The Sandbar — Restaurant in Melbourne

STAY AWAY PLEASE

I attended Sandbar with high expectations after reading some glowing reviews but was left gravely disappointed. We attended as part of a private function and the experience fell short in nearly every aspect, from the quality of the food to the lack of basic service and professionalism. The only redeeming factor was the location and scenery (pictured).

To start, the food was underwhelming at best. We had the barramundi expecting fresh flavours given the restaurant’s proximity to the water, but it was anything but fresh. It was poorly prepared. For a venue boasting about its culinary offerings, this was a glaring letdown.

The service was equally appalling. Despite the event starting at 6:30 PM, we did not receive proper food until well past 10 PM (which was lukewarm pizza) and when we questioned Management whether this delay was typical, the manager avoided responsibility and failed to provide a satisfactory explanation. This lack of accountability from management was incredibly frustrating and unacceptable.

To make matters worse, a security guard inexplicably escalated the situation by engaging physically when the issue was clearly a management concern. This level of unprofessionalism and inappropriate behavior was shocking and left a sour taste in what was already a disappointing evening.

I strongly caution others to think twice before visiting Sandbar. With subpar food, abysmal service, and unprofessional staff, this was an experience I would not wish on...

A very busy cafe, on the water. You can sit at tables in the sand, inside or on the deck, which is nice.

Apparently, you can't book (which we would have done if we could have) and were surprised to see a huge table for 8 people reserved. No one sat there for more than 3 hours! This meant everyone else had to squeeze onto the tables around the large table in the middle.

Thankfully, our party of 4 could sit down after asking to share a table meant for 6 people, being completely monopolised by 1 person on her laptop. I think these people should be moved to smaller tables, so larger groups like ours can sit and actually eat and drink there (she was sipping a coffee and had her own water bottle🙄).

Multiple tables were left uncleared and unwiped. We had to ask to have our table cleaned and wiped down - very sticky.

Ordering at the counter was easy. Card payment accepted. Quote your table number, food and drinks are delivered to the table. The staff were friendly and our meals were delivered quite quickly and without error.

The food was delicious and fresh. Coffee was good, not outstanding. Chai Latte could use a side of honey for sweetness. All day breakfast is great. They were closing today at 3.30 pm.

Bathroom facilities provided were mostly clean and much appreciated. There is definitely room for improvement - especially when it comes to seating, reservations, and table...

Let me say I have come to this place for years, really enjoying it but I won’t be back anytime soon. Today we went for lunch. Were given a table, table was dirty with no cutlery and had to clean it ourselves after waiting for long to get someone. Ordered and waited for our meal. My coffee was cold, food came at different times and missing ingredients. We ordered a HCT croissant but no tomato on sight. Also, not fresh and pressed, so it was a flat croissant. No cutlery or napkins given unless requested. Decided to overlook it. Waited and waited for the second dish. Finished our meals and nothing. It wasn’t difficult to realise we were missing one. 2 people, one with no food. Nothing happened. 50 minutes after we had finished and decided to ask for a refund. Had to wait 10 minutes in line. That’s when the food arrived. The other person declined it. We had finished our meal 40 minutes ago. It was a salmon bagel that got toasted. Why would you toast and press a salmon bagel? Well, asked for a refund and nobody knew how to process it. Finally got the refund. Before leaving went to the toilet. Really disappointing toilet. Smelly, door wouldn’t close, used papers everywhere. I used to love coming here, not sure what has happened, but I am definitely not returning. Disappointing food, service and place. Not even the kitchen looked...