Sorrento Restaurant in Sunderland

So I’ll start with a positive …. We booked a table after visiting previously where the food and service was excellent. We brought some friends and on arrival were shown promptly to our table. The restaurant was busy and had a lovely buzzy feel however …….. we waited nearly half an hour to be asked if we’d like drinks, we ordered a bottle of red and a chilled bottle of white. They arrived 10 minutes later … with no glasses. We waited another 10 minutes for the glasses to arrive after having to ask the rather abrupt waitress … the glasses had clearly just come out of the dishwasher as they were red hot so had to wait another 15 mins for them to cool so we could pour our wine. Our starters were nice but the main courses … I ordered the lobster tortellini from the specials board …. What arrived was a seafood ravioli which was so salty I couldn’t eat it. The pollo alla crème was rubbery and not nice. To be fair, when the waitress asked if our meals were ok and I said about my pasta, without hesitation she said she’d take it off the bill. We were so disappointed as we’d really looked forward to it after a previous great experience - not likely to return sadly

Haven't been here for ages and the service and atmosphere hadn't changed 😁 Food was lovely and fresh even the kids loved it. Will deffo be back ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Had a steak, got it as requested and served within a short waiting time. Basically, Excelent food and very pleasant staff

Veldig bra mat og omgivelser. Rask servering og gode viner . Åpent lengre enn andre steder her og hyggelig vert med gode forslag !

Best place in Sunderland for an Italian, very affordable and staff are always welcoming. I've been coming here for years and have never had a bad experience.

Amazing night I went to this restaurant with my daughters and we had a lovely time nothing was to much for them the food was beautiful and atmosphere was really good

5* food as always, we always have our family party’s here and we are never disappointed. Service is perfect from all the staff would definitely recommend for your party’s!

I went to this restaurant for my friends birthday and we all had the best time ever.the staff are absolutely brilliant very friendly and can't do enough for you.i had the fillet steak and it was beautiful my friends had pasta and said it was the best pasta ever full of seafood. Amazing authentic Italian food I would highly recommend perfect night for any occasion 😋

Tasty. Nice atmosphere. Went with friends. Didn't book and was welcomed. Lovely atmosphere. There is a special menu 5-7 mon to thurs for 11.95. I ordered potatoe skins and GF pasta. Downside no option of GF pizza.

Great atmosphere but the food was cold. I ponder if the food is microwaved? The staff didn’t seem to care. Oh well, my wife and I will try a different restaurant next time. Never again.

Sadly, this place has gone downhill. After going for many years, a recent visit was shocking! As a party of 11, we didn't experience good service at all.Moving furniture around us while we were waiting to order. Drinks order messed up twice. Sides missing when food arrived. My wife got what looked like a child's portion of cannelloni and the staff seemed resentful that we only wanted mains, no starters, desserts or coffee. Won't be going back. I expect the answer to this will be they were very busy that night, easy answer, only book as many covers as you can cope with ... simple!

The restaurant looked dated and dusty, lights and fittings had a high amount of dust across the restaurant, staff were attentive and friendly. Drinks were disappointing, my partner ordered a Captain Morgan's and diet coke to find out it was pepsi but it arrived at our table and it was flat and out of a bottle and luke warm, I ordered a pint of John Smiths for it to be served in a Carling Pint glass and out of a can not on draught from the pump. Food wasn't the best, I ordered spicy meatballs starter, they tasted a little strange to me, it looked and tasted as if they were prepacked and frozen, it came in a small dish with an abundance of sauce and a lot of cheese, when it was served the dish was burning hot with an oil slick on the top, it looked like it had been put in the microwave for a few minutes and it arrived with a total of 1 slice of baguette. My partner ordered the black pudding starter, there were 2 pieces of thin cut black pudding and sandwiched between was 1 slice of baguette as well then topped with a very dark peppercorn sauce. For mains I went with the fillet and king prawns and my partner ordered the sirloin steak and king prawns, well what can I really say apart from very underwhelming steaks came to the table with this 'garlic butter' sauce which overwhelmed the steaks.... I ordered an extra peppercorn sauce and was very disappointed with it. The sirloin steak looked like it had been beaten to a pulp and even the rind was left on the side, which made it impossible to cut through. The 2 king prawns we got on both steaks were way overcooked and didn't even look like prawns and had no taste and a very weird texture. Both dishes were covered with this garlic butter sauce which, when you order steak with garlic butter you expect a small amount of butter melted on top of the steak when served, however, simply put, it was a heart attack on a plate... with the amount that was on the dish, it swamped everything. The peppercorn sauce tasted of gravy and cream, there was no sign of peppercorn, other than a few uncracked peppercorns.... The whole experience was flavourless and underwhelming.

Sorrento's might not be the most modern Italian in town but whatever they lack in style they make up for with friendly service and lovely food. We went on a Saturday before theatre so they were super busy and yet they managed to serve us well and quickly. Definitely be coming back. We had starters and mains and all was lovely. My salmon crema had a lot of fish and prawns and my partner was pleased with his lasagna.

The Food and service were excellent - as usual , however the restaurant was really cold. Would definitely recommend, but take a jumper with you.

Amazing as always, the food tonight was outstanding. Service top notch. The staff treat us so well, we always feel fantastic when we come here. 100% recommended

works Xmas night out, 9 of us had food and drinks faultless service and lovely food cooked beautifully always come here for our work nights out always first class service :-)

Came here on recommendation and did not disappoint! Excellent service lovely friendly atmosphere, food was beautiful.

Even though the restaurant was busy, all staff were very helpful and friendly making sure we were all happy. Food and drinks were amazing and the lovely girl who served us was fantastic. Manager was brilliant also and really made us all laugh Cant wait to return here

Excellent food and excellent service by the staff. Friendly staff and good environment. This place is a good spot for the party

Amazing service from such lovely, attentive and friendly staff! Food was gorgeous. Definitely recommend ☺️

Visited last night with friends. Beautiful food and excellent service. We didn’t wait very long for food/drinks, cocktails were also very nice. The staff can’t do enough for you and were extremely helpful and friendly. I will definitely be visiting again.

Friday night my hubby and I took our friends from nuneaton for a meal. It was spot on the service was fab food was lovely and hot Thanks for a fab night

Definitely be back, went for my sisters birthday with friend's and the service was brilliant. Made a fuss of my sister, sang happy birthday and the food was amazing.

5* Service from everyone involved, food was fantastic didn't wait long. Even made a fuss of one of the girls for her birthday will definitely return!

Our new go to pre theatre restaurant. Excellent service by friendly and efficient staff. Tasty food and very reasonably priced. Will be back!

Potato skins to start, not your usual potato skins but nice all the same. Got it with the garlic dip, very tasty. My main was lasagne which didn’t seem as good if a portion to my family who had large plates full , there was...

Booked here short notice. Got back to me straight away accepting my online reservation. Came with my family and we had the best time celebrating my husbands birthday. Food was amazing and staff were lovely too. Nothing was too much trouble. Would definitely recommend to...

Lush food!!! We all get streak and it was beautiful! Great atmosphere and fab service! Recommend for everyone of all ages

Outstanding food and amazing service from enes. We have had such an amazing night with the girls, looked after so well and truly love this place.

Sea bass was delicious and staff were very attentive. Would recommend. Very reasonably priced and plenty of choice.

Highly recommend this restaurant. Excellent quality Italian food at a very good price. They were busy and unbelievably efficient, friendly and welcoming. I will definitely come again. 10 out of 10

Good food and can't thank the staff enough. My one year old getting very tired and as one year olds do having a bit of a tantrum. The staff came over and 3 of them gave him all their attention, making him laugh and smile...

We came here after a visit to the theatre to watch the Sunderland Story. We were looking forward to this after a great 30th birthday a few months before. We were taken through to the second dining area and we asked if we could the...

This was hands down the worst meal I’ve ever eaten. Everything was swimming in grease and “sauce” and to be honest, I’m still trying to scrape the residue off the roof of my mouth. I don’t like to leave bad reviews but this meal was...

Friendly staff. I ordered chicken wings and they were awful. Overcooked and grey chicken with practically dried BBQ sauce. Steak was the worst I’ve ever had. Smothered in sauce to hide the horror underneath. Tasteless and disappointing. The chips were swimming in grease. I squeezed...

Great food and staff outstanding , service and food was fab , would highly recommend , out for friends birthday and had such a good experience

Wonderful attentive service, lots of attention to detail and great food reasonably priced. Good ambience full of families (early doors).

Lovely food great atmosphere and great staff and service. Made my birthday night very special. Thankyou

FANTASTIC!!!! Came with my family for my 5 year old daughter birthday. They made so effort for us and we couldn’t of asked for better service and food. Definitely coming again soon!!! Staff was amazing (manager) especially.

Great food, friendly service and all at a very good price. Probably one of the best Pollo Pepes I've had. Would deffo go again.

Friendly service, one of my favourite italian restaurants in Sunderland to go to! Always friendly, food is great. Nice chilled atmosphere

Service was lovely and friendly we were seated quickly and drinks came out soon after. The food was lovely we had main and dessert both reasonable prices and really tasty and filling. The waiters and servers were nice and checked in every so often to...

We visited last night for the first time and will definitely be back. The food was delicious, the cocktails even more so and the staff were happy, funny and entertaining. We will definitely return. Thank you for a lovely evening.

Cosy atmosphere, traditional style Italian restaurant. Walked in off the street , warm welcome and immediately given a table. Excellent, friendly service with a few jokes for good measure. Tasty food which was good value. Plenty of choice. Kids meal was generously sized. Paying the...

Great night, food was lovely, staff were very welcoming. Definitely recommend to others. 👏thanks xxx

We didn't book and it was a Friday night, the staff showed us no hesitation that they had a table for us. We were given appropriate time to order and look over the food and didn't feel rushed. The staff were all friendly and asked...

Food was brilliant, service was brilliant and was had a great time, very family friendly place. Will defiantly visit again

Excellent as always. Food and service you can not fault at all. Staff always make you feel welcome with their friendly attitude and mannerisms. Great atmosphere and really reasonably priced considering everything has went up! Exceptional overall.

Brilliant service, all staff were very friendly and helpful. Food was lovely too!! Thanks for the shots Enes!!

Went for a meal with a group of people from work for a colleagues birthday. The meal we all could not fault but unfortunately the customer service was shocking. We all went up to the till to pay our meal individually then we were told...

We’ve been coming here for the past 6/7 years and the staff and food have never disappointed! Lovely friendly atmosphere and nothing is a hassle for staff always accommodating. We try to get something different each time but it’s so hard when your meal is...

Took my daughters for a little treat and the service and food was 10/10 been coming for years and it's still just as nice now as it always has been. Thank you and see you soon sorrento. Ennis our server was great too

Lovely and delicious food. The service was amazing and the staff are so lovely and friendly. Would recommend! 😊

Had a wonderful time tonight for my son's 21st birthday thank u especially to Alex the waiter he was so funny you made are night.the food was amazing thank you

Alex was our waiter and nothing was too much. He was very attentive and hilairous. Great asset equally what a waiter should be. Food was gorgeous. Was with people who are regulars and it was a great first visit. Will be back. Thank you for...

We come here regularly & have always enjoyed it. Food is lovely & Tasty. Service from staff is always brilliant especially Alex who really does keep us coming back here due to being so happy and friendly. Lovely chilled atmosphere.

Both the food and service were spot on from start to finish. Nothing was too much bother for the staff and the food arrived hot and in good time. The dishes were lovely and great value for money!

Visited for a 14th birthday amazing staff. Amazing food would definitely go again absolutely beautiful

Great service! Wide menu selection of which is great value for money. Food served quickly with a smile. Warm and friendly atmosphere. Would highly recommend a visit

This restaurant is great. The food is delicious. The staff friendly and helpful. The place is clean qnd cosy. They have set menus so something for everyone's budget. Eil definitely visit again.

Good deals in monetary value different starters and mains ,but bit of quality missing Lasagne just chucked on the plate, looked as though it had fallen out the microwave, 2 pizzas were decent ,one not Waiter trying to be funny all the time,give it a...

Table was booked for 8.15pm. On sitting down we were told not to forget that they shut at 10pm. Our starters arrived closely followed by the main courses. We were never offered desserts or coffees and we were very concious that they wanted us out....

Very average Italian restaurant wouldn’t recommend. Pizza was definitely just a frozen one bought in and all the other meals we had were average at best. For some reason they were playing Christmas music also literally every song was a festive one. The front of...

We booked a table for 4 at the restaurant for an evening meal with family. 2 of our party were running late by 30 minutes. We asked for a quieter table as there was a party of 15 people in the restaurant at the time,...

Booked for a meal last minute on Saturday before theatre, service was friendly and welcoming, service was quick and food was delicious. Prices are good for a city centre location too! Will definitely be returning :)

Really enjoyed the food and wine, the meal portions were good value but I would have rated the experience higher if it wasn’t for the cocky over familiar waiter. Don’t mind a bit of banter but it became a bit an annoyance in the end

Attitude of team member at door shocking.. Never in my life experienced anything like it.! When questioned about it at table the attitude worsened. Partner wasn't happy and pulled him.. Hell on.. I work in hospitality and this behaviour is disgraceful!!

Called in for a meal after the theatre. Said they were full but after checking were able to squeeze us in. Service was quick, friendly, and helpful. The food was amazing. I had the canelloni which was one of the best I've ever tasted. Wife...

We dropped on here when looking for somewhere to eat before the theatre & decided to eat here as it was busy at 6pm on a Thursday, which says it all. The food was unbelievable- I had seafood pasta which was full of seafood &...

Fantastic restaurant. From the amazing cosy atmosphere, to the delicious food. Involtini was the best I ever tasted and fillet steak and pollo Kiev were fabulous. Thank you

Came here on a works night out , for a group of 12 we had ordered when we booked and paid a deposit so food came quickly after we had been sat down , we all had starters with a mixture of mussels , garlic...

The food was as lovely as ever but the waitress was rude and patronising. I was ordering starters and main courses for 4 people so when I had gave her the order I asked her to repeat it to make sure I had ordered correctly...

I'm a bit puzzled by some of the reviews on here. My partner and I have been here a couple of times and I can't fault it. The tagliatelle carbonara which is my favourite is delicious and I really can't say anything negative about it....

The Pate was not home made asked for some bread and the response from the waiter was "you might fill yourself up ". The steak was tough and yes I love al dente canneloni . It was undercooked clearly been taken out of a freezer,...

While visiting my partners dad, we stayed at the super Sunderland Central Travelodge, and visited the Sorrento to get some dinner. Despite being busy, the friendly staff managed to fit us in, and we had a delightful meal, served both in a professional yet friendly...

It had been a while since our last visit & now we are wondering why we had waited so long to return. Food was beautiful, very tasty with very generous portions. Ordered scallops & spice meatballs as starters followed by Penne Della Casa & Steak...

Took our son and his 6 friends for a pizza after his 11th birthday party. The staff were friendly, accommodating and the service was excellent. The food was amazing, as we opted for a pasta dish which had plenty of sauce and wasn't stingy on...

Well what can I say. Nine people seated and served all together. All the meal were absolutely amazing as always. And Sorrento's fabulous caring staff were at their very best again. Thanks again for a fantastic night. 5 STARS. 👍👍👍👍👍

cant fault this place food was amazing truly stuffed after eating here too staff so freindly food 5 *

i ordered bruschetta and they gave me toasted bread when it clearly states on the menu that it comes with tomatoes olive oil etc,they forgot the bruschetta part.

Ordered a Sorrentos for delivery with the restaurant being closed for Valentine’s Day. Ordered potato skins/garlic bread and then steak aglio and tagliatelle carbonara and everything was delicious. Shocked at how good and piping hot everything was and can not wait to take the family...

Myself and hubby, decided to visit here again to support our local businesses in these difficult times. We last visited here about 6 weeks ago and everything was spot on. This time everything was OK but jist not as nice. I got the potato skins...

We regularly visited before the lockdown and we always had fantastic food and service. First visit back yesterday and we were not disappointed. The food was amazing the staff were fab...bring on our weekly visits

Used to love coming here for Bolognese pizza as it was the best in town. A year on and very disappointed. Pizza was quite thick and stodgy dough. Bolognese had no taste and topping was 'watery'. Don't know if the chef has changed or the...

Visited in march before lockdown, so thought it appropriate that Sorrento would be the ideal place to visit post-lockdown. It was obvious to see that steps have been taken to separate tables and a good cleaning regime was in place when any tables were vacated....

At a time when the news is focusing on customers not turning up for restaurant bookings here's a new take. Took time to book a table for four for a birthday celebration the week after the lockdown rules were relaxed. Arrived to find the shutters down and telephone not being answered. Emailed to ask why they hadn't informed us that the restaurant wouldn't be opening after all and am still awaiting a reply three weeks later...

Went later on a Saturday night, Tempura prawn starter was nice & lots of it. Main course fillet steak was cooked the way i like it & good size, tables well spaced out, staff friendly & helpful. Meal for 2 with drinks for a very reasonable price.

We use this place a lot as they will always make room, the food is spot on always very tasty, menu has great options kids options an portion sizes are generous even the prices are great. Would well recommend

3 adults 2children went lunch time during half term holidays. Excellent service even though there were quite a few tables occupied.No long wait for food to arrive. Excellent pleasant service.Food hot and very tasty. Generous portions.Children’s portions excellent size for them . Staff professional at all times.We shall be returning.

Had tried to book a table here a few times in the past but hadn't been able to get the timing right. Booked far enough in advance for this visit for a birthday & pre-Xmas family meal. Good assortment of starters and mains, including the specials. All food well made and tasty, service was laid back but not slow. Wine was very nice as were the desserts and the bill wasn't excessive. Enjoyed this overall. Busy restaurant and you can understand why.

Good food . Good service .We've been before and always enjoyed the food .will recommend to friends and family .👍

Went to Sorrento with a work trip in November, staff very helpful and quick to serve even though the group was large! Portion sizes are large, food quality is good and the prices are reasonable. Never had a bad meal here!

First visit to Sunderland,i looked for Italian restaurants' i am so glad i stumbled across the Sorrento,i booked my reservation online, they contacted me instantly via phone call, there was just myself making the reservation, on arrival a very warm welcome and handshake from the waiters was shown to my table, the decor took me instantly to Italy ordered my bottle of cold peroni, and ordered minestrone soup and spaghetti Bolognese for main course, i am a soup connoisseur,and this soup was just awesome the taste the vegetables where just perfect, the main course arrived, and a very good portion, the spaghetti bolognese was beautiful, the meat sauce was just so lovely,i even ventured for a dessert i think it was a caramel bomb covered in toffee sauces was in wonderland, the food superb, the bill was very reasonable, i would certainly go back to the Sorrento,for the food, the atmosphere and its friendly hard working staff.

The food is so disappointing and the service just wants your money, they don’t care about the quality they serve. The spaghetti was overcooked, the bolognese was too oily and the meat in the sauce smelled soooo bad. Needless to say, the service didn’t even bother to ask why I’ve left my plate untouched. When I complained, I was left with the excuse that this is how meat smells and that I shouldn’t have ordered the worst plate in the restaurant as if every restaurant has its bad and good plates. A waste of 20£, please don’t waste your money to this place that wants to be called “an Italian restaurant”. It’s anything but Italian food and you can definitely cook better food at home.

Been here tonight for friends birthday it was absolutely delicious I had cheese garlic bread for starters which was massive then steak Diane and veg it melted in your mouth the staff are lovely and friendly

Ordered a take out yesterday for pate, cheese and tomato garlic bread, special garlic bread, penne bolognese, penne marinara, spaghetti alsalmone, penne arrabbiata and a kids penne bolognese. Ordered at 13.05 and asked to pick up at 13.45, arrived 13.50 and wasnt ready, waited 10 minutes which wasn’t a problem however when I got home instead of the spaghetti alsalmone that we ordered it was a ham and mushroom spaghetti in a creamy sauce. Unsure if the woman on the phone misheard what I ordered or they put the wrong thing in. Didn’t bother calling as I couldn’t go back to get the right item. The rest of the food wasn’t very nice, all the pasta’s were over seasoned, all you could taste was salt! The cheese and tomato garlic bread was bland as was the pate. The only nice item was the special garlic bread which is a real shame as we ate at the restaurant a few month ago and it was lovely. Don’t think I would bother ordering from there again

I have eaten in a lot of Italian restaurants .... but the lasagna here was to say the best I have ever tasted... compliments to the chef because I have left with a Lasting expression of this quaint little restaurant. Thanks for the experience will visit again and defiantly be telling friends to visit .

Unfortunately I agree with previous review. In the past I have been happy with the service and quality of the food, this time however, there was no effort from the staff to make us feel welcome. The chicken kiev was dry and tastless and despite telling 2 waiters this (who both apologised) ther was no response from the manager or chef. Not the way to retain customers. The pizza was good though.

Having been to the Sorrento previously, on a lunchtime, I took a friend there at night. After standing for a minute until he finished reading whatever it was, we were "greeted" by a very surly, non-smiling waiter, who looked more Middle Eastern than Italian. After pointing to a table he disappeared. At the appointed table one of the seats was sticky and dirty, which we cleaned using table serviettes. The waiter returned to take the order, part of this order must have been one of a vow of silence on his part. We ordered a garlic bread and two pasta dishes, which all arrived at the same time. Apart from the bread which was OK, I must say we were disappointed with the meals, in fact I've had better frozen microwave meals. The middle of my friend's lasagne was barely warm, so much of it was left on the plate. My meal was edible, but that's about the kindest I can be. Neither meal had been freshly made. When the waiter returned my friend informed him about the meal being cold, to which he grunted "I'll tell the chef". Well, that was it. I just paid the bill in full and left in the knowledge I'll never return. Very disappointing.

3 of us visited and starters , mains and wine/drink only 58.. food was good, staff friendly ,overall a great time..