to be seriously underwhelmed by Zizzi?

[biggirlknickers]

I’ve been twice. I think it’s pretty pricey at around £7 a starter and £13 main. But it is such bland, underflavoured, unimpressive food! Honestly I think I would have got more satisfaction from a microwave ready meal than the £££ crab cannelloni I had last time.

And the waiting staff insist on calling everyone ‘guys’ at all times which royally pisses me off.

I see it for what it is, convenience food.
I don’t find it to be pricey for a standard Italian chain, it’s run of the mill prices for chains round here (and id imagine in most places to be honest), not special or exciting. It’s pizza with a starter or a pudding.
We don’t go often as there are other places we much prefer but there’s one in town where we sometimes go before or after the cinema with dc.
It’s definitely not what i’d consider a ‘treat’ meal, more convenience.
Dp and I would never go for a meal out there for example, but id go with a group of girl friends for a drink and catch up - it’s not about the food!

I enjoyed their salmon skewers and it’s a handy lunch venue for my vegan daughter (lengthy vegan menu) so I’ll keep Zizzi for what it is - reasonably priced Italian

There are plenty of decent indy places that are probably cheaper and food is always better because it’s not mass produced shite.

I went recently, thought it was alright, fairly nice food, very reasonable

My 7 year old loves it - the kids menu is very good. I wouldn’t go with adults only but good for family groups.

Meh - zizzis to me is the least good Italian chain. I find Prezzo and when it was around, Strada to be better.

Same, think the kids menu is nice, but would choose somewhere else for an adult dinner

The standard of the food has dropped over the past few years in my opinion. I'll eat there if there's a decent voucher around but not otherwise.

Their restaurants are always so noisy too!

But they all pale into comparison with pizza express

80+ gor a family of 4 on a "bit meh" convenience food seems a lot! We dont have a zizzi but wouldn't spend that much for a supposedly cheap family meal.

Kids love it, which is why we go, but it's not somewhere I'd choose to go for a meal if I was kid free

There are always 40% or at least 30% off vouchers around for places like Zizzi, Prezzo, Bella Italia etc, so I often use them. The lasagne in Zizzi is great tbf.
It is what it is, it's British-Italian (relatively) fast food.
Last month I paid a grand total of £8 for dd and I in London as I had quidco cashout vouchers for about £7 and a 40% voucher. Win-win. Works out cheaper than an M&S meal deal.

Because all these chain restaurants use frozen microwave food. DP works at Bella Italia and literally everything is frozen, pasta meals come in the same microwave pots you get at the supermarket. Pizzas are stuck on a conveyor belt to heat them up and off they go. Literally nothing is fresh, even the sauces are frozen

I went to Zizzi once, about 10 years ago, for a friend's birthday and found it seriously poor value for money and it had a generally unwelcoming atmosphere. I'm not a snob and don't mind a chain restaurant but Prezzo and Pizza Express are much better. I also hate Bella Italia.

I like their skewer things. We only go because we spend our Tesco vouchers there.

It’s a chain restaurant that I would only go to if a) it was the only choice or b) someone else decided it was where they wanted for their birthday. It’s like Nando’s but for Italian food. Cheap and kinda cheerful I guess.

Yeah it’s crap. We’ve been a few times because the DC like it but we’re always very underwhelmed. If we go now we take the DC for an early dinner (5ish) and DH and I just have a drink then eat at home later!

It's not bad, as chains go. Too much cheese for me, though.

Agree OP. It's utter crap. Went there a couple of time but would never go there again.

I like their pizzas. We spend our clubcard vouchers there. But they do undercook their pizzas pretty often which I find really annoying as there's never anyone in the place!

We go regularly. Tastecard makes it very reasonably priced and it's quick and very conveniently placed. Not a meal "out" type place but perfectly pleasant.

Plus they don't have horribly loud music, and there are "soft" things in the restaurant to absorb sound which is much better for my hearing aids.

Pizzas are stuck on a conveyor belt to heat them up and off they go

Well, it's a couple of years since I was last in Zizzi, but ours has a pizza oven and you can see them being made while you wait.

I've never once eaten pasta in a restaurant without thinking how easily and cheaply I could knock something better up at home. I never order it now.

Hate it. Really pretentious vibe when it should know it's place amongst pizza express, prezzo etc.

I can’t believe they can mess up basic Italian food! It’s just not nice. When they first started popping up they were good - like Strada - but have gone downhill.