Franco & Co — Restaurant in Melbourne

After a disappointing experience at another establishment, my companion and I decided to give Franco & Co. a try. Despite arriving close to closing time, we were met with exceptional hospitality from the host. They kindly consulted with the kitchen staff, who graciously agreed to accommodate us with a limited menu, even though they were in the process of closing. We truly appreciated this gesture.

As an Italian restaurant, being limited to pizza and focaccia initially left us a bit hesitant. However, given the limited options in the immediate area at that time of night, we decided to give it a chance. Our reluctance quickly turned into elation as we tasted the fantastic pizza that Franco & Co. had to offer. The pizza was incredibly authentic, with a thin base and perfectly cooked in their Woodfired oven. It was evident that great care had been taken in its preparation, and the execution left a lasting impression. Sometimes, even the simplest and humblest of foods can amaze when executed with such skill.

The service we received was pleasant, informal, and unpretentious. Despite our late arrival, the food was served astonishingly quickly, which was a welcome surprise considering our hunger. The drinks menu provided a sufficient variety, although the Aperol Spritz we ordered was a bit weak and watery. Nevertheless, this minor issue did not significantly detract from our overall experience.

Regarding seating, we were placed in a slightly awkward corner near the front door, next to a group celebrating a birthday. I sat on a cushioned bench seat that was significantly higher than the chair my partner sat on to my right, which felt a little strange. However, we quickly adjusted to the arrangement. Given the availability of other seats, it would have been preferable to dine across from my companion and preferably at the same level, which would have been more conventional. I must admit that I didn't raise this concern with the host, as I was appreciative enough to have secured a table considering the circumstances and didn’t wish to cause a fuss.

The location of Franco & Co. is charming, and I look forward to visiting again in the future to make use of their lovely outdoor space. Overall, despite a few minor hiccups (or petty grievances) ,our dining experience at Franco & Co. was memorable. The authentic and delicious pizza, along with the gracious service, made for an enjoyable evening. With a few improvements in seating arrangements and drink quality, Franco & Co. has the potential to become an even more outstanding dining...

Second visit in as many weeks during a busy Saturday lunch. We made reservations for our group of 5 to ensure we snagged a good table. Grandpa pizza and Lemon Paprika Calimari ordered again as we enjoyed them so much last time. Also ordered a Capricosa, a Marinara pizza as well as an Arrabiata pasta dish. Everything was again amazing, service with a smile, tasty delicious food with premium ingredients and a friendly family atmosphere. Only negative was that the generous serve of Arrabiata with Penne pasta which had a huge amount of sausage in it. WAY too salty, I suspect from the sausage, but it may have been the sauce....Chef needs to check on it as everyone tried it with similar feedback. Hope it's just a one off. Original 5* review: Wow, wow, wow!!! Franco and Co in Eltham is a real suprise. Located in a refurbished weatherboard house they have lots of off street parking onsite, although when we visited for a Sunday dinner it was close to full. Warm ambience inside with a single, large, open plan room, open fireplace which would be a focal point in winter, and the large, beautiful woodfire oven used for their amazing pizzas. The menu is not huge but there are a good range of pizzas with pastas, schnitzel, entree, desserts etc. Something for everyone, although there is a warning on the menu that this is NOT a Gluten Free Kitchen, if that's important for you. Good range of drinks as well, cocktails, wines, local and imported beers and ciders etc. Staff were friendly and attentive without being pushy and service was quite quick. We shared the entree sized lemongrass skewers with a smokey paprika dip, moist and flavourful. The woodfired pizzas were some of the best we've had: perfectly cooked, crispy leopard skin edges with just the right thickness. Generous top quality ingredients, without being "over the top" so the flavour and texture of the hero, the perfect crust, shines through. We had the Grandpa (Margherita with prosciutto, rocket and parmesan flakes) and the Hot and Spicy (Salami, roast peppers, onion, mozzarella, fresh red chilli and tomato). Both superb. We also shared the lemon paprika calimari with chips and salad and Chipotle aoli, a very generous serve and again some of the best tasting and cooked calamari we've had. Definitely coming back here to try some of the other traditional menu items as well as novelties like the intriguing "Velvet...

We recently had dinner at Franco & Co. in Eltham with a large family group, and while the food was great, the overall experience left us feeling rushed and unwelcome.

Our booking was for 7.30, and everything started off well - drinks and meals arrived quickly, and the staff were friendly. However, we hit a few bumps during the meal. One person in our group was told their meal wasn’t available after everyone else had been served, so they had to reorder while the rest of us were already eating, which made things a bit awkward.

What really stood out, though, was that just five minutes after we started eating our mains (at 8.10), staff came around to ask us to order desserts and drinks, saying the bar and kitchen were closing soon. We hadn’t even thought about dessert yet, and it felt strange that they were rushing us through the meal when we'd only been there for 45 minutes.

We ordered desserts, but they arrived almost immediately - while we were still eating our mains! There wasn’t even room on the table, so we had to put them on another table. It would have made sense to hold the desserts until we were ready. Then, when we asked for another bottle of wine, we were told the bar was closed, which would have made sense if we were ordering a cocktail or tap beer, but not for something they could have grabbed off the shelf and made a decent profit on. This is only 5 minutes after they had given us the heads up that the bar and kitchen was closing "soon". They’d originally told us they closed at 9.30, so we were left confused as to why everything was being rushed.

By the time we left, we’d only been there just over an hour, and it felt like they were trying to push us out. It would have been more considerate to either not take bookings after a certain time or extend the opening hours, as there were still staff and Uber orders happening when we left.

Overall, while the food and service from the staff were lovely, the rushed and disjointed experience made us feel unwelcome, and we wouldn’t be returning for dinner...