Akademia Cucina And More - POZZUOLI

At first the waiters weren’t welcoming at all. Only after it became obvious that we would stay for more than a drink they sent another guy who was incredibly friendly and a huge contrast to the girls who first welcomed us. We were very decadent and decided to have the Akademie Experience menu each. The entreé and starter with octopus were very delicious and my favorite dish of the evening. The zuccini pasta with mussels was okay but the sauce was somehow bitter. The fish of the day was great, however I didn’t think the green peppers were a great side dish to it. The tiramisús were by far the best ones we’ve had in our trip so far. To top it off we had some special cocktails which were extremely delicious. I’ll give it 3/5 because I did think that the restaurant was too expensive and the price/quality ratio was off for main courses, specially if you were not ordering the menu, and because the service clerks weren’t friendly at the beginning. There’s definitely room for improvement, but I wish the owners all the best (and keep the drink menu!

Difficult to find, as the entrance doesn’t look like a restaurant. We were very excited, the hotel we were staying at made the suggestion to visit for dinner but upon arrival we were made to feel unwelcome and that we weren’t sophisticated enough to eat there. The restaurant didn’t cater for vegetarians at all, as other reviews had stated. The drinks were good but overpriced. Overall wouldn’t recommend for vegetarian food or for people on a budget.

We were staying at Pozzuoli for a week and wanted to try this restaurant because it had such good reviews and because we wanted to enjoy the lakeside location. We went early, the place was nearly empty. Nevertheless the waiter refused to give us a place at the water, because those tables are reserved for “drinks only”. Food is only served inside or on the inner edge of the terrace about the reasons one can only guess. We sat outside but far from the water and smelling the cigarette smoke from the next table. The food was good but not exceptional (we are admittedly spoiled eaters) definitely for the prices there one would expect more. The local wine they served was wonderful. The service quite arrogant, probably that’s the way to justify the prices. We left without leaving a tip for us something rather exceptional. Later, we learned that the restaurant changed owners recently this might explain the different experience we had from this reviewing the place before us.

Our realtor recommended that we try this spot as one of the best in the area and they have parking too. We arrived early on a Sunday with reservations and were seated immediately. The seating was outside with a covered area and deck overlooking the lake where aperitifs are served. The dining area for meals is adjacent to the deck. We had a wonderful waiter who was actually a bartender filling in to help that night. He helped us choose some interesting starters of tempura shrimp with octopus mayo and a crispy fried verdure with raspberry sauce. We chose the fettucelle pasta in a tomato based sauce with shrimp for a second course. All delicious with gorgeous view of the lake and light breeze. We tried one dessert that was ok. The semi-freddo dessert was pistachio with salted chocolate crumbles and dabs of chocolate mousse. The restaurant was busy but the staff all work well together as a team. The manager checked on us too. Everyone was helpful and we enjoyed the evening. We will bring family and friends when they visit.

We had been to this restaurant several times under the old management and were surprised to see it was completely different and the food more of a Northern Italy selection rather than the traditional food found in Naples restaurants and trattoria. The view was unchanged and the service exceptional. We will give it another visit during our next trip to Naples.