Modo Mio — Restaurant in Gold Coast City

Right. So: My wife and I live in Brisbane. We decided over the long weekend to celebrate our anniversary with a nice meal that also has atmosphere. We went to the Gold Coast for the evening and to our shock most places were booked out. This one was not (I'll get to that later, on a GOOD note). On our phones, we stumbled across this place when searching "Italian Restaurant" and jumped on to reserve it. Later in the day, I learned that this place calls itself a "cafe" and it was in a shopping mall, and at first I thought "sounds pretty average actually... a cafe in a shopping mall", ...But - all I can say is: I ALMOST PUNCHED MYSELF IN THE MOUTH (out of self-discipline) FOR MAKING SUCH AN ASSUMPTION!

Now the thick of it: AMAZING FOOD, AMAZING PLACE, in an AMAZING AREA! The food was A-Grade (and I have Italian heritage). The atmosphere was A-Grade. The staff were A-Grade! The drinks menu was incredible too. We even went back there for lunch drinks the following morning.

Note to Owner: Drop the word "cafe" from your title, because you are no "cafe".. You are a quality-driven RESTAURANT And one that is modern, set in a place that is purely from the future!

In hindsight, I am SO grateful that the other places we tried to book, were booked out. Otherwise, we would not have found you! What a pleasant surprise (which isn't too common these days!). Next time we stay at Gold Coast, you can bet that we will return.

I highly recommend the Scallopines on the menu. Fi had the Lasagna. Both portion were enormous. And looking at the other dishes that others were served, they looked extremely generous also. I wish I had a bigger stomach.

Ahh - Now - The pricing.. Again to the owner: You are selling yourself short. If what Fi and I ate were served to us, in Brisbane CBD, we would have paid twice the price, and the food would not have been as high as the quality as what your staff served us.

All in all - This place is a quiet gemstone, yet to be discovered by the masses.

Another note to the owner: Keep the warm-light lamps on the tables.

This place is special... I highly recommend that...

Updated version 4 to 3🌟. I have recently revisit Modo Mio, the food standards are still good and yummy. However I'm disappointed with the services from two staff well dressed, one would be the manager I think man in suit and another woman served our food in a fancy looking classic plaid pattern Chanel jacket - first the man in suit ask us in a rude manner "can you finish your lunch within the hour or have a quick lunch" when we have 4 people instead of three. Another lovely lady that's there stated we have table 26 avilailable to accommodate anywhere so I'm not sure if the rude question was warranted. And the lady with the classic plaid patter jacket broud few of our dishes, I just mentioned we are sharing all meals so you can placed it in the middle, it's like she throw the whole damn salad bowl in the middle, my salad jump literally into the air and landed back. Wow... I used to rate this 4 star and I now have to downgrade it. Such a shame.

Previous review : Modo Mio at Pacific Fair is an absolute gem! The vibe is amazing, situated right in the heart of Pacific Fair with a modern, sleek ambiance. The staff here are incredibly friendly, always checking in with a warm smile to make sure everything is perfect.

The food was served promptly, and it did not disappoint. The garlic bread was perfectly crispy on the outside and soft inside, packed with a delicious garlic flavor—absolutely mouthwatering! My favorite dish has to be the seafood marinara, with fresh, high-quality seafood paired with perfectly al dente pasta. The salt and pepper squid was another standout—I'm always thrilled when a restaurant nails this dish, and Modo Mio does it exceptionally well. Everything was seasoned to perfection and bursting with flavor.

While the coffee wasn’t the best I’ve ever had, it was more than enough to satisfy the craving. I’ve dined here for both lunch and dinner, and the consistency of quality each time is something I truly appreciate.

I’ll definitely be back and highly recommend Modo Mio to anyone looking for great Italian food with friendly service in a...

We wanted to try this place out, but previously, it was very booked out cause it was so new to PacFair Shopping Precinct. We finally came and could only get a table outdoors, which at the time was a bit cool. The issue with the outdoor searing is that it's a bit of a wind tunnel through there. They tried using heaters but weren't really doing much, plus the heaters were limited cause someone forgot to fill the gas bottles up for dinner. We order our dishes. The pizza garlic bread was fantastic. We both really enjoyed it. Our main meals then came out. I got the lasagne, which look absolutely to die for. The issue I had was that it was terribly over salted. It was that bad I couldn't eat it. I'm not sure if it's a combination of the pancetta or accidentally over season. My wife got the eye fillet. She commented that it wasn't very succulent and was very bland. I also tried and thought the same thing. I'm not sure if the supplier of meat is no good, but it definitely was missing either marbling of the meat or more seasoning. The mash potato was luppy, which doesn't taste good. I would suggest maybe putting the boiled potatoes through a potato ricer to make it silky smooth, especially when it's one of the highest cost items on the menu. The mixed side of vegetables really needs to be blanched and not boiled as all the natural flavours have disappeared. These are all just suggestions. We will go back as they have a large selection, and maybe we might have caught them on an off night. The presentation of the food and the restaurant was spot on, and the staff members were very helpful. They even took the lasagne off the bill, which was great since I...