Mezzalira Ristorante

Posted by: Tresbon | 20 June 2011, 6.30pm

The food was average, my snapper was over cooked and so was the kingfish one of our guests ordered. My husband had an element of the dish on his plate another guest didn't get. The guests steak was like putty it was so rare. The waitress was very rare which wasn't such a bad thing as she had a bad cold. I got one drink all night. Won't go back and have told everyone I know how bad everthing was.

Food:			Visit: Sat 18 June 2011 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: EatDrink | 6 March 2011, 10.43am

We went here with high expectations having been recommended by a friend and decided to try the degustation menu. The service was pretty good, all the dishes and wine pairings were explained as they were served. There was a mix up with the wine, which was apologised for and rectified.
The food was pretty good, half the dishes were delicious and the rest were OK. The wine pairings were very good, they really complimented each plate wonderfully. The dessert was far too sweet, but we are not really dessert people anyway. The atmosphere was OK, we were sat by the window which kind of ruined the cosy dining feel but it wasn't too bad.

Food:			Visit: Sat 30 October 2010 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: paolo1982 | 1 October 2010, 4.58pm

I recently dined at Mezzalira not having been there for over 12 months, and I'm glad to say that the dining room has changed slightly and the food is as good as I have had anywhere in Canberra. The Italian waiter from Milan was charming and our friends all agreed best Italian food in town.
Congratulations on your recent review in the SMH!!!

Food:			Visit: Fri 1 October 2010 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: DiscerningDiner | 31 August 2010, 5.58pm

Had the unfortunate experience of having to return for a work lunch last week. Nothing has changed since my previous review in terms of food portion size, quality or value for money...despite what the suspect reviews on 18/19 June 2009 suggest - 3 highly favorable reviews in 2 days...hmmm...

Food:			Visit: Fri 27 August 2010 Mealtime: lunch
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Posted by: Let'sDance | 25 March 2010, 12.03am

We went the Mezzalira tonight expecting a lovely night out. Instead, we were met by a rude owner, poor service, overpriced food and wine, small meals (I thought they went out of fashion 10yrs ago), incorrect billing (and a near arguement when it was pointed out), hard selling and nearly 2 hours to feed 7 of us. I was very disappointed and will not be going back.

There are much better restaurants in Canberra: both fine dining and Italian.

Food:			Visit: Thu 25 March 2010 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: canberracritic | 18 August 2009, 6.22pm

If you put a small amount of food on a large plate you can charge $40. I thought all the food was ok but not really that much better than cheaper places, I won't be back

Food:			Visit: Wed 4 March 2009 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: sawthe | 19 June 2009, 8.44pm

The best italian restraurant in Canberra. The home made tortellini with the burnt sage butter sauce is amazing... I noticed a lot of people were dissappointed with the pork but my pork was nice and juicy with a crispy crackling. The fillet steak was also perfect. Could not fault this place at all.

Food:			Visit: Fri 19 June 2009 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: lost_child | 19 June 2009, 10.20am

I agree with gwen. Great service, great food and a wonderful selection of wine. The only people who would think that these portions are too small are those that think food should be served in a trough...

Food:			Visit: Fri 19 June 2009 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: gwest | 18 June 2009, 9.22pm

I had dinner last Monday night for my anniversary. I have to say that I read the reviews below as i was interested in what others thought ( as I also run a restaurant and my reviews have been dubious as well) and ordered the Pork because it was said to be so bad!! Well i have to say, from a restaurant point of view the meals were spot on. Fantastic portion size, we had three courses and I felt full. Their wine list was fantastic (Bollinger by the glass I must!)
So it appears that I was right, the only people who really use this service are people who, most likely, have one course and wonder why they are still hunger!! Learn how to enjoy your food, relax with your companions and stop thinking that just because you have seen Gordon Ramsey and Master Chef does not make you a critic.
Fantastic Mezzalira and congratulations on taking out the award this year!!!!

Food:			Visit: Thu 18 June 2009 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: DiscerningDiner | 13 January 2009, 9.01pm

This restaurant tells me two things about the Canberra restaurant scene:

1. In such a cashed-up society, restaurants can continue to get away with charging high prices for small servings of average food and still get plenty of punters

2. Restaurant awards are found in boxes of cereal rather than earned.

For many years I've wandered pass this restaurant and thought it looked quite inviting - particularly in winter with it's dim lighting. Finally gave it a go. Service was quite good which was a promising start, as was being seated next to multiple awards. The starter bread was also excellent but this turned out to be the highlight of the meal. I really am amazed that an established upmarket restaurant like this can think it's acceptable to charge over $35 for a couple of small pieces of fish which were overcooked and therefore dry and tough on the edges - the flavours of this and other meals were also quite underwhelming. A 200% mark-up on wine and $14 a glass was also a bit rich compared with the more normal 100% mark-up.

Food:			Visit: Thu 8 January 2009 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: hm67 | 11 January 2009, 9.55am

It was our Wedding Anniversary and because we both love Italian food we thought we'd give Mezzalira a try. The waitstaff were good, but the food was extremely slow to come out, (I'm not use to waiting an hour between entree and main course). Our entree's were both impressive the food was absolutely delicious, but our main course was very unimpressive. I had the suckling pig which was two small pieces on the bone and didn't taste of anything much, I was certainly glad I'd had an entree as otherwise I would have left very hungary. It was suppose to come with Cavolo Nero, but I'm certain what I receive was just baby spinach as I've had cavolo nero before and this certainly was not the dark green almost black colour that I was expecting, and it tasted like baby spinach. My husband had the beef and besides it being about 3 times the size of my suckling pig (with no bones - which I thought was interesting given both mains cost the same) he thought it was a bit chewy. As we were both still a bit hungry we did have desert which although good was nothing special and once again we had to wait a long time for it to come (about 45 mins) after ordering it. Given it is on the pricer side I was very unimpressed with our meal there and would not go back or recommend it to friends.

Food:			Visit: Thu 8 January 2009 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: tryem | 9 December 2008, 5.05pm

This place has won a lot of stuff, but I can't say I can see why.
It's a great location, but they waste it, not doing anything more for atmosphere beyond weird colours.
The food was overprepared - it did taste good, but there were so many extras which didn't do a thing to add to the dish. The service was really personal, which was awesome, but it's the food quality which makes me return. I'm not planning a revisit yet anyway.

Food:			Visit: Tue 11 November 2008 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: parsena | 1 December 2008, 11.15am

We are huge fans of italian food and this is one over-rated place. The price of the food wasn't an issue (pretty average for Canberra standards), but the quality and blandness of the dishes were. The waiter was quite polite and charasmatic, but we won't be back to this place in a hurry.

Food:			Visit: Fri 28 November 2008 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: kirill5 | 17 July 2008, 10.12am

I'll be the first to admit that I am no fine dining connoisseur. Luckily my girlfriend is. We were in Canberra for a couple of days and came to this restaurant around 7pm. They were pretty much empty but decided to put us at the table right next to the bar. I asked if we could have a better table, but was told that they were fully booked for the night. After that the service was snotty, the food was very average: the duck was almost flavourless and the 'suckling pig' was chewy to the point of me having to spit it out. There was no ambience in the place either. To wrap up our terrible experience the restaurant was still empty as we left making me very angry at having to sit next to someone preparing food all night.

Food:			Visit: Mon 7 July 2008 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: Unregistered user | 22 March 2006, 5.56pm

Came to Canberra on the weekend, from Sydney, not knowing where to go out and eat, the hotel where I stayed recommended Mezzalira as the best place in town. Let me tell you they were nothing short of 100% correct. The very best meal I have had in a long time anywhere. Thanks!

Food:			Visit: Wed 22 March 2006 Mealtime: dinner
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Posted by: Unregistered user | 7 March 2006, 12.53pm

I'm new to Canberra, and what a find. Having come from Melbourne this restaurant fills the gap. Great Italian food and atmosphere. Sometimes hard to find a waiter, although it was a Friday night. Love it. Well done Mezzalira.

Food:			Visit: Tue 7 March 2006 Mealtime: dinner
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