Italy 1 Camberwell — Restaurant in Melbourne

I used to love this restaurant and came here often for dinner – the food is lovely – but unfortunately the service has completely ruined the experience for me. We went to celebrate a birthday and the night was a disaster from the start. Staff barely interacted with us, and when we asked about wine pairings, the woman who seemed to be a manager (blonde, red nails) was completely uninterested, dismissive, and frankly unprofessional. To add to that, her attire was inappropriate for a manager in a dining setting, constantly tugging at her top instead of focusing on customers. The real disappointment was at the end of the night. We had a late reservation and at around 10:20pm politely asked if we could cut a small homemade cake we had brought, making it clear that we didn’t need plates or cutlery. The young male waiter was kind and respectful, but when he asked the manager, she snapped at him angrily and rudely said no, even though there were only one couple of guests left in the restaurant. We could see her scolding him from our table, which was uncomfortable for everyone. We accepted it and instead ordered a dessert so we could at least sing happy birthday. That dessert never arrived. After being ignored for ages, we had to flag staff down to order two more desserts ourselves, but still, the “birthday dessert” never came. When we finally asked about it, the same manager brushed it off saying, “oh no, you didn’t order one and now kitchen is closed.” No apology, no acknowledgement, nothing. This was supposed to be a special night, but it was made stressful and disappointing by the attitude and lack of care from the manager. She was rude to both staff and customers, and it left a really sour taste. Honestly, the food here is good, but service like that kills the whole experience. Until management changes, I won’t be coming back – such a shame for what used to be my favourite...

Perhaps we picked the wrong night to visit. Italy 1 was what I long considered the best restaurant ( along with Teahouse on Burke) in Camberwell.

Somehow, on Tues 3rd April, this place looked tired and the service even more so.

At 7.30pm, there were 4 tables at best and one of them looked like a "family/friends" table as the patrons were milling around the table and behind the counter. More about this "family/friends" later.

Despite the ratio of almost 1 staff to a table, service was not what one would expect for a venue that charges top end prices.

Waiter took our order. 10 mins later, we had to ask another waiter where our bottle of wine was ( Helen's Hill long walk pinot noir, $28 at DM around the corner, $70 at Italy 1). Waiter apologised for the oversight. Poured the wine and also poured some olive oil for the table.

Our food promptly arrived a couple of minutes later. The linguine is good as was the pork.

Table was cleared after we finished and the olive oil taken away. So.... what was the olive oil for??? Ah... We see that another table had bread served. We were not offered any.

Let's go back to the table of "family/friends". There was a hearty and lively discussion going on while we were trying to enjoy our meal. Then some people got up and what appeared as though two people had to be physically separated from each other.

We quickly finished our dessert, paid the bill and left. ( btw, cash only as eftpos broken)

I hate to sound negative, I'm sure there are good explanations. Eg. 4 tables only as its Tuesday after a long weekend and its school holidays. Decor looks tired because I'm used to seeing flashly decor. "Family/friends" table may be going through a difficult period and they aren't really friends or family of Italy 1. Can't think of any excuse for the high...

Charged $150 After Cancelling Prompted Booking I recently booked a reservation and unfortunately had to cancel due to a family illness. I received a prompt at 10am on the day giving me the option to confirm or cancel, so I chose to cancel, expecting that this would mean no penalty. I understand their stated 24-hour cancellation policy and I appreciate the challenges small businesses face, having run one myself for over 30 years. However, I was charged $150 for cancelling, despite the platform giving me the option just hours before the booking. When I contacted the restaurant, the blame was placed on their third party booking system. I even offered to cover any fees they might have incurred. Unfortunately, no refund was provided. I’m not here to disparage anyone’s livelihood, I know firsthand how hard it is to operate a small business, but I do feel others should be made aware. For many, $150 is a substantial sum to lose when dealing with unforeseen circumstances like illness. I hope the business takes this as constructive feedback and considers refining their cancellation communication to prevent future...