caraffa restaurant

incredible service, delicious food and very generous portion size. this beautifulrestaurantis worth every visit. it is very popular so make sure that you book. the rib eye was amazing, but the meatball pasta was even better.

absolutely yum.

my favorite italianrestaurantin pretoria! lovely atmosphere, even better food and personel that want you to have an enjoyable evening. really is a hiddem gem.

the starter chicken livers are overcooked and cold with not a peri peri taste. main course the t-bone cooked in the pizza oven - the garlic burnt and raw. tarimisu in a glass what italianrestaurantis this serving a tarimisu like a drink in a glass. the worst italianrestauranti ever been to.

we had an early booking on a saturday as therestaurantwas fully booked the rest of the night. for drinks we ordered a prosecco as an aperitif, unfortunately we could only order this as a small bottle, not a glass.
shared a carpacio, taste was nice, but it was a bit cold and ‘watery’ because of the dressing.
as main we enjoyed the saltimbocca and the salmon champagne. both were very nice. as desert we had the home made creme brûlée and the pear with mascarpone. great choice.
the patron is quite present and dominant, which can sometimes be a bit annoying.

i attended a celebratory dinner at caraffa, and i have some mixed feelings about it.

firstly, the positives: the extensive wine list and knowledgeable staff. there seems to be quite a few meals of the day which is always nice to see. i had a starting dish with absolutely delicious clams with a chili, wine and tomato sauce. the carpaccio was also quite good, with delicious and fresh meat. the desserts are also lovely - both the pana cotta and the crème brûlée were of a perfect consistency. a live pianist performed which helped lift the ambience.

there were, however, quite a few cons. therestaurantfeels dingy and out of date. there seem to be too few servers for the amount of tables, slowing down service considerably. the main course i had was a total let-down. the ravioli had an extraordinarily bland meat filling that was vastly under-seasoned, and had a badly balanced cream and parmesan sauce. there was nothing to break the cloying creaminess, leaving me feeling rather nauseous afterwards. luckily, the kingklip my boyfriend ordered was better.

the dinginess of the atmosphere and the main i had at caraffa left a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. the positive aspects of the establishment redeem it somewhat, but for the price asked, i doubt i will be hurrying back.

my father has been going to thisrestaurantfor the past 40 years - it has definitely stood the test of time! classic italian food with pleasant ambiance. service is very friendly and the owners are always around. i recommend the clams and stuffed mushrooms as antipasti. for main course i reccomend the pizza (always great), pasta (ravioli is divine), veal and steaks - the side veg however disappoints. desserts are alright. currently serving divine poached pairs + marscapone which is not on the menu but definitely worth asking for.

i didn't take many photos, simply because of the low mood lighting. not that there's anything wrong with romantic mood lighting at all! because that is exactly what i will recommend caraffa for, a chilled night out. no cellphones needed.

a lovely, traditional italianrestauranthas got a certain old school charm. the service is excellent, from the moment we walked in, until we left. really exceptional. a fantastic wine list, and impressive menu with all the dishes you would expect - pizza, pasta, veal, italian kisses.

we ordered fresh oysters as a starter - divine! i had the gnocchi 4 formaggi. so rich and decadent - in stark contrast with another italianrestaurantwe visited a couple of weeks ago.

we will definitely be back!

wanted to treat friends to a great evening at a trusted favorite i would normally have no hesitation to recommend.

first time for my friends. celebrating our children attending matric farewell as a special milestone for all of us.

thought it was just a slight mishap when the starter focaccia bread of my guest did not arrive when the rest of us received our entrees, but it was confirmed that we were in for a difficult evening when both of our main's, two t-bone pizza oven prepared steaks, had to be returned. owner took order, but griller either did not get the message or just got it wrong. medium to rare ordered steaks arrived well done.

incredulously, exactly the same steaks were returned to us, but this time, very well done. somehow, waiter though we were complaining that it was too "bloody" when there was no pink juice to start off with when we received it the first time? never checked the order with the owner.

ok, so by the time that our wives had finished their mains, we received the replacement steaks. first cut we saw the nice pink juices and eagerly tried to tuck in, famished at this time.

owner arrived and tried to educate us as to how the "normal order" of "medium to rare" should rather have been "rare" as we (?) had to allow for cooking time from the pizza oven to the table??? forgetting for a moment that the steak arrived well done in the first place. he also indicated that he forgot to tell us when we ordered with him, that the pizza oven was quite hot and cooks the steak faster than normal and could therefore influence the order...

sadly, after he left, i could probably get two more bites out of the rest of a sizable tbone... the rest of the steak consisted largely out of sinew and fat. my friend did not fare any better with his replacement steak.

said so to the waiter when he collected the plates. next thing the owner plonks a bottle of liqueur on the table with 4 glasses and while pouring, says: "sometimes you have a bad meal and just have to drink something to feel better"

had to ask twice for him to please not pour me a drink (as i do not drink alcohol for medical reasons). not saying anything or apologizing for a ruined evening, he walked away with his liqueur, never to be seen again.

when the bill arrives, low and behold it contains a full charge for the two steaks. no discount on our bill and no apology.

friends will never go there again. we will also be very hesitant to do so. so disappointing as this has always been a high quality and value for money, although pricey, italianrestaurantin pretoria.

i understand that you sometimes get a bad batch of meat from the supplier or the staff get orders wrong etc. it is always the way that the issues are dealt with that either brings you back and continue recommendations. or the way is just so disappointing and detracting that you have no other option than to accept that the owner does not "own" problems anymore but regard clients as replaceable and dispensable.

good service, stats says we tell 6 people, bad service, we tell 13. good luck on working those odds with your attitude and the current economic climate.

caraffarestaurantwas recently recommended to us, so we gave it a try. what a rewarding experience! 
we received a warm welcome at reception, which already made us feel at home and we were taken through to our table in a semi private area. the hostess at our table delivered exceptional service throughout the evening and was clearly very well trained. 
the relaxing sound of a piano was heard through most of the evening and reminded us of the same ambience and service which we have experienced in restaurants abroad.
we started our evening with a good bottle of chardonnay and focaccia mozzarella which was followed by calamari alla pescatora as main course. this was mouthwatering delicious! for dessert, we both ordered affogato which rounded off the evening with a beautiful coffee after taste. 
caraffarestauranthas now become one of our favourite venues, for unspoilt dining.

outstanding restaurant!

this is a smart casualrestaurantwith outstanding food and better service.

we were lucky to get a table although we didn't book. therestaurantis split between a quite and more buzzing area.

we started with a carpaccio to share. we didnt ask for it to be split but the kitchen split it anyway and plated both beautifully, so much so that it felt like we both had our own portion.

i had a gorgonzola fillet, a little pricey but delicious. my friend had the gorgonzola pasta which had huge pasta tubes in a rich sauce.

the sides are not great and can be improved.

overall great classic food, and excellent service. definitely recommend

ok there is good food and great food but this is amazing. wow i can honestly say thank you. probably the best t-bone i have had. spending time with great friends in this amazingrestaurantwith a piano player that makes everything so much better.

i have been to thisrestauranton a number of occasions. i must say that the ambience is not the best and can come across as a bit dull and stuffy. the service is good with politerestaurantstaff. the italian owner often comes around to engage with her customers making them feel welcomed. we have tried a few of their menu items such as their mussels, focaccia, pizza, pasta and lamb rump. all the dishes were good. the reason that we keep going back is for their sirloin al forno, made in their pizza oven. it is one of the tastiest sirloin steaks available in pretoria.

walking in, you already feel at home. therestauranthas a warm and intimate atmosphere and friendly staff. the wine list is also impressive. i had the garlic and herb focaccia, fusilli matriciana pasta and creme brulee for dessert. everything was delicious, will definitely come again.

my husband and i visited thisrestaurantfor date night!! it was the perfect choice. the ambience is perfect. the specials were explained brilliantly, our waiter was on the ball and the food was absolutely amazing. it's not the cheapest but well worth it.

there is no better italianrestaurantin south africa... their pizza is amazing and generously topped with delicious toppings. their service matches their food and the vibe is very italian.