Olinda Pizza — Restaurant in Melbourne

My partner and I were staying in Kalorama for the weekend to get away from the big smoke. Our Airbnb host suggested grabbing a pizza here instead of spending lots of money at one of the restaurants that (in his opinion) were over priced and overrated. So we popped in to Olinda Pizza Saturday night for a large pizza to share. We had thought about calling ahead and ordering for pick up but the menu said they were dine in with byo so we thought "why not eat in?". When we arrived we found what I can best describe as a classic 'Australian style' pizza place that I remember from my youth in south eastern Melbourne. A long front counter with the big oven, bright fluroescent lights, Italian flag coloured decor, and manned by three brash local waspy types. We were not deterred, and seeing the gelati tubs available including salted caramel flavour, we decided to eat in! A young trainee took our order with some slight trepidation (the previous customer had been unable to pay for her meal). The trainee seemed a little surprised that we wanted to 'dine in' and judging by the place that mustn't be a common request. But she obliged us merrily. We ordered a large pizza, half cappricciosa and half 'house special' (no pineapple). There was no extra charge for doing a half and half which I appreciated. In fact, they turned out to be almost the same but that was my fault for not closely examining the toppings. I saw an asahi beer in the fridge and asked if it was for sale, it was not (one of the staff was keeping it stashed for later) but the owner directed us to the IGA liquor 2 doors down and I was reminded that the restaurant was BYO. We bought a Hargraves Hill Stout and a Stone and Wood Pacific Ale and came back to sit down. As we waited for our pizza we noticed the artwork on the walls. The paintings we're clearly derivative of indigenous style but less refined. We liked the 'peacock' one but debated whether or not the hues of the green and red we're too bright. We agreed it could not be hung in a room where you sit with friends because it would draw too much attention. After not too long, the pizza itself came out. It was (again) the type I recall eating as a child. The ham was of the 'shredded' (not sliced) variety. The crust was thick, the toppings were generous and everything was meshed together with melted crispy cheese on top. I throroughly enjoyed it, but the cappricciosa was the superior topping. Capsicum makes all the difference. We only needed two slices each to be full (even having hiked that day) so a medium would have been enough for two people. The pizza base did get soggy after a while though. The staff and owner popped by our table a couple of times to check we we're okay and happy which I found really thoughtful and lovely. They fixed us up a takeaway for our leftovers and on our way out we got chocolate caramel swirl ice cream to go (ice cream was a bit "meh"). Overall rating: 4 stars. Great service. Oldskool charm. Crispy generous pizza at an affordable price. I would recommend they fix the wobbly table we sat at and maybe even throw down some white butchers paper on the tables and change the lighting to be warmer yellow light to make the ambience a little more relaxing. Could become a popular...

I would love to give this place a higher rating but the customer experience was ruined due to the lack of care from the worker.

We arrived just after 8pm on a Saturday night, I asked if they were still open and was advised yes they are. (They close 9pm)

Me and my friends proceeded to order 3 medium pizzas.

After waiting about 20 minutes our food was ready. At this point it was almost 8:30 we were advised that we cannot sit inside and eat as the dining area was closed, we understood this and sat on the tables outside and started eating. (These tables don't get packed up each night)

My first issue was that the olives had a pip in one of them and almost broke my tooth. (This is not entirely their fault)

However the biggest issue which raises the customer service problem is turning off the lights at 8:50 while 3 customers are still eating.

If you don't want to wait around for your customers don't make the sale.

The person working had very little regard to the customer experience and has tarnished the...

Went to get pizza from this place but really had to use the bathroom so I quickly went out the back to use the restrooms before ordering as I saw toilet signs. All staff were busy serving customers so I didn’t ask if it was okay before hand, I understand I should have but I really had to go and didn’t want to distract the busy workers. When I returned the owner began verbally abusing and yelling at me in front of everyone in the store, not allowing me to get a single word in. He literally looked like he was going to explode, this was an absolutely horrendous experience and I cannot believe the way this disgustingly aggressive man spoke to me. There is absolutely no reason to be treated that way by anyone. Completely unnecessary and...