Carmelo Greco

This was not a starred dining experience. First off, and I apologize that this is entirely subjective, but the food was lousy. In the past, when asked what a starred restaurant it like, I have said, when dining at a starred restaurant, you should be...startled by at least one course. Then I modified that, in response to a chocolate covered pigeon in Reims, and said that it must be startling and good. Nothing here was startling. And nothing here was good either. Edible is not good. Service was, however, startling—startlingly bad. I am going to start with some glaring examples. The first course was scallops. They were served on a bed of something that I could not identify, so I ask the waiter what it was. He did not know, and had to ask the chef. Those scallops had been on the menu for at least two months since I had made the reservation and the waiter is unfamiliar with the basic components? I guess at Carmelo Greco, the water’s job is to haul the food from the kitchen and slap it on the tables. When I was initially asked for my order, I asked for the seven course menu with pairings. The waiter did not know what I meant. I have been a “star collector” for many years and have been to different restaurants. Pairings has been the term I have used times, and this is the first time I have had to bring up the on-line menu to show the waiter what I wanted. (For some reason, pairings were priced on-line, but not on the printed menu There were two waiters and one server, which is insufficient staff for the number of tables. So, service was notably impersonal and particularly slow. I had gone there via subway. My ticket for my return expired at midnight. I had arrived at pm and started to wonder whether is was going to need to buy a new ticket to go back to my hotel. At one point during the evening, the waiters got into an argument—it seemed to be about wine glasses. I didn’t anticipate blows, but I was concerned that one of them was about to walk out. A recurrent exchange of words between them became the norm for the rest of the evening. But let’s jump back to before I made my reservation. I emailed the restaurant to ask about any dress code. I got no response. In fairness, I also wrote to Restaurant Français (also in Frankfurt) and got no response to the same question. Maybe it is a German thing to ignore emails, because Restaurant &Moshik in Amsterdam responded to my inquiry promptly. I would like to go through the courses individually but it is difficult for me to describe my subjective impression. In summary from the uninspired amuse, to the bread, to each course, nothing was yummy. Bland is what I would characterize my overall impression. But, I will give two highlights. In over courses in starred restaurants, I had only been unable to finish one. But having been to Carmelo Greco my count is now up to three. The fourth course at Carmelo Greco was sole. It was absolutely flavorless. I could only shove so much soggy cardboard into my mouth, before I was gagging. The next course was lamb, and again, it lacked flavor and was very chewy. Carmelo Greco needs to find a new provisioner, who can sell them better quality meat. Finally, the wine pairings were not good. I know that is entirely subjective. But my evidence is that with each pour, the waiter poured me a taste and asked whether I liked it? Huh? I am paying you for your expertise in selecting wines for their compatibility with the dish. None of the pairings ever gave me that feeling of “I get this”—a visceral appreciation for why that wine was paired with that course. Rather than pairings, I think the waiter was simply finishing off random bottles that had been opened for wine sales by the glass. Creativity, is what you go to a starred restaurant for. I did not find it at Carmelo Greco. And for what it is worth, the four diners on either side of me were equally disappointed. While I am very unlikely to actually write to Michelin, I feel like I should. I was misled by Michelin representing that this restaurant met their One Star standard. It does not. I debated whether to give them one or two dots. On the one hand, I like to reserve my one dot ratings for truly exceptional circumstances. But on the other hand, I could not identify one redeeming quality that I could use to bring them from one dot to two. Just in case you ignore my advice and book Carmelo Greco, beware of the table in the main aisle. I took a picture so that can see what I mean. Make sure that you make it crystal clear that if they attempt to seat you at that table, you will not stay.

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Situated in an unexpected, lower class neighborhood you find this Michelin starred Italian restaurant. Inside the restaurant is quite stylish. The service is old style Italian, but not too intrusive. Most importantly, though, the food is excellent. Unfortunately they did not have white truffles on...stock. Otherwise there are limited menu options, I.e. around starters, promo, mains etc. you can also go for the tasting menu with courses. I liked the scallops for starters, as it was distinctive and flavourful. Also we got a choice of different pasta/risotto dishes which were nice. The wine was also great including one over year old red wine for connaisseurs. Overall it showed they deserved the a Michelin star.

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I made a reservation weeks in advance, for The night before I got an email to verify my reservation and I did. When I arrived they informed me that the kitchen closed was closed and they could not serve me. I asked why...no one emailed me in the many weeks prior to inform me or offer to change my reservation time and I got no answer. Disappointing, to say the least.

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The dinner was average. The taste does not align with the price. The service is not bad but they mixed the orders, they were very unfriendly and arrogant. I won‘t recommend this restaurant to no one.

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We were yesterday for dinner and it was an amazing event. We had the Degustation Menu and this was purely outstanding. Very attentive stuff with great wine recommondations.

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