Flinders Hotel — Restaurant in Melbourne

Review of Flinders Hotel: A Disappointing Experience

I recently dined at Flinders Hotel, and unfortunately, it will be our last visit. Our experience was marred by a series of service issues that left us feeling frustrated and disappointed.

We made an online reservation for seating inside the Bistro section but requested to be moved outside upon arrival. To our dismay, we were met with a firm "no" due to too many reservations. While we accepted our indoor seating, things took a turn for the worse when we were plagued by two bees buzzing around our table. I asked to be moved again, but once more, the answer was a firm no. The waitress attempted to catch one of the bees but ultimately walked away, leaving us uncomfortable. Eventually, she returned to inform us that a table was available outside, which we happily accepted.

After placing our order, we waited an hour with no food in sight. Finally, our starter arrived—half-cooked calamari. Ten minutes later, our main courses arrived. The Caesar salad was decent, but the scotch fillet was cold, the chips were dry, and the salad looked hastily thrown together. When I called a waiter to address the issues, he simply apologized and informed us that we would have to wait another hour for a replacement meal, as the chef was busy with other orders. I was taken aback; after waiting over an hour for our initial meal, being told to wait another hour was unacceptable. The waiter offered a refund, but that wasn’t what we wanted.

A manager eventually came over to apologize and asked if we wanted the same meal. My husband agreed, but he made it clear that he wasn’t willing to wait another hour. The manager assured us it would only take ten minutes.

When the replacement meal arrived, my husband’s scotch fillet was cooked medium, bordering on well-done, rather than the medium-rare he had ordered. It was warm, and instead of the promised near-battered chips, he received standard French fries. After a few bites, he gave up entirely.

Overall, our experience at Flinders Hotel was a waste of time and money. The service was lacking, the food was subpar, and we left feeling disappointed. We won’t...

We visited your restaurant on Boxing Day while on a trip, and unfortunately, one of the staff members made our experience disappointing. When we arrived, Nicoleet, the staff member who greeted us, left us standing for several minutes before approaching us, and her tone was noticeably unwelcoming. We noticed she was warm and polite to other guests, but her attitude toward our group felt dismissive, which left us feeling uncomfortable.

At one point, she said, “Just keep in mind there’s a surcharge today” in a tone that came across as condescending. While we understand surcharges are standard on public holidays (we’re in hospitality ourselves), her delivery was unnecessary and made us feel disrespected. Our group of eight all felt the same, and we couldn’t help but wonder if her behavior was influenced by something deeper, like the color of our skin.

The other staff members who served us were wonderful, and the food was excellent. This was our first visit, and while we have a holiday house nearby, it will unfortunately be our last. We hope management addresses this to prevent future guests from having a...

I’ve dined here for lunch and dinner many times over the years but definitely left disappointed last night! The meal portions have shrunk … one example is the chicken Parma … it comes with chips and salad… the salad is in a bowl that is placed on the plate with the food.. I can only guess this is done to make it look like a full plate … take the salad plate off and empty it on the plate and the whole meal is much smaller than in the past. All other meals we ordered were much smaller than in the past. The service was very slow with our servers forgetting several items … one of the staff poured a Guinness at the table from the can but appeared to have no idea how the gas widget in the can worked … she poured a flat drink … the next time she poured a beer but didn’t empty the whole can into the glass , taking the can away with herself… I personally poured my first so noted the level in the glass. Finishing the meal the coffee order was forgotten and subsequently cancelled . So overall , disappointing compared to past experiences...