Puccini's, Swinton

My husband and i have been to puccinis a few times for lunch. All of the times, the staff and owners were very friendly, service was quick and food was yummy! I've had the seafood risotto from there and the prawn linguini..both excellent. I kind of liked the decor as well..with autographed footie tshirts..i know my hubby did! Wish my hubby still worked in swinton! But i think its worth making a trip just to go to puccinis :).

HI.IN THE LAST WEEK I HAVE BEEN AT PUCCINIS WITH MY GIRLFRIEND.

EVERYTHING WAS GOOD,GOOD FOOD,VERY GOOD SERVICE,FRIENDLY ATMOSPHERE.BUT THE PROBLEM STARTED LATER,WHEN I HAD TO PAY THE BILL.THE BILL WAS VERY EXPENSIVE FOR THE LOCATION(SWINTON PRECINT),BUT THIS IS NOT THE REAL ISSUE.

WHEN I ASKED THE WAITER IF THE STAFF WOULD HAVE GOT THE TIPS,HE TOLD ME NOT TO TIP BECAUSE THE PROPRIETOR GIVES TO THE STAFF JUST £5 A SHIFT,AND HE(MR MICHAEL PUCCI) WILL KEEP THE REST.

THAT'S VERY SHAMEFUL.I DID NOT LEAVE ANY TIPS BECAUSE I DON'T WANT TO SUPPORT GREEDY OWNERS WHO TAKE ADVANTAGE ON YOUNG HARD WORKING PEOPLE.

I WOULD EXPECT AN ANSWER FROM THE PROPRIETOR.THANKS

I hadn't been to puccinis for a while- used to go regularly years ago when it was a small trattoria on the corner of the precinct - it was very good value for money back then - lovely food at a price suited to its surroundings.

Have visited the relocated Puccinis a few times before and found it to be ok. However on my most recent visit (Friday 23 March 2012) I was most disappointed.

My Husband and myself were shown to our seats and ordered a drink each - the seats in Puccinis have always been the same - uncomfortable - I ordered sardines for starter (£6.95) expected about 4 sardines but got 2 - very measly for the price but they tasted fine. My husband ordered italian Ribs -he said they were delicious but priced at £8.50, in my opinion, a little on the high side.

For main course I had a pasta with Monkfish dish from the specials menu which was £13.50 -again a little expensive but again tasted great.My husband had "Penne a la giggs" pasta with a bolognese type sauce - he said it was ok -nothing special. We ordered the house white wine at £15 and was brought a bottle so assumed it was the house wine. A constant stream of waiters insisted on pouring it for us, practically everytime they passed the table , interupting us to the point I had to ask them to leave it - we would pour it ourselves. We didnt order desserts -just 2 coffees and I had an Amaretto liqueur. It was very hot in the restaurant and i asked the waiter to put the ceiling fan on near to us but it wasnt working. When we went to pay the bill the wine on the receipt was not the house wine and was listed as a pinot grigio at £23 - we pointed this out to the man at the till and he called Mr pucci who brought the bottle on the receipt and asked if this was the one we had which it was but not the one we ordered.

He made no suggestion of refunding the £8 difference. Our total bill was £81.00 - I think given the area and type of restaurant this is extremely expensive - If I am paying that amount for a meal I would expect it to be perfect, in a lot nicer surroundings - it wasnt - we felt we'd been ripped off on leaving and I will not be going again.

Puccini's Swinton, Manchester:

'Puccini's never disappoints', - This 'very genuine & friendly Italian' gem has been a favourite with 'discerning local foodies & football stars alike (Gray Neville & Ryan Giggs even has a pasta dish's named after them)'. Much of Puccini's success is down to the 'blessed presence' of proprietor Michael Pucci and his friendly staff that know their way around the menu, & are happy to give chapter & verse on the ingredients. Pasta is always a good shout - Fettuccine Raimondo, noodles with egg yolk, mushrooms & ham in a tomato & cream sauce. Or try the Risotto Alla Fiorentina, rice saut ed with fresh peppers, onions, ham & tomato sauce are great choices as is the entire menu. The Italian wine list, rich in glass & carafe choices, is a great accompaniment to the fabulous food and a warm and welcoming atmosphere.

Jeff

it gives me great pleasure in saying that puccinis is by far the best italian manchester has to offer, i have been to others around the area and none of them can even come close to the superb service and fantastic food that you will recieve at puccinis. The retaurant is well known in the local area and its great to be able to advise people to go there for a special or even casual occasion. All in all my favourite restaurant and i will continue to eat here for many years to come.

What a great restaurant. Although there are many Italian restaurants, you wont find many that are able to match Puccini's. Puccini's have everything from excellent food to excellent service. From the moment we entered, we were warmly greeted and were regularly asked if everything was ok by various staff and the management.

Definitely will go back.

We tried Puccinis for my partner's birthday, based on its excellent reputation, and am sorry to say we were a little disappointed. It was extremely busy when we arrived but we were quickly shown to our table, this was very cramped as other reviewers have said and we both spent much of the night being bashed into, or leaned over etc..We did not have a specific waiter or waitress and so the service was a little disjointed. The meal started well with an excellent garlic bread, and the starters were nice (although the eggs and spinach was much more spinach and eggs). However the main course let the night down badly and the wine was not the best I've had by a long way. My mixed seafood grill was placed in front of me with no description of what anything was, one of the mystery fish had quite a few bones in it and the scallops were overcooked and rubbery. At £19 per course we expected much better. The overall service was very rushed, noone came to ask if we'd like coffee after or with our desserts or acknowledged our leaving at the end of the night,

For special occassions we do like to fine dine, but this was designed to be more of a budget outing based on good food. The total bill of almost £90 though, did not leave us with a feeling of value for money and the night was not full of the good food and service we expected.

Puccini's is a bit of an institution in Swinton. It's a bustling family-run affair that has been around for a long time. It has been frequented by Manchester United footballers (not hype, there are pictures on the wall!), and they in turn have brought the England squad along when they stayed down the road at Worsely. Puccini's, Swinton, is friendly, great food, chances of seeing footballers here, very reasonably priced.

The food is very good, and varies light meals like a host of pasta and pizza dishes to reasonable prices, to more elaborate dishes such as chicken cacciatore and steaks done to your liking. Desserts are a speciality too, as this is an Italian restaurant

On the down side it can be very busy, especially at weekends and a little cramped as they do shove as many tables in as they can. Also, there are often a lot of family groups eating here, so the ambience is often interrupted to play Happy Birthday a few times a night. It is a bit out of the way as far as Manchester is concerned, so visiting the city for a short stay it's probably not worth visitng Puccini's, but if you live in the city, it might justify a taxi or bus ride to sample their fayre

Service is efficient and quick, but you never feel rushed.

Puccini's is a family run business with very friendly staff and excellent food. Never rushed and always made to feel welcome.

In my opinion, the best Italian restaurant in Manchester.