Milano Cucina - Adelaide

Atmosphere: ***/5
Food: */5
Drinks: ***/5
Service: */5


Located on the ground floor of the Channel Ten building Milano Cucina marks the start of the eatery hotspot within the well known Hutt Street precinct.  I was quite hesitant about writing about this place because I feel like it is so far away from what it should, or I otherwise hope, would, like to be and I am constantly hoping that it will be better then next time I go.

The menu boasts Northern Italian food which ranges over pasta, pizza, focaccia, steaks and fish.  I found that the menu is very similar to the Italian restaurants located along the Parade in Norwood.

My last visit here I ordered a Linguine ai Frutti di Mare (Marinara) and I was so disappointed.  This may have been exasperated by the fact that I am trying to reduce the amount of high GI I eat due to the coming summer months and ordering pasta was a special treat.

The mussel's were quite dry and the shells were cracked.  Out of all the clams I was given only one was opened, and after a good crack of pepper from the waitress I had to go back for more, by the end of my meal I had also found that without realising I had eaten nearly half  of a bowl of parmesan with my meal as there was such a lack of flavour.  

The service here is lacking.  The waiters range between being not fluent in English, as I can see that the owner has tried, in keeping with the Italian restaurant, which is a wonderful concept however, they have frequently mistaken my orders, this happens quite a lot, especially with the coffee's, I have often found myself drinking something that I did not order because it gets to the point where language becomes a barrier and it is too hard to negotiate a table full of wrongly served coffee.  The other waiters are either very awkward which often comes across to me as uninterested and/or rude and I have also found some quite aggressive.

There are a lovely little range of cakes and treats and the iced coffee is a special treat here on hot days, as they add a lovely selection of ice-cream's which is perfect for a summer.  The coffees are solid, but not something to compare to the barista/hipster made coffees a couple of blocks down on Rundle Street.

Milano's has so much potential and attract's such a vibrant interesting crowd, I will keep on coming here for iced coffees!