Disgraceful. Terrible. Disappointing. Unpleasant. I don’t think there is any other way to describe my dining experience at Oronzo.

With its new location recently opening up in MidTown Tampa, there were so many things that could have been better from service to the food itself.

First of all, the wait was forever. My mom ordered a salad which came exceptionally fast and the chicken on top was actually hot, giving me high expectations. Then my spaghetti burrito came. After 20 minutes. There was so much I didn’t expect about it.

For one, the burrito was folded in half so it felt as if I was biting into a massive lump of bread. It was cold, maybe because of the disregard of time by the workers, or simply because the pasta wasn’t cooked. My first bite of what I expected to be heaven was just disgusting and many of the noodles were hard as rocks. And the waiter even spilled my marinara sauce for dipping when he gave me my food.

40 minutes later, my brother’s food finally came after we asked where it was. He had ordered a choice pasta where you pick the type of pasta, sauce and meat you want. He had gotten a pretty basic spaghetti with alfredo sauce and chicken.

At this point, I didn’t expect his food to be enjoyable and I was right. After forgetting to make his food for close to an hour, they cooked it and brought his food cold also. Usually, I try to sympathize with newer workers as the restaurant just opened, but this place gives a bad name to Italian cuisine. It shouldn’t even be called cuisine!

I was, however, in a way, satisfied with the cost. All of our food ranged from $7.99-$9.99 which is exceptionally reasonable so I was happy. Until I wasn’t. The water was $2.75. Who pays close to $3 for water? It was unacceptable. And to make things worse, the water was obviously not clean. And speaking of clean, with COVID rising once again, the workers weren’t wearing masks. Even though it is optional, I feel like it’s necessary when cooking people’s food to at least be sanitary.

Overall, I would rate my experience a 2/10. The only reason it didn’t get a one was that at least the tables were clean. But if you are in the mood for some Italian food, I DO NOT recommend going to Oronzo.