Vapiano

Vapiano is a newly opened Italian restaurant on the corner of York and King Street, and it definitely making a name for itself with its innovative ordering system, quality Italian food and simple, sleek decor. Right at the entrance of the restaurant is a waiter who happily greets you and hands you a plastic card that looks like some sort of credit card, this is the card that keeps track of everything you ordered. Every time you order something you swipe the card and at the end of the meal it gets one final swipe and then you pay. Pretty creative but you can get quite carried away but this ordering/ paying system.

The food ordering system is quite similar to a food court but much more fancier :P You go up to the counter and tell them what you want and the chefs make it right in front of you! So you definitely know it is fresh and nothing funny is going into your dish. There are a few ordering sections, one for pasta and on the other side is for pizza, there is also a drinks/ bar section. My friend and I were quite lost when we first entered but the chef serving us was extremely friendly and helpful and she recommend dishes for us to try and basically how everything works at Vapiano! After asking the chef what to order she said the 'best seller' was the 'Pollo E Spinaci' which has chicken, onion, pesto and baby spinach and a cream sauce. My friend ordered the 'Aglio E Olio' which is a simple dish with olive oil, garlic, chilli and parsley.

Vapiano is a very large restaurant, as it has downstairs and upstairs seating. We chose to sit upstairs, which is almost empty and it felt like we had the whole restaurant to ourselves!

Pollo E Spinaci | Chicken breast, onion, pesto and baby spinach in a tasty cream sauce | $19.50

The 'Pollo E Spinaci' was a very delicious dish, the pasta and sauce completely melted in your mouth and was complemented very well with the pesto, spinach and nutmeg (sprinkled on top). The cream is quite heavy after awhile, as it is very creamy. The chicken was moist and tender and was cooked to perfection. As you bite into it, it is juicy and it soaked a lot of the cream and pesto flavouring, which gives it that extra flavouring.

Aglio E Olio | A simple and delicious blend of olive oil, garlic, chilli and parsley | $14.90

I tried a bit of my friend's 'Aglio E Olio', which is a very simple dish with very basic ingredients. If you don't want to order something too heavy this is the dish to go for. At first I thought this dish would be spicy because my friend said there was chilli in it but the chilli in this dish was very subtle but it had the ability to give that kick to your taste buds. 

Organic Apple Mango Passion | $4.50

My thoughts on the Vapiano chipcard is that it is a very clever and innovative way for people to keep their orders on, but my friend and I was thinking of cons to it, like what happens if someone looses it or you're charged the wrong amount...? Nonetheless I'm sure these cons are nothing to worry about :)
Overall, I had a very pleasant dining experience at Vapiano. I am overall impressed with the quality of the food, however I did find it a little pricey ($19.50- total + drink = $24.00) for just lunch at a restaurant which was semi self- serve. The chefs and waiters were very polite and patient, which is a major plus in the Take & Eat books! :) I'll definitely be back in the near future to try their other dishes and dessert too! :)

Happy eating x
Disclaimer: This review is only my personal opinion and experience of/at the restaurant, this review is not intended to damage the reputation of the restaurant.