A Banda Del Buso

we went there reading great reviews but the staff wasnt able to speak english which it is altight but they acted weird and not welcoming they were smilimg to the other italian customers but for us it felt like eat your meal and go… meat was cold and most of the parts were fats risotto was nice for this price we would have expect bigger sizes didnt enjoy the time we spent will not go there again

Truly exceptional. Very delicious plates and friendly staff. I hope to go back soon!

We crossed the entire city to have dinner at A Banda Del Buso, our last meal in Padua. Despite the positive reviews online, the experience was unfortunately far from what we expected. We absolutely wouldn't return. €16 for a quite basic chicken fillet that was entirely unremarkable, and €5 for side dishes that, in our case, consisted of either two bits of potato or courgettes that were supposedly "crispy". Where is the crispy? Not in the slightest. Why mislead people like that? The portion of baccalà alla vicentina was tiny, and the antipasti were equally meagre, both of which you can find cheaper, tastier, and far more generous just about anywhere else in Padua. It was a complete letdown from start to finish, and we wouldn’t go back under any circumstances.

There are two restaurants next to each other: one for meat and the other for fish dishes. Appetizers and horse meat goulash with polenta were excellent, as well as fried peppers and cherry tomatoes. Kids had extra tender chicken breasts. Although the menu is in italian, waitress was very helpful in explaining the different dishes. Service was a bit slower, it was crowded, but everybody was very kind.

A friend who lived in Padova for many years before the pandemic recommended this restaurant to us, and I’m so glad of the recommendation! This restaurant is on a very quiet side street, far away from the touristy parts of the town, and you would find it basically only if you have a local friend who knows about it. In fact there are two restaurants owned by the same owner: A Bando Del Buso specializes in meat dishes; its sister restaurant “Osteria Del Pesche” just across the street (literally just 3 meters away) specializes in fish. In this review I focus on the meat restaurant. I’ll leave a separate review for the fish restaurant. The food here is the best I found in Padova. They have a small menu: a few appetizers (I especially like the bacala), a few primi, a few secondi, and they have a separate “grilled meat menu” with three options for grilled meat. My favorite dishes are the mushroom risotto (from Primi), bigoli, panna cotta e frutti di bosco. I also especially like their espresso which is among the best restaurant espresso I’ve had. The mushroom risotto (with truffle) is absolutely excellent. You should also get their side salad which costs only 5 euros but comes in a giant bowl (five times bigger than what I was expecting) and tastes extremely fresh and delicious! They have both indoor and outdoor seating; indoor seating has air conditioning and outdoor seating has shade and fans and plants. I particularly like the fact that they filter their own water and water is included in the “coperto”. They also have free password-protected WiFi.

we went there reading great reviews but the staff wasnt able to speak english which it is altight but they acted weird and not welcoming they were smilimg to the other italian customers but for us it felt like eat your meal and go… meat was cold and most of the parts were fats risotto was nice for this price we would have expect bigger sizes didnt enjoy the time we spent will not go there again