Grappa’s Cellar

The venue for a band is awesome! The food is subpar.
We had reason to go to Grappa’s for their annual «Franksgiving» celebration. A spoof on Thanksgiving a bit, it honors the birthday anniversary of Frank Sinatra. We bought tickets for $ 280 to the big nine piece jazz band singing tunes of Frank Sinatra & the Rat Pack era. Once you have purchased tickets, they will take your dinner reservation for a table to have dinner during the performance.
The event was great! We loved the set-​up, we thought the venue was big and fun and felt very Italian. There is a good vibe going on at Grappa’s during a performance, band, event. It was hopping! We loved being able to have a meal, enjoy drinks and enjoy the band at the same time. It is a band, but it was not so loud that we could not lean in and talk to one another while having dinner. Pete Moore and the Fabulous Martini Nation was a great big, nine piece band that were so fun!
The food was subpar at best. We had drinks, calimari (which was the only noteworthy item we consumed and it was a large serving, cooked well and included all the little leggy pieces I love), a caesar salad, gnocci and linguini. Food was limp, not flavorful, bland, nothing rememberable after forking in bites. It seemed like it was a true cross between poor quality product and poor preparation. They have lots of options on their menu and they do have a big pizza section, so maybe they do pizza better than they do pasta.
For the Franksgiving event, we were so glad we went and we will go back next Franksgiving too. I would even go so far to say that we would go to that venue again for another band or event. We would not return though just for a meal. The quallity is not there.

I came here thinking the food quality would be just as stellar as Pacific Place’s Grappa’s Ristorante. A relative recently warned me otherwise, but my friend and I were craving pasta so we still went. We ordered the fettucine nere and the fettucine ai quattro formaggi e funghi. Both of them tasted rather odd. The former had a bit of a metallic or plastic taste, while the latter had a strong fishy taste/​smell. The latter pasta could not be tolerated after 2 – 3 bites so we switched it out for the ravioli di pollo, which was better. At the time, I felt that the food wasn’t too bad. However, I think that quality of food is possibly expected in a cheaper or other restaurant below Grappa’s reputation. The atmosphere, on the other hand, is nice for a relaxing evening with friends and colleagues. I’ve always enjoyed Grappa’s Ristorante at Pacific Place, but I do not think I will be returning to Grappa’s Cellar (as I also take into account my relatives’ recent experiences).

We went to a 80’s night and the band and venue was pretty good, unfortunately the food wasnt so great. The pizza was probably one of the worst i have eaten for years — i took one bie and left the rest

Good food, but there are never any spaces, and if you do come while there’s a sound check, turn around and come again some other time. Live performers are crap and volume is dialled up way above natural auditory range. Unilocalers be advised.

The Grappas at the basement of Jardines House has been a lunch favourite of mine for many years. Any Central urbanites would know that trying to get a table at lunch time anywhere from Cheung Kong Centre to the Centre is almost a fight to the bitter end. Either you are patient enough to wait till your table comes around (when your lunch time will be up anyways) or you have to call well in advance to secure somewhere (which limits your choices as sometimes you might want something else when you leave office). Either way lunch in Central is always a nightmare. For some reason though I have never had much trouble at Grappas– admittedly I do book in advance at times but never do I have to book like years ahead.
Grappas has a set lunch which for the price (circa 180 HKD) I think its one of the best value set lunches you can find around here. You can always have a choice as to what sort of combination you would like from the menu (one or two items from the three categories etc). I can pretty much say that I was happy with the portions I got and more importantly; the quality did not disappoint. I hear that some people find the food there quite bland but taste is a very personal thing and I have never found that to be the case. The set menu has always been extensive enough in terms of choices.
Service is always with a smile and I think the environment is pretty comfortable. I have also been here for drinks at happy hour and I would say its ok too– would prefer to be in Lan Kwai if I’m honest though as it just doesn’t provide me with that relaxed feel. However, treat this as a restaurant and you should be happy with it. Again, as mentioned by other reviewers, there are events on over the weekends but I guess I just couldn’t bear to get myself into Central on my rest day!