The hotel itself was ok - the room was spacious with a huge balcony (we had upgraded) but I'm afraid a really terrible meal in the restaurant completely spoilt our enjoyment. The hotel is positioned sufficiently far away that walking to any other restaurants is not possible, and as we were tired after a long drive we opted to eat in. Having had a superb meal at another Romantik establishment in Belgium a few weeks previously, we hoped for similar standards - how wrong we were. The choice was limited to begin with - we skipped starters and went straight for main courses - mine was inedible - totally oversalted to the point of not being able to taste anything but salt for some time afterwards. I persevered with a few mouthfuls but had to give up. My partners meal (lamb I think) wasn't quite as salty, but the meat was very gristly and quite unappetising. The head waiter apologised and offered to replace the meal, but by that point my appetite was gone - he suggested some cheese which in fairness to him was a nice idea and we agreed to that. The steak was removed form the bill but the cheese added - I can never be bothered to argue about this so just paid and we left the next morning - somewhat wiser to the Romantik chain - don't judge all their hotels by the standard of one, would be our conclusion.
- Sporting Hotel Maria
- Sporting Hotel Francavilla Al Mare
