Opening the kitchen at 8 is very common in Italy. We italians open later and close wayyy later than abroad. The entrées are pricey but I can ensure the quality is insane. They have crazy good ingredients and it's all very fine cuisine. Like that very elegant kind of cuisine you never see anywhere. Really a jewel. It's a place you go to for an awesome treat or a romantic date. We had similar experience in the sense that we booked for 8, arrived 10 minutes earlier and we had to wait outside. I think they need to be sure the place is super clean because of the cats, so they really take care of it thoroughly.