Arlequin in Bern

We went at 1:20 p.m. and they didn't want to give us a table when there were 4 free.

The restaurant was completely empty, but the service wasn't very accommodating when we just wanted to have a drink and a portion of fries.

The service was unfriendly and not accommodating. The boss seemed extremely annoyed when we ordered a portion of fries (CHF 8.50 is also a hefty price) and two colas. When I asked for ketchup, the boss told me “yes, it has ketchup over there” and pointed to the rack next to the bar. In the sense of: yes, get the ketchup yourself… Unfortunately we were really disappointed.

Pleasant, well attended, delicious Fondeu. Relaxed atmosphere.

We ate fondeu and the whole experience was great. Not so expensive as the other restaurants in Bern. The waitresses were amazing and even though they did not know well English, they really wanted to help us order etc.

For the past 10 years we have always eaten for four on Museum Night. Fondue in the arbor, whatever the weather. It's always very nice, the service is always very friendly. We enjoy it and will come back next year.

The food was excellent and I also like to visit the restaurant for cheese fondue. It seems to be a specialty there. But the cream slices were also very good, as were the crispy fish. It's just a shame that the service, which was actually very good, hardly speaks German. Otherwise I can really recommend the Arlequin because the prices are absolutely right!

Is a place you must to visit Perfect food and fare price

We had a wonderful time around a fondue

Disrespectful waitress, cold meal I would not recommend

The food was great (fondue porcini) and the price wasn't overly expensive like the other restaurants. Keep it up👍🏼

The herb fondue was okay. Tasted more like crème fraîche. Otherwise very friendly and good service.

The food was fine but, since at least 2 people have to order the foundue, you cant try too many things and only foundue with bread gets a little boring for a whole meal. Anyway, apart from the foundue there are not many other options in this restaurant. At the same time, the staff was not too friendly.

Cozy restaurant to have such a great traditional cheese fondue.

Very good service and fantastic food.

Cosy restaurant, warm welcome and delicious food

We were welcomed with warmth by a lady there and recommended fondue and excellent wine to pair with it. She customized the kid’s pasta also as per his liking. It was a nice experience visiting Arlequin.

Great value for money, service was good, the food was good (lunch menu) Restaurant was very well staffed, short waiting time at the bar, 2 tables were put together for 6 of us. Paid CHF 30 per person for food, beer, wine, coffee, some with schnapps.

Very cozy place to have lunch. If you are craving for a Swiss fondue, this will still one's hunger. Service was friendly. They even gave us some extra's free of charge.

Our hotel helped us coordinate same day dinner reservations. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves by trying the traditional fondue and the fondue with herbs split across 5 people. 2 pots for 5 with adding one of each extra side available was perfect. We were all quite full and satisfied. We especially enjoyed the gherkins and Pearl onions in the fondue. Prices were fair for the area.

This was really disappointing. This was the third time having fondue in Switzerland so I know what a fondue is supposed to taste like. This fondue had too much wine making it extremely bitter and also less cheesy. We complained to the hostess to see if there’s anything she could do about it, she just ignored us and went about her day. We tried to order something different but apparently the “chef was away on vacation, so his brother was working” and he didn’t know how to make anything else. I would really recommend going to the McDonalds across the street or the Thai restaurant next door if you want something worth paying for.

Waiter was very rude and would laugh at us for asking simple questions about the menu. The fondue was very very bitter and tasted of wine.. not even cheese! The different “flavors” of fondue tasted the exact same. Asked waiter a question later during dinner and she ignored us. We tried asking her again and she ridiculed us again for asking questions about the food and walked away in the middle of a conversation. Never experienced such poor quality of customer service in my life and I have traveled the world. Extremely overpriced for bad food. Do not recommend this restaurant .. please support other restaurants in this beautiful city.

Absolutely terrible experience. The cheese fondue had too much wine in it. It tasted bitter and was not appropriate for underage parties. We informed the waitress about this and she was extremely rude, kept ignoring us, and left us waiting for a long time. She did not address our concerns about the wine to cheese ratio and was arguing back with us along with snickering, making passive aggressive remarks. Would not recommend this place, please try other authentic restaurants for good cheese fondue. Extremely expensive despite this.

Extremely rude lady serving the food. The fondue was terrible, over saturated with wine - it was very bitter. The server lady walked away in the middle of my conversation with her when I told her this and did not do anything to rectify the situation nor offer to replace our terrible tasting food. We had a hard time finishing the food, and still had to pay full price. Please! Do yourself a favor and DO NOT go here. There are many other places to try.

Great atmosphere with extremely friendly staff and delicious food. We'd love to come back!

Too expensive Bad food Verry little fish Asked for vegetebles for the fondue - got a joke of a portion Rude service Hair in the food Very very very bad experiance! Don"t eat there!

We had horrible experience! The waitress was very rude, the food tasted like kids were making it and it was so expensive considering what we got for the money we paid. We had the fried fish, penna pesto, a salad with fried fish and fondue. The fish was like street fish and chips but it was 25 chf, the pasta was childish, the salad had mayo all over it and the fondue was just bread and cheese for 50 chf!!!!! It was horrible and i do NOT recommend coming Arlequin.

We had the most amazing evening. The staff could not have been more friendly and accommodating. The food was amazing. We had the cheese fondue with herbs, and it was almost as good as the one my Swiss mother-in-law makes. We had an amazing evening and are sure to visit again. If you want to try an authentic Swiss cheese fondue with herbs, and you are in Bern, I would surely recommend Arlequin. Make sure to also order a glass of Kirsch with the cheese fondue to make it even more delicious.

The best fondue (melted cheese and bread) in town. A traditional Swiss menu. Definitely worth trying. Excellent service. Friendly staff and chef. We had a great evening.

It’s the worst restaurant don’t ever think to eat on it , I ordered Pesto pasta was full of human hair and many not only one by accident ,,, so bad service when I informed and shown them no one apologies or said any .. N we paid full bill with bad services , this restaurant seems no Hygiene

Worst restaurant nothing fresh if I had known I would have made a sandwich

Came in at 3 p.m. to have a drink, waitress rolled her eyes (probably only wanted eating customers). Then we waited 20 minutes for 2 cokes.

Terribly bad service. Both ordered fried hake fillet, batter was raw and fries tasted like frozen aviko from a deep fryer that was too cold and a lot of salt. Here I would like to apologize for frozen fries, because they taste much better. Now you may think what a nonsense, but when the dish costs almost 30 euros, expectations are higher.

The fonduee was wonderful and we would love to come back🥰 very nice service.

We had reserved in advance and were assigned our spot in an arch outside on time. The order and the waiting time were reasonable due to the very busy restaurant. The fondue tasted very good and was enough for 2 people. Prices are typical for the country and are somewhat cheaper than in other restaurants. We have been there twice and were very satisfied.

I loved the very cozy place in one of the most beautiful streets in Bern. I just tried the traditional fondue, very delicious, and the waitresses were very friendly. I recommend it

The fondue was delicious and good quantity in relation to quality/price (for Bern). They did everything they could to make us feel at home even though we didn't speak their language. A very good experience in one of the most beautiful streets in Bern. PS: Google's hours do not match, even if it says closed it may be open. The price of the drink could be lowered a little.

The foundi was delicious and the waitress was very friendly with everything and didn't have any problems with anything, highly recommended

Friendly staff. A reasonable quality/price ratio for traditional fondue.

Anyone who likes schnitzel crime and incompetent service will be happy here. Inedible.

The food was absolutely delicious, with every bite bursting with flavor. The staff provided excellent hospitality, making us feel welcomed and comfortable. The service was impeccable, with attentive and friendly staff attending to every need. Overall, Arlequin offers a fantastic dining experience with its delicious food, great hospitality, and outstanding service. Highly recommended!

Disgraceful and unfriendly service. There was still lipstick on the drinking glass, the tablecloth was dirty and the bill came without being asked. Never again!

Terrible service. Communication was difficult. It took almost 30 min to bring us our beverages. Then the waitress immediately brought the bill without being asked. This is inappropriate!

The fondue was fairly poor and the pasta extremely salty. Unsure if the lady was rude or couldn't understand well, so stars will be based on food.

Unbelievable... our little daughter who is 5 years old wasn't allowed to use the toilet... unfortunately the very unfriendly Tamil lady didn't allow it. That doesn't work at all!!! Really outrageous...

Very nice setting, responsive service but frankly don't come and eat here. It's not a real fondue, it was really bad, it looked like a béchamel sauce with wine and garlic. And we had no water or cutlery apart from the bread stick.

Long waiting times despite average capacity, unfortunately the order was not carried out correctly, pasta was very tasty, very large portion of mixed salad for CHF 8.50

Don't waste your money. Dinner was without taste, small protein portions but a lot of chips on the plate that were poorly cooked.

Very tasty cheese fondue. However, the space is narrow and seating options are limited, especially inside. It's best to reserve in advance. The service is very polite.

I think a cheese plate should include a little bread or at least crackers or something similar... otherwise a great visit

Good friendly restaurant. The food is good but nothing extraordinary. To see their specialty is cheese fondues because it is the majority of their menu but I was not able to taste it. I will come back to try. The prices are very correct. Very good service but only speaks German. Despite a busy restaurant (the room is very small like many restaurants on this street in Bern), the waitress managed to find a place for 3 of us with a baby.

Delicious, fast, friendly and cheaper than others in Switzerland. We ordered the traditional cheese fondue and wine. All perfect!! Recommended.

Pretty good fondue, various choices of it. Beer pretty flat, environnement classic. Very basic.

The lady was really kind and nice. I feel so bad for forgetting her name. She helped us understand the menu and patiently took our order too. I liked the ambience very much. We also got Cola on the house, which she said was , "ohne geld" with a smile! I really liked her. The food and foundue were good but the portions were small for the price. But then, it was Switzerland after all! ;)

Great, I can only recommend it to anyone who likes fondue. The portions were a bit small, but the taste was just perfect.

We got a table here at short notice on a Friday evening around 9 p.m. The service is friendly and the food is very tasty. We had the porcini mushroom fondue and the mushrooms were actually crunchy. The amount of bread was also sufficient. Prices are absolutely fine. We'd love to come back.

Very expensive even though it is Switzerland, terrible service

The service was excellent. There was nothing to complain about when eating. It was the first time there but not the last time.👍

Great restaurant. With a lot of charm and ultra-fine fondue.

The wait staff are quite rude, we were turned away at the door immediately by a lady just wagging her finger at us. Unclear why they were turning people away when at least half of their tables were empty. Fortunately it looks like they did us a favour based on these reviews

Small but welcoming place under the arcades. The fondue is very good. Prices normal

Everything was good, food and service, we'll be back!

Very unfriendly staff. I just wanted to have a coffee and the waitress threw me out with an inappropriate tone! Never again! Restaurant is not recommended!

Not very friendly service... came to eat at 5 p.m. and were told that the table had to be cleared at 8 p.m. because of a reservation. The fondue was for two people but the pot would have easily been enough for me alone. Regarding the fondue itself, I have to say that I will emphasize it if it is Gerber fondue... Staff rather clueless and not very motivated. Conclusion: the fondue didn't live up to the name.

Ate very fine fondue. Staff was very friendly. Gladly again

The fondue is priced at CHF 23.50 on the menu, but the price charged was CHF 24.50. It's a shame that prices are set at will Even worse when the owner comments that the person who can read has a clear advantage and refers to the prices on his menu. Only CHF 23.50 is shown as the price. Outrageous.

Super fine fondue with candlelight and a blanket under the beautiful arbor in Bern's old town. Very friendly service.

We were in this restaurant at noon, when we arrived we asked for a small bowl of water for our little dog and this waitress told us that the dog should not be there, even though it was noted nowhere "forbidden to dogs". We told her in this case we will go eat in another restaurant and finally she told us it was good. It took 15 minutes to be asked for the drinks. The food is INDUSTRIAL and FROZEN and tasteless! We made the comment to the Waitress and she first said that no it's not industrial (breaded meat, it was reconstituted chicken like the Don Pollo brand at Migros) and in the end she told us says that if it's not mentioned on the menu "homemade" it's because it's not them who prepares it, so I think the restaurant should be called "migros or coop restaurant". Even the fondue bread was industrial. the waitress is very unpleasant and 0 professional. It’s a tourist trap and there are much better places in Bern. If I had read the comments on Google before entering this restaurant we would never have gone there!

Worst restaurant in Bern, the dishes are industrial and frozen as if I had bought my frozen breaded schnitzel at Migros, the bread for the fondue was also frozen, like the vegetables and the fries, in fact everything was frozen. The fondue had no taste, neither did the soup. The waitress is unprofessional and unfriendly. To avoid. If it's full it's because it's a tourist trap, nothing more. There are much better places in the center of Bern. Don't eat fondue with your foreign friends there because it's not real fondue... Here is the photo of a magnificent frozen meal at 19.50chf. It's a shame because the restaurant is well located and pretty in itself but the service and dishes are horrible. Never again... In addition there are almost no options for vegans / lactose allergic + vegetarian.

Does not allow an small dog to enter and in a bad way

Very good foundue all year round

Well located restaurant, in the heart of Bern's old town. Few staff to assist, just two employees who are notoriously stressed. It was a Sunday and the place was busy, order errors and customers giving up and leaving occurred during the period I was there. I ordered the pouletschnitzel + fries option. The schnitzel looked like frozen food, but the crispy potatoes saved the meal. My friends who ordered pasta, couldn't eat it until the end, they said it had a strange taste. I wouldn't consider the food expensive if there was quality. Regarding the service, I prefer to believe that they were having a bad day, as we all have sometimes.

We drank 2 proseccos and ate fondue, which had an excessive taste of garlic, and they also denied us tap water.

The biggest joke. We were too late to choose another restaurant and had to eat here (it was 2:30 p.m.). Very high prices for the quality of the food. A plate of frozen potatoes with a large nugget (€20) and a fondue with an exclusive wine flavor and a few pieces of bread (€25 per person).

Very tasty fondue, great location I think 4 is an appropriate star rating, but I think recent reviews are unreasonably negative, so I gave 5.

Fondue too liquid, poor quality bread, unfriendly and slow waiters when there are only 3 tables to serve, A piece of advice, go your own way.

Frozen dishes, vegetables more than crunchy... disappointing.

The location is good - that’s the only positive from my view. We went and had the fondue and fries/nugget from the children menu. Fondue bread was stale and the heat kept going off. The fries and nuggets tasted like frozen school meal. Service was generally awful and inattentive. For example, we asked numerous times for tap water and were ignored (it simply was not brought to us!). Would not recommend.

Good typical Swiss food in one of the most beautiful streets of Bern, in the historic center under the arcades.... very relaxing

This is by far the worst restautant I have visited. The food was very dull and the portions very small. On top of that, we had to wait 45+ minutes for the food, which also came at vastly different times. The waitress was rude and either didn't seem to listen when ordering, or she spoke bad english/german.

Molded meat from the supermarket. My meat was perfectly oval and had no fibers whatsoever. The salad came with dressing from a tube. When I wanted ketchup, a child came and brought me a tube of cheap ketchup. The freshest thing on the plate was probably the partially yellowish parsley.

Delicious fondue and very friendly waitress!

This was our fourth time visiting Bern, we love the city and we love the cheese fondue at Arlequin! Great cheese fondue, nice service, just typically Swiss. Very lovingly furnished restaurant with flair.

On our visit to Bern we made a stop to taste a Cheese Fondue, it was very delicious but a little expensive for what it is, €23.50 per person. What seemed like a theft to us is the price of the bottle of water, €7.50 for 0.75cl, but it is Switzerland... the service has been very good.

Excellent location. A welcoming restaurant, where you feel in privacy. Friendly and attentive staff. Quality products and very well cooked. We had the traditional fondue (which was a delight) with pickles (excellent) and beef steak which was well cooked (medium) with a side of fried potatoes, broccoli and zucchini and a salad (it was ok). A big minus for potatoes, which have been frozen and extra for broccoli and zucchini. The waiting time between the presentation of the menu and the bill was very short, but it wasn't rush hour and crowded either. Very clean toilet. Price/quality ratio ok, if we take into account that we are in Switzerland! And in an ultra-central location! The Sri Lankan waitress was very kind and attentive - we understood each other very well in English. White and red wine by the glass, good quality and reasonably priced. A more than pleasant memory and a fondue that we will remember!!

The Arlequin restaurant is not only popular with tourists who get lost in the old town but also with many locals. I always have to smile when Asian tourists are told how to eat fondue properly. Most of the time they throw a few cubes of bread into the cheese and then try to fish them out again with a fork. 🤣

Unfortunately this is the worst restaurant I have ever visited in Europe, a big disappointment! I recommend to stay away from this place The experience started with a waitress who did not speak English and made no effort to communicate with us and even insisted on speaking to us in German even though we asked to communicate in English. She did not care what we ordered from the menu and she also did not bother to help us, she was very unpleasant. We got the impression that this was a family restaurant so she felt comfortable behaving that way. As for the food, we ordered what she had recommended as thier specialty - cheese fondue but when we tasted the dish it was bitter and not tasty, we asked to return it but the management refused and asked us to pay the full price. And unfortunately this was just the beginning ... For main course I ordered chicken breast, my mother ordered fried fish and my brother ordered entrecote steak, which wasn't deserved When we asked the waitress why the dish was delayed beyond reasonable time, she claimed we never ordered it, even though she repeated the order details which also included the steak, before she sent it to the kitchen. We were very disappointed and offended and obviously hungry 😣

Had a great time. Servers were extremely kind. Food was delicious

Quite pricey but better than expected, honestly. Waitress was very friendly. They have blankets outside in case it gets cold (in spring and fall I suppose).

Pretty poor food. Waitress lovely

Nice food and good services, not too expensive for being in the city either.

The food was very good 👍 and the service was sensational, very friendly and always happy

Very nice service staff. Unfortunately the food is all from frozen. Got the chicken schnitzel which was a fake chicken nugget from a pack. Not authentic

Very nice restaurant and friendly and helpful staff. The food was great and the price reasonable. We were glad to find a restaurant that was open on Sunday.

Very friendly service.. The fondues in the middle of the old town arcades are absolutely recommended. Cozy atmosphere in the middle of Bern's old town. Thank you very much

Nothing very special I won't return. It’s defrosted…

Exquisite fondue at a reasonable price (in Switzerland), the service has been exceptional... amazing!!

Good food . Good value for money . We were delighted to find this restaurant which was open on January 1st.

Cozy place with a very friendly waitress. The location was amazing and the restaurant looks very historical. The prices are quite reasonable for the location. This place is great for fondue which smelled delicious. I had a pork schnitzel and my girlfriend had a breaded chicken schnitzel, both came with fries. While the food was quite tasty it was noticeable that the food wasn't freshly prepared but rather bought premade and that they merely cooked it there. For the price I expected the food to have been made on location rather than by a machine in a factory. Overall still had a lovely experience though

Check other low rated reviews! You will get a clear indication to avoid this place at all costs. I don't understand how come it has some good reviews, it is literally THE WORST restaurante I have EVER been. I entered and ordered 3 soups. I wasn't sure I would want more and so they said they would not serve me at 2pm ! I did not even consider to make a bigger order because I wouldn't trust such incompetent people to prepare me food.