When we were in Italy last year we stopped in for lunch and were overwhelmed by the options at this…read moreall-vegan cafe! There's a small dining area upstairs, and they have an extra space in the basement, which is where we ate. The basement smells a little musty (like a basement) but once you're digging into your food you don't even notice. They had a lunch buffet and you paid by weight. Lots of options the day we visited: grilled veggies, rice, two kind of lentils, pasta w/eggplant & sauce, salad, focaccia, etc. There were a few things I didn't care for, but I ate almost everything on my plate because I was so hungry. Some of us even took some dessert to go. I got a slice of carrot almond cake (very dry) and a truffle (ok). I know others really loved their desserts but I thought they were a little lackluster.

So I have pretty mixed feelings about this place…read more First, the good. The ambiance and atmosphere here is incredibly enjoyable. We stayed here and worked in the mornings for a week, and by my count there were 9 different languages being spoken at any given time during that span. It's both a very social place but also one where you can get a lot of work done. We saw a coder completely locked in and developing with a passion right next to two old friends chatting the day away. As for the coffee, their prices are very reasonable, their staff super friendly, and their food is really good. Something like burrata and tomato is a fantastic midday meal. Now, the not so good. What I found particularly un-stellar, if you will, was that both the power and the Internet would cut out intermittently. Their wireless provider WiMan seemed to have issues keeping me connected, and in 3 days we experienced 4 power outages (they didn't last very long, though). Also, they have a pretty large menu but often don't have the supply to match it. We tried several times for different biscottis or paninis, but they didn't have them available. For these reasons, that's why I'm giving it 3 stars instead of 5. Still, the ambiance is really fun and it's a great place to spend a few hours either to work and/or people watch. Just don't come if you're really Internet-dependent

Our first Friday night in Bologna we learned the hard way that reservations were necessary for the…read morelocal osterie. Faced with the prospect of no dinner, we were headed to a grocery store when we passed this wonderful little place. Having ordered an aperitivo, one is invited to enjoy a complimentary buffet of scrumptious vegetarian dishes that are more than sufficient to substitute for a light dinner. The waiters were young and friendly. One was delighted to try out his English with us or to speak Spanish if we preferred. They offered several wines by the glass, and the one that I tried was delightful. No question that we would return here.