Portofino Italian - Palmerston North

Absolutely the best meal I've ever had! I tried the classic bruschetta, margherita pizza, and gelato, and I'm completely smitten! The food was outstanding, and the service was top-notch.

The Italian cuisine here is outstanding, and the staff is incredibly friendly. They offer more than just traditional authentic pizza, featuring a variety of typical Italian appetizers, main dishes, and fantastic desserts. The Panna Cotta is especially delectable.

The food here is traditional and of good quality, with a wide variety of options at reasonable prices. While it’s not classified as 'fine' dining, everything we've tried has been delicious, well-prepared, and nicely presented. The tortellini, veal, caprese salad, and carbonara were all delightful. The tiramisu was well-crafted; however, we felt it could use a bit more coffee liqueur. For context, I’ve enjoyed considerable Italian cuisine during trips to Italy and Greece for both leisure and work, and I have no complaints—though, of course, I am not a native Italian. Moreover, the restaurant boasts an impressive drinks menu featuring wines and spirits from both Italy and New Zealand. I haven’t fully explored the drink offerings yet, but the Sangiovese I tried was quite nice. The decor and layout of Portofino are lovely, and it may very well be the most attractive restaurant in Palmerston North, if not among the top contenders. The spaciousness is a welcome change since the building was previously Melville House. It can get a little noisy when a large group is present, but that’s hard to avoid. Service here is friendly and enjoyable, albeit slightly unrefined at this stage. However, it’s still early days, and they’re not aiming for high-end silver service. Overall, this is a fantastic addition to the dining scene in Palmerston North, and it’s a delightful place to be. Here’s hoping for great success in the future!

From the beginning, each single plate is amazing and wonderful. Seafood plater with musculature, mussels, Calamari and fish was tasteful. Risotto and Carbonara was delicious with creamy and rich sauce. The desert: *Koch Kuss* amazing. Definitely recomend and we will come back for more.

Amazing restaurant, absolutely delicious food and fantastic service. We only travel from Wellington to Palmerston North for this restaurant. The manager and the team that worked tonight (21/5/22) were so wonderful. They were very busy today and I had mistakenly not booked before arrival. Before they even knew that we were here only for this restaurant, they felt so welcome to the stress of catering for their busy restaurant. They were able and so busy, an hour to close time so they no longer made orders, but they made an exception for us. I guess so much. Will be safe again as soon as we can. I recommend everyone coming to PN to stop here! Palmerston North is very happy to have this restaurant and team.