Caffe Luigi - Southend-on-Sea

It is a lovely cafe/restaurant. It looks like it is newly renovated. The walls have fresh blue paint and nice decoration. Although the tables close to each other, you feel it is very spacious. You have much more choice of food here as compared to chippies around it. The reason we went with this particular cafe was that they did grilled fish. The grilled trout was lovely. Unfortunately, Southend pier has this problem that it is filled with fish and chips shops and you can't get anything healthy. We were delighted to find grilled fish and different type of paninis to be honest. The only problem with the place is that they are slow and a bit disorganised between themselves. You have got the wait more than you would normally. The staff that we came across was lovely, all 4 of them that we got to interact was nice. I would go there again but I probably ask what they have before entering.

Decent food at affordable prices. Prawn cocktail £5.50, steak and chips £12.50, fish and chips varies depending on the size £6-£10) but my friend said it was lovely. Nicely presented dishes, good prices and exceptional service from luigi and his team. Ill definitely go back.

This is a fantastic restaurant with beautifully prepared fish. I ordered the squid and chips, which were a generous portion. Plus, they offered extra chips for free! It would be helpful to have a note on the table indicating that they only accept cash.

The service was exceptional! We arrived with a group that included a toddler celebrating their birthday and an infant. The staff accommodated us by providing a high chair and allowed us to bring in a birthday cake with candles to sing for the toddler. When the little one got upset, they offered a complimentary lollipop and even helped with it. They were incredibly child-friendly and understanding, making us feel at ease despite our initial embarrassment. They also treated us to free drinks to celebrate the birthday. The food was delicious with generous portion sizes, and I would highly recommend it. We even lingered a bit after our meal to chat with the staff. It was a heartfelt and unexpected experience. We brought them a cake and left a tip, which felt like the least we could do for such wonderful service. They truly deserve even more!

The Italian ice cream here is outstanding, served in generous portions and at a great price. Choose this spot for ice cream instead of the disappointing Mr. Whippy places on the beach.