I LOVE this place – it is authentic Italian for such a reasonable price! The courtyard setting is beautiful and the staff very friendly and attentive. The best is the Tuscan Beef and Bread Salad and the Chili Choc Mousse. The only thing that was disappointing was the pizza – too much tomato sauce and nothing special. Otherwise – superb in all areas!

My husband and I used to come here all the time and it was our favorite place to eat. I have been to Italy and this restaurant reminded me of the food there – very authentic. We moved to Hamilton a year ago and haven’t been for ages. We were back in Tauranga yesterday and celebrated our anniversary by going out to lunch at Lo Spuntino. As usual, I ordered the margarita pizza and was absolutely disgusted by what I received! The base sauce for the pizza was clearly from a jar with hardly any mozzarella. When I go out for lunch or dinner, I expect to get food I couldn’t have made better (or cheaper) at home. I am so disappointed as this was the best Italian restaurant I’d been to in NZ. I will never be dining here again.

I’ve been here before and it was great, but tonight was bad. Firstly, it was my birthday so I had made the booking days in advance and when we arrived, the restaurant was full, and our booking hadn’t been recorded. They said the boss sometimes makes bookings and forgets to write them down. So we had a makeshift table close to other diners and in the way of peoples walkway. We felt like a nuisance and our meals were not up to standard. I had the canneloni and it was quite bland. Did not make me feel welcome on my birthday at all.

Been here before a couple of times and really enjoyed it, good food, and service. However the last time we went was so disappointing. Pasta was kinda see through and didn’t taste nice – how do you muck up fettucine? Sauce bland and not enjoyable. The head waiter asked if we would like pepper, we said yes and he never came back! Then to top it all off when we went to pay there was an extra $70 on our bill for our neighbours wine. No apology for this. Was a favourite place of ours, but won’t be back.

Just dined here with a friend for dinner, she orders the carbonara and I have the fettuccine! Doesn’t take too long to come out, but when I gt my fettuccine I had VERY oily pasta with four BIG HUNKS of chicken placed on top, when the menu blatantly says with chicken, not four hunks of chicken placed on top, very disgusted. On the other hand my friend who had the carbonara, couldn’t even have another mouthful as it was SO very peppery! will never returning here! Worst service too! had to wait about 40 mins for the staff to come an clear our table or even ask us if we wanted another drink or how our meal was. Worst experience! ugh!

Have dined here several times for both lunches and dinners (even had take-aways) and everytime very impressed, staff welcoming and friendly, service great and food presented well and very tasty. Setting is relaxing and comfortable. The use of the outdoor area on a warm day is rather nice.

Enjoyed a lovely meal and lovely service.
The restaurant was packed but the waiter made sure to check that we were enjoying ourselves and our meals.

I enjoyed a fairly priced pizza that was delicious.

We had a voucher but this did not stop the waiters from making sure that we were happy.

We dined here last Friday night and had a wonderful experience!!
We had a lovely family evening, every meal our family ordered was fantastic and could not fault the service. Will defiantly be back soon!!
Keep up the good work!!

Don’t usually write reviews but feel i need to on this particular occasion!! We dined at Spuntino last night and had such a memorable experience! Service was spot on! Friendly and attentive! Just lovely staff! Now to the food! WOW! Honestly the best pasta EVER!! I ordered the Spuntino and it was the best pasta i have ever tasted!! Fresh pasta, fresh seafood and the sauce well simply DEVINE!!! Would highly recommend!! We will be back for sure!!! More than likely this very weekend!! I want more!!!!

The pasta was not cooked properly and was still hard. The sauce was pretty average like can of sauce from supermarket. It was really average.
I swear it tasted and looked like something i could make in 5 mins using dolmio stir in sauce.
Very disappointed.

Had lunch today was really disappointed, had the Prawn and Scollops salad, got 1 scollop and 3 prawns the whole dish lacked flavour and for the cost it was a rip off, will not be going back.

Family & I went here for my wife’s birthday…great meal and excellent service, enjoyed by all of us. Great value for money too…approx. $40/head and that included drinks. We will be going here often I think..

I ate here with a friend last week. We had a deal voucher and thought it was good value. Their pizzas are absolutely delicious and really authentic. I had the lamb and feta pizza – odd combination for Italian but it was delicious although excessive feta made it very salty by the end.
We were not so impressed with the Churrros which took over half an hour to come – unacceptable delay at lunch time and they were burnt. They weren’t worth the wait.

Yum Yum Yum! We had a deal voucher and had a really good experience. The fact we had a voucher did not affect the way staff served us, same great service for everyone.
Appeared to be a very family friendly restaurant. Great table, lovely atmosphere and the service was very attentive but not intrusive. Great, pizza was amazing – best we ever had. Will be back again very soon to try other items on the menu.

My wife & I went for lunch…excellent, fast service. Started with Bruschette (always love this) and my wife had a blackboard special (Chicken) and I had pasta/scollops (awesome). Glass of red and one beer all up the total was approx. $69. Very good value for money and highly recommended. We will go there for dinner next asap!!

spuntino is now our favourite place for a dinner with the kids ( they are very accommodating) or a quiet dinner for us. food great, atmosphere relaxed and they are happy to cater for me (gluten and tomato free) – awesome salmon pasta! also favourite place for the grandparents to take us to as well, so ticks all the boxes. recommend

Ok very disappointed with this outfit went there for dessert and had the churitos and chocolate sauce very average and the service was abrupt

One Word: DISAPPOINTING!
This restaurants promised much, but dismally did not deliver.
We ordered our mains at 8-00pm; none of which were rather involved, and the wait we endured was laughable. Other tables who had been seated significantly later than us, were not only eating their food, but where almost done, before we had even received ours. Even worse was that we received no apology nor explanation why our food was taking so long. We were not offered more drinks. A total lack of attentiveness , and regard for customers. When our meals finally did arrive more than an hour and a half late, they left a lot to be desired. The pizzas were nothing special and the calzone was presented with a nice charcoaled-burnt top. After our meals we were offered dessert but we feared waiting till midnight for them; so refused. Our dining experience at Lo Spuntino was plagued by disorganized waitstaff and mediocre food at best. We will not be returning here, which is unfortunate because this restaurant promised so much. Lo Spuntino may we suggest instead La Sciagura?

Fantastic. We hang out for our Spuntino fix! Try everything – it is all delicious and affordable. Portions are large and pizzas are authentic. Make a reservation – especially on weekends – can be packed.

We had a deal voucher and would have been very upset if we’d paid full price for our takeaway dinner. The Posh Fries at $7.50 consisted of aproximately a medium scoop of thin, soggy fries with a side dish of truffle oil. The starter Halloumi Fritto at $ 13.50 was x2 slices of toasted bread with x2 slices of Halloumi, some sundried tomatoes and x4 olives. The Spuntino pizza was average. Sorry but we won’t be returning

We were recommended Spuntino by a colleague. It’s great value (especially for Tauranga), and has become one of our regular restaurants. A must visit if you’re wanting to dine in town! We normally have a Creme Brulee for dessert – this has to be one of the best in town. The service is great, and the wait staff are so friendly and efficient (we have been seated, asked for drinks, then asked again while they were making them – just to make sure we were being looked after).

I often go there for lunch and it is lovely, nice food, great custom service, lovely atmosphere!!! I don’t understand despite the fact that both restaurants are owned by the same guy,why food taste so different and so much better at Spuntino than Valare…

Best pizza I have tasted in a long time, service always top notch, prices great and a lovely relaxed atmosphere – especially at lunch – definitely worth a visit.

Amore!

had a meal at Spuntino a few days ago, the food was great, and the staff were very friendly.I had dips and breads for entree and a veal casserole for mains, which was delicious. My dessert was creme brouilee with ginger, very nice. I loved the patio area behind the store, great atmosphere; will definitely go back again.

Hans

Had a fabulous girls night out at Spuntino last night. The most AMAZING food, beautifully presented – timing excellent. All wait staff very friendly and extremely helpful. I am a strict vegetarian and the extra trouble they went to to create a meal for me was much appreciated. My entire meal was exceptional – fabulous blends of flavours. Would highly recommend to anyone.

Really welcoming and smiling staff. Absolutely the best Pizza in Tauranga. Service was very friendly and helpful.
We had Italian “whitebait” for a starter, that was so good, and then each a Pizza. The homemade Ice Cream was just the dot on the i as a dessert.
Highly recommend this place.

Fantastic. First experience at Lo Spuntino this evening. WE WILL BE BACK. Wonderful fresh food. We all had pizza and it was soooooo good. Very friendly staff and great atmosphere. Thank you

We had New Years eve at Lo Spuntino and had a perfect evening. The food was delicious, plentiful, well cooked, lots of different things to try, the service was excellent and the entertainment and atmosphere made the evening fly by. Luigi and his staff went all out to make everyones evening special. Thank you so much!!!

Definitely recommend. Very warm cosy feeling inside and just beautiful in the back restaurant where they have created a little piece of Italy. Friendly staff and food very good. The ginger and vanilla desert was just delicious. Will definitely dine here again.

Lovely casual atmosphere, especially in the sweet secret courtyard out the back. Great simple food, full of fresh flavours. The service was fantastic; each member of the wait staff knows the menu well and can make recommendations accordingly.
You must try the wide range of Gelato flavours available!