Baia The Italian — Restaurant in Sydney

Baia The Italian has reopened after a long hiatus and now that it is, we’re sure you’ll be impressed when you make your visit.

It is a waterfront venue, located on the promenade of Cockle Bay wharf and is suitable for many events, whether it be a lunch with friends, date night, family dinner or even a work event. On our Saturday evening visit, the demographics were very widespread.

This Italian restaurant draws influence from around Italy and has been curated by a quality chef team who produce high quality food. Their menu has a fresh range of entrees, mains (including pizza, pasta and proteins) and desserts.

For entrees, our choice, the beautiful plate of perfectly grilled octopus salad was arranged atop some spicy roasted watermelon (not entirely needed for the octopus is the star), with a toasted almond emulsion and sorrel. We also had some garlic pizza. Other options include bruschetta, croquettes, pork puffs and burrata to name a few.

For our mains, the squid ink pasta was an order right out of left field for us, not something we normally order, but it stood out as a favourite and we’re so glad. The pasta was incredible! Their Squid Ink Spaghetti Frutti di Mare was filled with fresh masked seafood including octopus, fish, prawns, mussels and seasoned with extra virgin olive oil, basil, parsley and Napolitana Sauce. Such a tasty sauce and packed with seafood! This is thoroughly recommended.

Their Black Angus Tagliata was a 150 day grain fed steak cooked to order - medium for us, served atop beautifully caramelised leeks and a horseradish jus with shaved Parmesan. Such a decent serving that we didn’t need sides, but if you do, there’s fries, chat potatoes, salads and veggies.

If you’re up for a dessert as well, Baia also has your favourite Italian desserts from Nutella pizza, to Pannacotta, or a chocolate torta, and even a cheese plate to pair perfectly with your wine.

The wine list here is extensive. We opted for a cab sav, but you’ll find plenty to choose from, in addition to spirits, beer, cider and cocktails.

The atmosphere was casual, quite busy on a Saturday night. The staff were super helpful and welcoming, especially our main waiter Caesar.

Note - Baia are now accepting Service NSW Dine and Discover vouchers.

So make your way to Cockle Bay Wharf for an excellent all...

Great food, but service experience could improve

We dined at Baia Italian Dining in Cockle Bay Wharf on the evening of Saturday, 28th June. The location is beautiful, and the atmosphere was lively even on a chilly winter evening. While our experience overall was enjoyable—thanks mostly to the exceptional food—there was one significant letdown that cost the fifth star.

Let’s start with the positives: the food was superb. The pasta was cooked al dente and packed with flavour, and the thin-crusted Margherita pizza was a standout—crispy edges with a beautifully cheesy centre. The cocktail and wine menu complemented the dishes perfectly, and the drinks were well balanced and generously portioned. Our group was impressed with the quality of the meals across the board.

However, the service unfortunately got off to a rocky start. We were seated on the terrace and the cold evening air made things a bit uncomfortable, especially for the ladies in our group. We politely asked one of the waiters—who seemed to have limited English—for help turning on the outdoor heater. He attempted it a few times but then gave up, walking away without any explanation. We assumed he’d alert his manager, but instead, he simply ignored our table for the rest of the night.

When I followed up and asked him again, he brusquely said he had “tried,” and when I requested he speak to his manager, he refused. His manner was quite standoffish, and it left a sour taste. Thankfully, when I approached the manager directly, he was incredibly kind and helpful. He quickly resolved the issue by replacing the gas canister and getting the heater running, which made a world of difference to our comfort. His professionalism salvaged the night.

That initial waiter, however, continued to ignore us—even failing to refill water unless prompted. We had to flag down other staff just to place more orders, which was disappointing given the otherwise high standard of the restaurant.

In short: fantastic food, vibrant location, and great potential—but some serious improvement needed in staff training and customer service consistency. If it weren’t for the one dismissive waiter, this would’ve been a 5-star experience.

We’d still return for the food—but next time, we’ll be keeping our fingers crossed for a...

Service was horrendous, extremely rude. Hands down the worst I've had in my 3 years in Sydney. I have done my fair share of travelling and eating around the world – thinking back, I can't recall a worse experience than this anywhere. So far it is THE worst experience I've ever had anywhere.

I joined my brother and his partner there to catch up after more than 4 years. They came from Gold Coast, first time in Sydney. Way to make a first impression, guys.

They arrived about an hour before me, had pizza and drinks. Earier in the day, my stomach was a bit upset, so I looked at the menu before I went to join them. Noticed a Caesar salad on the menu, which was the only thing I could stomach last time my stomach was upset. I had only had breakfast that day and I thougt we would be sitting for a couple of hours. When the waitress came by, I ordered a non-alcoholic drink (definitely wasn't worth $17).

Soon after I got my drink, another waiter(?) came by and told us we have to leave because they have a reservation. Had I known I would have to gulp down the drink and not have time to finish it, I wouldn't have even ordered it. Didn't get to have dinner at all. The way they did it was incredibly rude. Almost like kicking out criminals. When the first waitress then returned with the bill, we asked when is the reservation coming in. They said in 5 minutes.

First of all, if you have another reservation (or a limit on how long someone can stay), the polite thing would be to infrom them beforehand, so they can decide whether they wish to work with the time limit or go elsewhere.

Second of all, we passed by the restaurant again after about 30-40 minutes and there was no one at our table. I doubt the people who reserved would be done in 40 minutes or less. We were pretty sure that was the case from the beginning.

They didn't even have a line waiting. There was absolutely no one waiting for a table.

So we were lied to and kicked out for whatever reason in a very rude manner. Never in my life have I been kicked out of anywhere before.

DO NOT RECOMMEND. These people have no clue what hospitality and working in...