Alba Italian Restaurant — Restaurant in Sydney

We came here for Mother's day because of the large number of good reviews, and with the enthusiastic waiter and a complimentary glass of champagne for my mum, it appeared pleasant at the start–that is until the food came. Simply put, the food was quite bad. Every dish we ordered was either extremely salty (ragu pasta, baked potatoes, swordfish) or completely flavourless (skirt steak, chicken roll)–their 'special' pasta with sausage was actually particularly hard to eat, as it was purely bitter and had the texture of glue. I was indeed very shocked that pasta could taste like that. The chicken roll was quite strange as aside from being flavourless, it was actually a small plate mostly full of broccoli with a small lump of chicken on the side. In addition to the poor food quality, the portions were small and each dish was overpriced at around $30-35. There was a slight issue with service as they had gotten part of our order wrong by taking down 2 steaks and 1 pasta instead of 1 steak and 2 pastas, and initially they suggested that one of us who was supposed to get a pasta could just have the 2nd steak as they had run out of that pasta dish. Instead, I thought it was better to look at the menu so we ourselves could choose our own replacement dish. After finishing, perhaps sensing our dissatisfaction, they made a grandiose gesture of bringing in a big bag with a box, saying that they were giving us complimentary desserts as an apology for the service error and told us to come again. We tried to appreciate the gesture even though our actual meal had been quite bad and we just wanted to leave. After leaving, upon opening the box the five of us found one small tart and looked at each other. I picked up the tart and took a bite. Unfortunately it too, was not very good. Dry and basically flavourless.

I am very perplexed by the high rating and as a result of our experience, would say it is extremely misleading.

We will definitely not be...

(2.5 stars) Alba dishes up homely Southern Italian dishes inspired by authentic and family recipes from the Salento peninsula in Puglia (the “heel” of Italy’s “boot”). Some, like polpo a pignata ($34)—octopus cooked in red wine and tomatoes—have been modified to suit contemporary cooking methods; meaning it’s no longer slow-cooked in a terracotta jar (pignata) in the ashes of a fireplace overnight. I find the flavours a bit muddy, with the bowl dominated by potato rather than octopus, and garnished with fried bread.

Bucatini cacio, pepe e ricciola ($32) is a whirl of cheesy peppery bucatini garnished with a mound of kingfish tartare. While not unpleasant, the cheese dominates the delicate diced raw fish, which makes it flavourless protein. We opt to share this one with simple insalata ($10) of lettuce and cherry tomatoes in vinaigrette. The pasta doesn’t cool well (the sauce goes gluggy) so suggest it might be better eaten quickly by one person as a solo bowl. The oft-photographed roasted tomato topped focaccia ($9) from Alba’s socials was pillowy but the soupy, unsalted tomatoes didn’t do much other than make it soggy. While I appreciate the decorative farmhouse-style ceramic plates were sourced from the region in question, the heavily chipped exemplars we received should be discarded as they are food safety issues.

The hospitality at Alba is warm, and aperitivo drinks like the Select spritz ($12) and the Select Americano ($12) are well priced during the daily happy hour (5–7pm). With a short list of strictly Italian wine from the region not being familiar, I was grateful to be offered a taste of my two contenders. The non-characteristic Lama Di Pietra Chardonnay ($50) was a linear but...

I stumbled upon Alba & was keen to try Southern Italian food from the Salento region. The atmosphere was relaxed & buzzy & the staff were all super friendly & helpful. There were lots of comfort-sounding, home-style dishes on the menu so it was hard to decide! On this occasion I tried the bruschetta paccia & it was phenomenal. Toasted bread smeared with nduja (spicy salami paste), topped with the contrasting creamy, cool stracciatella, a sprinkling of peppery rocket & cracked black pepper was perfect. So tasty yet light, refreshing, spicy yet addictive. I love pasta & had to try 2 of Alba's, & the orecchiette, typical of the region drew my attention. One cavatelli (smaller size thrn orecchite) was accompanied by bite sized, seared swordfish with cherry tomatoes & eggplant cooked in a simple white wine sauce. It was light & fresh, the swordfish not over cooked & had a slight natural sweetness & the dish just tasted of the seaside. The broccoli e salsiccia dish was creamy from the broccoli speckled with salty nuggets of sausage meat & topped with an umami rich anchovy crumb. Both were delicious & peasent food done perfectly. The braised octopus with potatoes was indulgent yet healthy. So tender & absorbing all the flavours of the sauce, I only wish it came with the sauce it was cooked in so I can dip more of it especially with the bread! Simple green vegetables never tasted so cooked when cooked perfectly & doused in EVOO, made all the better by that spicy almond crumb! A great cocktail & wine list at reasonable prices also offered. I can't wait to try some of the other dishes soon &...