrive. The ladies’ toilets: one marked out of order, the second with no toilet paper, the hand dryer not working and a disconcertingly sticky floor, third with a working dryer but minimal paper. The gents looked as if it hadn’t been cleaned in some considerable time.. Needless to say this was our last visit.

Tried this restaurant the other day, as it was highly recommended. Sorry but it's not all that it's cracked upto be. Very average food, staff kept hovering around while eating, very annoying......

The food at this place is amazing. Staff is very polite specially the lady Caludia who served us she is very nice. The food looks amazing and it has good stomach filling portion. Had an amazing time

Delicious food and friendly staff.

Terrible service, over an hour between finishing starter and main, this was only after reminding them we were still waiting several times. Food was bland. No discount offered, would recommend anywhere but here.

Nice, ice cream was good but shop too crowded, staff seemed a bit overwhelmed.

Booked for Saturday lunchtime meal. Enjoyed a chilly , garlic, prawn starter followed by thin crust prosciutto pizza. Lovely prawns, good pizza. Some ingredients were unavailable for cocktails, so limited choice of drinks. No draught beer, but bottled Peroni available in 330ml or 660ml. Good friendly staff here with good food made for an enjoyable lunch, thanks.

Usual lovely meal and service. My only quibble was that the risotto was a little too salty.

202405 dropping one star because of the lazy chef. The Arancini is lovely. Crunchy, not too oily, meting, not too heavy. Delightfully flavored and tastes good without the spicy tomato sauce (which tastes nice on its own too, but they somehow don’t get along.) The main dish came super slow. We spent 40 minutes waiting. (Eavesdropping: the chef is “feeling lazy” so the staff has to send back the defect calamari lol) Grilled prawns are not bad. The grilling part is done well although the prawns themselves may not be quite fresh. Chicken Milanese sees quite dry today too. Service is confused and slow. — 2-Chicken Milanese. Lightly breaded and crunchy. Not too dry or greasy. Good source of protein. It is more filling than the ragu parpadelle, though I like them both. (Ragu us more flavorful and lighter of course. The chicken breast may need the extra help of salt and pepper. Hope there was more rosemary. A little busy for lunch today but food came fast and service is welcoming and mostly friendly. Again pretty decent for the half price. —- Pretty adequate and not too filling for a pre-workout meal. It might not be as meaty as a meat dish, but the visible chunks of beef is about if not above average pasta portions. And it did arrive piping hot. The Ragu is tomatoey and flavorful. Pappardelle is a bit narrower than expected (it’s the standard— I prefer wider;) but the rough texture really holds the sauce. Service is friendly and the wait isn’t too long. The venue is spacious and not too crowded in the early evenings. I was skeptical about the chain store at the grande arcade corner, but with the 50% off main course deal it’s quite nice. Will be coming again with discounts :3

Very good food. The staff are exceptionally welcoming and friendly!

Amazing service from Kinga! Police, friendly and really made a difference!!!

Had a fantastic lunch today! Due to a tiny glitch with timing we were given a great discount on our meals. Fantastic service and really great food. Highly recommend this delightful restaurant x will definitely be back!

Staff were extremely nice and helpful!!

The food is probably OK, nothing extraordinary. The place lacks however the most important ingredient of any Italian restaurant: heart and spirit

The food is amazing, but unfortunately, staff doesn't know what they are doing. We didn't feel welcome from the first step. Starters came with mains, when we finished our food, empty plates, mugs never been taken from our table, no one came and asked if we want anything else, like dessert or drinks.

One of the better Italian restaurants in Cambridge, spacious and airy, regular friendly staff, love the carpaccio and the risotto. Good coffee too

Apologies for such a long message but feel our experience was so bad we had to share the details. Food was to the usual standard for this company (average), no complaints at all. We arrived on Saturday 20th around 3:30pm, the restaurant was not busy (<25% full). We had to wait at the entrance for about 5mins until we were able to get the attention from a member of staff who told us to wait to be seated by ‘maitre de’. Eventually the ‘maitre de’ showed us to a table. The restaurant was fairly empty, so I asked if we could sit near a window - she proceeded to tell me and my husband to “sit wherever” and walked off. No one came to take our order so we had to find a member of staff to ask to come to our table. Food and drinks were then served promptly, which was great. Whilst eating we observed many other customers facing similar issues with a lack of basic service. A family group had waited so long to be seated they decided to seat themselves and were then challenged by the waiting staff why they were sat there. The family ordered drinks and left. There was plenty of waiting staff (I think abut 8 or so) but they were not organised and just kept arguing with each other in front of customers or chatting to one another ignoring customers. We also observed the ‘maitre de’ eating bits of food almost every time she entered the back service room (visible to customers) where customer meals were waiting to be served. Understandable staff need to have a break but this member of staff was eating (in full visibility of the restaurant) whilst still serving. She was picking bits of food to eat with her hands and then cutting up bread (with her hands/not using a cloth to hold the bread), to then serve to customers without washing her hands! She did this on several occasions. Another staff member was sat at a table in the restaurant eating a meal - clearly no issue whatsoever with this. She was clearly on a break and not serving customers or touching customers food/plates. The “maitre de” also kept shouting loudly at the serving staff in full view of customers. Terrible experience.

Popped for something quick to eat before going shopping. It was fairly busy 1.30 in afternoon. Food was good bit pricey though.

Really nice food and lots of free space in the evening. No booking required. It did feel a tad empty so it a lot of vibe, it otherwise excellent experience. Tuna tartar & fungi risotto recommended.

Service painfully slow food average service charge 12.5% not good value for money.

The food was delicious, and served to a high standard. Slightly high price, but the food is worth it. All the waiters were very friendly and attentive. Nice atmosphere and not too crowded. I would recommend.

Absolutely amazing. Great food, friendly happy stuff - hard to see it anywhere else those days. Thank you guys, keep it that way.

Great food and service. Highly recommend the seafood risotto and seafood pasta!

Great food great service and 50% of next main in 4 weeks on the receipt

We only had coffee which was fine, the location is good. Sadly v short staffed, waiting to be seated when only a third full seemed unnecessary.. Service was slow and the two staff looked fed up, like someone hadn’t showed up for work and they had to cover. If there was more staff or the ones there smiled it would have made a huge difference.

Waited an hour for our food and had to ask where it was. It wasn’t even busy at the time. Also had to wait 10 minutes to be seated even though we had booked in advance.

I love Italian food and especially salad topped with extra virgin olive oil

Quality and Quantity doesn’t match the cost. Too expensive

Normally it's good, but this time the meal was very slow and late. Not great when you have hungry young children.

Food was cold, had to ask 3 times for a drink and our puddings came out still frozen.

Service was very slow, took 10 min before we got service and 25 min before we got our pasta.

Yes it is true, so are you ready to hear the truth? It is indeed accurate. Allow me to share the details. On an exceptionally rainy day, I found myself clad in a raincoat, urgently in need of the restroom. The middle-aged woman, with black hair and a brunette demeanor, expressed discomfort through her sarcastic and peculiar gaze. In situations of immediate necessity, it is preferable to politely decline rather than acquiesce with an unenthusiastic demeanor. Later, upon encountering her outside, she sported a contented smile while puffing on her cigarette. Having originated from Istanbul, I arrived in Cambridge 12 years ago, I received an invitation from a British company professionally. and presently engage in professional endeavors at the behest of a British company. Revisiting Cambridge serves as an opportunity to rekindle fond memories. Regards,

The staff was MIA when you needed them, and the steak was a disappointment compared to your previous visit. Overcooked steak and a switch from potatoes to fries? Not what you were hoping for. It's frustrating when things aren't consistent. If you're not feeling like taking another chance not going again.

Restaurant almost empty so seated quickly but then had to wait 25 minutes before asking the staff for our order to be taken. When the food came up from the kitchen it then sat on the side for a further 10 minutes before it was brought to the table, by which time it was cold and the sauces were congealed. We sent it back and when new dishes were returned they were at least hot and the waitress was apologetic. Food was OK but nothing special.

Very nice place.Tasty food and nice atmosphere.

We were there on Saturday restaurant was busy but the service was wonderful fast food was great manager mazz was very wonderful provided a great experience we wish to see you soon!!!

The vast restaurant was quite empty, felt cold both temperature- and atmosphere-wise. The food was OK, but nothing special. The service was professional and quick. This place always makes me feel more like an Italian delicatessen rather than a restaurant.

It was very disappointing in every way.

Poor attitude of staff , service, cold food and wasn't very busy

The foods and service was way beyond my expectations and I was very impressed. The focaccia was fantastic, so crispy and soft at the same time with full of garlic flavours. Indeed the best garlic focaccia I’ve ever had. Tartare and arancini were good too. Ragu pasta was bit disappointing as the flavour was not very strong nor the meat was tender enough and I’m just not a big fan of parppadelle pasta. However seafood linguine was brilliant, bit spicy but full of flavour and nicely cooked. The restaurant was busy but still the service was amazing. The manager was not really smiling but kind enough and polite, very funny too. They have nice authentic Italian coffee too. Would definitely return in any time soon.

This place was busy and yet good service from the staff. The food was good and would visit again if in the city.

Hi, i was just there this morning and just want to say a huge thank you to the blonde young waitress who served me, she was so nice and lovely and made the experience even better than already was, by far the best waitress i have ever came across, thank you much i don't know her name but if you guys know who i'm talking about please let her know she is amazing!!!!!! Will definitely be coming back just for her Thank you

Had to send food back as it was cold!

Great food and great customer service. Loved the atmosphere, had a great time and definitely going back again. Recommend it!!

I had a breakfast there today. It was great, very reasonable priced and brilliant service as well

Nagon jól éreztük magunkat ,nagyon kedves volt mindenki és jövőre is biztos elmegyünk. Nagyon finom volt a vacsora

amazing food. Our favourite restaurant in Cambridge!Love it

Food and service was amazing. Staff were polite and was a lovely atmosphere, would highly recommend!

I’ve visited a few times now and the food is always great! The staff are so friendly and know their stuff when it comes to menu choices etc! Will definitely return!

Visited over the weekend and really enjoyed seeing the new menu options. We were seated and ordered our drinks which were served straight away. We ordered our food, I chose The Pappardelle Braised Beef Ragu and was really impressed with my choice. Service and food was excellent. Will be returning again soon.

Great food, great service. Will return.

Visited over the weekend. Food and services were brilliant. Would definitely recommend and go again 🙂

He had an amazing saturday lunch. The manager lady who served us she was verry attentive and provide exceptional service.

Had to wait 5 minutes for the side dishes and a further few minutes for the caesar salad for one of our party. Had the seafood linguini and the squid was severely overcooked and was like eating rubber. Also the food was on cold plates so by the time the side dishes arrived, the food was cold

食品味道十分好 地点也方便 價錢合理 有很多優惠方法 但不明人客不多 可能出歺比較慢及常有些食物沒貨存 網上常寫很早大約晚上8:00関的 但實8:O0還可入 客

Ordered pancakes, they took ages to arrive, then when they did they were cold so I sent them back. Second lot were better but the fruit very disappointing, cut up small and very little of it. The pancakes were very heavy and stodgy, so overall the food was a great let down. The staff were very polite and efficient but sadly not I don't see me coming back here. Just to add I did complete the online review for the site but no response.

Ordered a very simple dish but got the worst pasta I've had in the UK. The whole dish was a disaster and watery. Pasta was like soaking in a bowl of soup. Taste was awful as well. Arrived before lunch time but was told a few dishes were unavailable. Can't believe this restaurant can still open in Cambridge! Will never go again.

Couldn't be better. Really good food, great coffee, and fantastic service. All the stars, can't fault anything.

A bit expensive and the coffe It was strong for me.But It was a clean and nice place to rest a bit

Helped me even though I was not dining

Short staffed so very slow. Staff apologised and wouldn't allow to tip. Food was very good all the same

Un buen lugar con una atención impecable. Buena ubicación y buen sabor. ---- Good Italian place, excellent service. Good location and the food was good.

Coffe has no coffe in it and the food not very fresh

Served by fantastic Rudy today who made sure we had a great table and treated us to pain au chocolate as a gesture for the small delay in seating us. Wonderful breakfast and coffee.

Food was OK not great. The chicken burger was a bit small and didn’t come with much for the price. Bafflingly one of the children’s starters came with the mains and the other came after the mains. This obviously meant the kids were cross we had starters and they didn’t. This level of mess up for this price range is not really OK. You would have expected them to offer something off the bill. We will go to Zizzi’s down the road next time.

Went here today for breakfast. The food was delicious, I ordered the avocado on on toast with poached eggs and smoked salmon. It was delicious the bread tasted like it was soaked in garlic oil and I ordered a portion of mushrooms which was seasoned so well! The waiter was by himself and he did an excellent job.

Had a very nice breakfast over the weekend. Recommend the magnifico and the eggs with salmon.