10 William St — Restaurant in Sydney

We had dinner at 10 William Street today and unfortunately, we left extremely disappointed.

We originally tried to book a table but the only available time was 8 PM, so we decided to try our luck as walk-ins. Thankfully, we managed to get seats at the bar. At first, everything seemed promising—the blonde staff member who served us was lovely and took the time to guide us through the menu, which we appreciated.

We ordered a few starters and mains. However, things quickly started going downhill. One of us needed to charge her phone—we had our own charger and just needed access to a power point. When we asked one of the staff members (not the blonde girl), she was dismissive and simply pointed toward the bar, saying, “Ask them,” instead of helping us directly. It felt unwelcoming.

The food also didn’t meet our expectations. We ordered the pretzel, which was decent on its own, but the bottarga on the side didn’t complement it at all—it just didn’t make sense together. Then came the beef tartare, which we usually love and have tried at many places across Sydney. This version had a strange texture and lacked flavor; it felt like eating plain minced beef. The prawn pasta was the only dish we enjoyed.

We also ordered potatoes, which never arrived. We followed up on them, but they still didn’t come, so we ended up canceling. When we asked to cancel, the same unhelpful staff member responded with, “Okay, sure,” without even an apology. It felt dismissive and unprofessional.

What shocked us the most was when that same staff member came over while we were sitting at the corner of the bar, picked up my friend’s gift bag that was right in front of us, and moved it without asking—just to make space for another person. We said nothing, only to realise they were making room for one of their own staff members to sit down!

We were honestly shocked by how poorly we were treated at 10 William Street. As passionate foodies who dine out weekly and love exploring new spots, this was by far the rudest and most disappointing experience we’ve had in Sydney. We were so excited to try this place because of all the rave reviews and Instagram recommendations, but we ended up leaving after just 40 minutes.

To anyone considering visiting: please think twice. The food was average (some even below average), and the service was surprisingly cold and careless. It simply wasn’t...

10 William Street has been on the Sydney dining visit list for so long, and squeezed in a quick dinner before a show in town. This is really good Italian and don’t expect standard fare…top shelf Italian.

Service is excellent, very quick which was good for us, and very friendly. Clearly a very popular eatery that is tucked away in a side street. Oozes atmosphere, and feeling relaxed comes easy here.

The warm pretzel and bottarga is generous in flavour and size, and followed our waiter’s advice to order the focaccia as well as we may need it to dip into the left over bottarga.

The heirloom tomatoes are a delight and should not be overlooked…it presents spectacularly on the plate and on the palate…enjoy!

The two pasta on the menu were so good. The mussels in the tagliolini were cooked to perfection and the flavours I cannot describe other than absolutely silky and delicious. The garganelli was superb too. This is pasta mastery.

Good range of wines by the glass, and cocktails too. Mee Godard Morgan Gamay and a Tokyo Spritz were good choices.

Pity we could not stick around too long, but will visit again next time in Sydney. Highly recommended.

Transport: Info for visitors…We caught a cab from town ($27) and there were plenty of cabs going back to town...

Really disappointed with my experience here. They gave us 1 menu for a table of 4 people. Drinks were written on the board, and you cannot read it. We ask the waiter, and response was « just read on the board ». I think the idea of 1 menu on the table that the wait staff can guide us through, especially with this Italian names of pasta and Italian wines, which are unusual and needed to be explained better. One chair that was at the table could not be used because someone who went to the bathroom will collide with this chair. There is no logic in this place. The food itself was not bad, but portions are small. My pasta came out room temperature and some tagliatelle stuck to each other which I think not a good sign. At the same time tiramisu was too big and tasting average. Our waiter was too cool for school, not showing any knowledge, forgetting orders, at least looking really handsome. His collègue showed way more attention and hospitality to us. I have to say that the night before I went to another Italian restaurant just 2 steps away from this place and experience was incredible, don’t waste your time...