The Barre — Restaurant in Melbourne

We had a couple of hours to kill whilst my son was at ABS for a Ballet Masterclass so decided to sit in the sunshine at The Barre (between the NGV and Arts Centre ) We found it as I walked over the temporary walkway from ABS to St Kilda Rd and there it was looking beautiful in the sunshine. It was clean and tidy with lots of umbrellas for shade. Really easy to order food and drinks as there is QR code ordering at the table (or you can go inside to order) We just wanted something to nibble on so ordered a bowl of fries and halloumi chips. Both came with different dips and I have to say they were delicious. I’m not normally one to get excited over a mayo based dip but they were both great. In fact, I’ve decided to visit again just to try to work out how to make them myself (if that fails I may abduct the chef) My husband ordered a coffee and I ordered a cocktail which didn’t disappoint. The only negative was the length of time it took for the coffee to arrive. Everything else came so quickly, including...

The food (particularly the tapas style sharing sizes) and drinks are great here, the atmosphere is perfect for its setting however the customer service is awful. During busy times it can be very slow and staff were very abrupt and rude, I am a regular show goer and I have only had one experience here with a polite and attentive waiter. The outdoor dining area is lovely when the weather is nice, however with the NGV directly next to the Arts Centre it becomes a wind tunnel and since this is not a no smoking area it is quite un-enjoyable for non-smokers. Inside the lighting is quite low, the tables are often sticky and while there is a sign at the door to wait to be seated, the door is out of view of the main bar, so you may be waiting up to 5 minutes for a staff member to notice you are waiting to be seated. Ultimately, its the service really lets down an otherwise perfect place for a pre-show drink or meal. I would avoid unless you are pressed for time to find...

we attended the Barre at Arts Centre Melbourne, upon arrival the staff were very hospitable and found us a table without a booking, we were given menues and waited and waited to get service, the staff do not have there heart in their work. After quite a long tme our food arrived, the Saltimbocca veal was cooked within an inch of being burnt, no flavour whatsoever, tough and discoloured, nothing on the plate JUST 3 Pieces of veal Price $38 daylight robbery, (presentation rating "O"), the chips were cooked to a crisp and the inside or the chips hollow, the Duck Parfait $22, was discusting and tasted old there was not anough flat bread and we could not have eaten it. We tried to order a Glass of Shiraz, there was not any australian wine of any worth. we went down stairs to a bar and bought Australian wine which in comparison was first class to anything in the restaurant. we come to the theatres oftan and have never encountered this experience before...