Fig and Olive Steakhouse & Seafood Restaurant — Restaurant in Victoria

if you have tastebuds and wish to keep them, STAY AWAY FROM THIS POOR EXCUSE OF A RESTAURANT.

booked a table for 4 over the phone and when we arrived we were asked 20 questions about who we were like we were on the vip list. then he asked us where we’d like to sit, no table reserved as there was no need, there was no one in the joint. and for good reason.

we met the chef from across the restaurant, was going off his nut in the kitchen, swearing and carrying on like a addict needing a fix. barking orders at our waitress Maria who’s name we also learnt from across the room. was a very difficult task to listen to the mediocre music and have any kind of conversation without being interrupted by the shardy cooking our meals.

our meals arrived and i guess the saying you are what you eat is really true, or in this case you are what you cook. i think terrible would be the right word. my pork ribs were inedible. they must’ve marinated them in salt, injected them with salt and then rolled them in salt as well. wouldn’t even feed them to my dog, his cholesterol would’ve gone through the roof. i took 2 bites and sent them back to the kitchen. my partners greek style bbq octopus was greek style cremation.

from this moment on the waiters and waitresses may as well have been non existent, had to follow up my drink order and was not offered a replacement meal or reimbursement at all. should’ve asked for compensation for emergency heart surgery i’m gonna need after that much sodium.

got the bill as soon as i finished my last drink and were charged for chips that were meant to be included with our ribs, so naturally we queried the error. the waiter was extremely rude and began asking 20 questions once again, “but did you eat them?” “did she really tell you they were included?” “are you sure about that?” yes mate i’m pretty sure i know what i ordered. so we asked to speak to the owner and we confirmed that he was indeed the one swearing and carrying on. he obviously did not care enough to come out and talk to us as our rude waiter came back and informed us we only needed to pay for one chips. we took that as a win and left the establishment. couldn’t wait to get out of there.

once we got to the car we saw everyone else’s bad reviews on this place and decided we’d all write one from our own views just to add to them, maybe one day he’ll take off his rose coloured glasses and stop thinking every person that leaves a bad review on his business is a compulsive liar. majority rules, you should be shut down for your sheer lack of professionalism and...

We walked out. I'm providing the one star for the lovely welcoming host (female) who greeted and seated us. Sadly, I cannot comment on the meal, as we walked out before we were served.

The positives: The lady who seated us was genuinely warm and friendly, and very professional when we enquired about the racket that was occurring out front A good range of seafood and meat on offer Reasonable local wine menu

The negatives: The pricing of the menu is at odds with the style/decor of the restaurant and the presentation of the meals that we witnessed being served to other tables. I regularly pay top dollar, eating my way across the best restaurants in Sydney, several nights a week. I was frankly shocked at the listed menu pricing, and further perplexed when I looked around to take in the lack of table linens, the plating presentation (think steakhouse hunk of meat and sides) and the very ageing decor. At between $70-$90 for most main courses, I expect the atmosphere and food presentation to match the expense. Sadly, it doesn't. There's a complete disconnect. Are you a steakhouse, or a fine dining restaurant? It's confused.

My primary concern, sadly, is the behaviour we witnessed of the restaurant owner. After taking a seat and placing our orders, we witnessed what we assumed to be a drunken lout from the street yelling at the wait staff as he stumbled and loitered in the bar area. We assumed it was a drunken bum, until we registered.. no one was kicking him out. He continued to yell, thumping his fist on the bar. He appeared drunk, disheveled and had very noticeable dirt stains on the back of his pants from what appears to be sitting on the ground. (hence, our assumption it was a drunken bum) I enquired with a server whether the man who was shouting worked at the restaurant. She discreetly confirmed that yes, he was the owner. The server politely acknowledged our wish to leave, upon witnessing the behaviour of the owner.

I wish we'd had a chance to sample your food. But I will not support a restaurant where an owner acts so belligerently toward his staff, and in front of customers no less. The owner would have done well to stay away from his restaurant on this particular day - his staff were polite, friendly and far more composed than he was. I truly feel for them. Restaurant owner - I hope that you seek the help that you need. Your behaviour was inexcusable and screams of underlying issues. I'm sorry that you appear to be struggling. Help...

My partner and I were really looking forward to this place while visiting Phillip Island. We were wide-eyed at the prices, though:$88 for BBQ Bugs and a similar price for a steak. With prices like these they must really know what they’re doing, right? We decided to treat ourselves, but the food we received was disappointing. Pre-frozen grey rubbery bugs… definitely not fresh from Phillip Island, which I thought would’ve been standard, especially owing to the prices. My partner’s steak was OK. It wasn’t terrible, but it wasn’t great. As the wait staff took our plates after I couldn’t bring myself to keep eating, I expressed how I thought the food was below standard. He said he would let the chef know. For the next 15 minutes waitstaff avoided our table. After no acknowledgement, we went to pay at the counter. Still nothing. Raising my concerns again, the wait staff brought out the chef, whose attitude was not constructive, let alone apologetic. I explained that I am a chef myself, and in my view serving severely overpriced, frozen crustaceans when we’re on an island and fresh alternatives are presumably available is baffling. He just stared at me blankly and said, “And?” Avoid this place. The food is not worth the scandalous prices and the service was amateurish, bordering on apathetic.

Update since receiving a response... Yikes, add dishonest and unprofessional to the mix. I kindly paid in full as I gave the chef my constructive criticism, which any chef or hospitality venue should be open to receiving. Everything I stated above is true and you are well aware of that. I bid you good luck for the future and that your attitude can me reflected upon. But until then, paying customers should avoid this place...