La Pergola Roma - Buy Reservations

La Pergola has had 3 Michelin stars for nearly two decades but the restaurant feels as if time stopped here in the early sixties, which is probably appropriate for a hotel featured in Mad Men. The attitudes are certainly those of that era with no acknowledgement that women are anything other than decorative. They still have different menus for men (with prices) and women (no prices) irrespective of who is hosting the dinner and they still proffer the wine list to the man at the table. La Pergola is one of the last 3 star bastions of “jackets are required for men” and ill fitting loaners are imposed on any man who dares to come without one. Though apparently baseball caps are fine!
The room feels dreary, particularly on a dark wet evening when there is no view of the city and one is left with the low ceilings and brown decor. Service throughout the evening was correct but lacked joie de vivre. The stuffiness continues with a ridiculous 12 page water menu sorted by mineral content, origin and exoticness - for which read carbon footprint. Tap water was not a listed option.
The food lacked any of the Wow factor one normally gets from a really good chef - the tastes that wake you taste buds and make you rethink your approach to food. Instead nearly every dish was bland and based on a gloopy slightly sweet sauce or puree. No lemon or lime or yuzu or tangy herbs or the umami of ripe tomatoes or anchovies or peppers. And the salt should be in the dishes not is an absurd little performance of choosing one of 4 different salts offered at the start of the meal.
Even the deserts lacked much definition and the chocolate variations was pretty but lacked the range of flavours normally expected of such a dish. Some petit fours were excellent but others were bland though the caramel filled disc of dark chocolate was superb. Bread and olive oil were also excellent.
The wine list is another silly reprise of the 1960s. It is huge and comes in two volumes, italian and other. It may be perfect for the wine aficionado seeking vast verticals of trophy wines but doesnt help anyone else. The markups are gouging though to his credit the sommelier recommended a (relatively) inexpensive etna wine - probably the borrowed jacket gave us away as not being in the high roller class! However the italian fizz offered as an alternative to champagne was light to the point of vanishing.
Overall I would rate this a solid, if unimaginative, one star. We had a better meal and wine for a third the price at Moma (one star michelin) the prevous night. Michelin please wake up and join the 21st century

Read More in La Pergola Roma Tripadvisor Reviews

In our family trip to Italy in Mar 2022, we tried various Michelin started restaurants including one star Il Palagio, one star Borgo San Jacopo and three star Enoteca Pinchiorri. By comparison La Pergola is a mystery as to how they obtained their 3 stars. From the get go at reception, female staff was cold and uninviting. The dinner service staff was friendly but unimpressive. Often food description was quiet and didn’t highlight the dishes being served. Sommelier was cold and unhelpful. For this reason, it most likely affected our enjoyment of the food which we found to be mediocre and unimpressive. Enoteca Pinchiorri, by comparison, was a dinner to be remembered and truly worthy of their 3 stars. To top it off, this restaurant still requires that male guests wear a dinner jacket, if not, one is forced upon you. This is no longer a requirement of almost all Michelin starred restaurants. La Pergola needs to keep up with the times. Totally regretted coming here, particularly as we had to take expensive cab to and from the restaurant.

Read More in La Pergola Roma Tripadvisor Reviews