L'Osteria - Siena, Italy

Adress: Via Dei Rossi, 79-81, Siena, Italy.

Summary: best taste and value in Siena.

Given the high praise of Lonely Planet to this restaurant, we made it our first try in Siena, opting to wait outside under the rain until the restaurant opens at 7:30 PM. Despite a cold reception from the owners, we were placed to a nice corner close to the kitchen. Our English-speaking waitress was very helpful and courteous.

Being in a healthy mood, we opted for a single appetizer, not intended to be shared; a bruschetta with pear and cheese. Nevertheless, she served it to us as a shared dish, which was very thoughtful. We also got fresh green salads which came nicely dressed, a bit on the spicy side.

The main dishes were tagliatelle with truffles and cheesy spaghetti. The tagliatelle with their unique garlic and truffle sauce were probably the best pasta we had in our life.

We got a caraffe of local red wine, which was cheap and good.

We definitely go again to this place.

La Taverna di San Giuseppe - Siena, Italy

Address: Via G. Dupre, 132, 53100 Siena, Italy.
Summary: Shiny cover, imposing waiters, not much taste, and high price.

We went there on the last day of our trip, hoping for a great treat. This restaurant was advised by our hotel, and had multiple Michelin recommendations for the last 5 years (however it was not in the list recommended by Lonely Planet).

The first impressions after entering the restaurant were good, with a warm reception, efficiently seating us to our table, and a pretty complete menu including all the local specialties.

We started ordering appetizers: bruschetta, spaghetti with truffles. The bruschetta was far from the best in Siena, it included 3 pieces of bread, 1 only with pure olive oil, 1 with diced tomatoes and basil, and the last with zucchini and cheese. The truffle sauce for the spaghetti was rather tasteless with a dominant global taste from the oil and garlic.

As main dishes, we chose fried chicken and braised beef. Although cooked well, the chicken lacked taste and was dry. The beef was tasty on the other hand.

Without indulging in priced food or wine, the bill added up to 117 EUR for 2 people. 13 EUR just for service and bread.

The wine menu provides mostly extremely pricy wines, especially for wines from the area. Most bottles are above 50 EUR, which is even expensive for a French wine. We picked one of the least expensive wines, a Montepulciano Riserva. It turned out to be pretty good, though still expensive compared to other restaurants we've been in Siena.

Finally, for desserts we picked pear cooked in the oven served with ice cream and a chocolate fondant. Both were ok.

Contrary to most restaurants in Siena, we felt for the first time pressed to finish and leave. Before the bruschetta was over, the plate was taken away. Before we could put the first bite into our mouth, our waiter literally made us jump out of our seats by appearing from nowhere and asking loudly "All good?".

Overall, compared to the serene atmosphere of Siena, this restaurant was almost too industrious in serving food instead of letting us enjoy that moment.