Review Vapiano Albert Lane - Brisbane

This restaurant is a warm and cozy refuge from the city's hustle and bustle, with an Italian flavor! I ducked the flooding rain to come here for a hearty and slightly fancy pizza after a long day of work and the whole experience was great! The staff are attentive and friendly but balanced (they're not asking how your meal is every 5 minutes!). And if minimizing exercise is your thing, this place also has online ordering, allowing you to select and pay for everything without lifting your lazy self from the chair 🙂 For the alcoholics, there's a bar situated comfortably in the centre of the establishment just waiting for you to wander over and order a cocktail with your friends. As for the food? Well, if the chicken and bacon pizza I ate is any indication, it's absolutely delicious! Truthfully, mine wasn't the most picturesque dish, but it was scrumptiously filling and the flavor was glorious. Some of the pasta and salad dishes served around me looked spectacular! I wasn't waiting beyond 15 minutes (granted, I was there on a Monday). Price-wise, you can be satisfactorily watered and fed for $30, which is great value for money here. TL;DR. The food is delicious, the staff are happy and very kind, the vibe fits a chilled yet classy dinner venue that's also great for after-work drinks with friends, and all at a relatively cheap price. Highly recommend to anyone who loves Italian food. This place is great.

We came here for dinner after an afternoon of activities in the city. The place was quite nice and had a really good vibe. The pizzas were pretty good but a lot of the topping just fell off the pizzas and felt like had to eat the toppings with our hands and the pizza base after. The prices were reasonable and the drinks were great. Plenty of seating around if you want to being your family and the staff were really friendly.

The upstairs area was not crowded on the day that I had lunch with my friend, which gave us the privacy we wanted. We ordered the lunch special (meal + drink), which we could not order on our phone so a server had to take our order on a tablet. This was a good thing as I much prefer ordering from a person. The server was very helpful and patient. The food serving was very generous but tasted average. Lovely atmosphere.

One of my favorite restaurants. There is a $15 lunch deal, which is great. Note, you might need to pay by card as this place orders via contactless QR code menu. The food is pretty nice for its price in the city. We've been here several times. It's our must-go restaurant when we visit the mall.

Arrived at what I thought was a somewhat decent hour to be told they were shutting upstairs off and were only seating downstairs!!Not a great start as it was extremely warm and muggy inside as it was! Never the less we eventually got table service as chose not to use the app,ordered starters and 3 mains..the waitress was very friendly,knowledgeable and nice.The food came out all at once rather than starters first which started to make us feel a touch rushed even though people were continually arriving to eat!! I had the prawn gamberi which was fair, although i found the pasta not al denté and i chose fettucine..my partner had lasagna which was fair mainly cheesy not overly meaty..and his son had bolognaise with extra meat which was chicken as opposed to more mince,which i found unusual !!overloaded with tomato base and he chose spaghetti which was a bit better than the fettucine!! Drinks were fine two house beers and I had a pina colada which wasn't tasting as it normally would I don't know if it was the rum used but there was something in it a touch overpowering and bitter. Having been to other Vapianos this one i think has been the worst..purely based on food and the initial service!!For starters ,the cheese garlic pizza was very nice and so too were the chicken nibbles not too spicy and a little bit of a crunch to them!! Again very warm in this restaurant to a point of discomfort..a touch rushed so i recommend going before 8pm..specifically say how you like your pasta and let them know when being seated whether you are using the app to order(which consisted of scanning the QR code on the table)or would like table service otherwise you could be sitting there for a while. Again no restrooms on site off for a walk to go for a call of nature!! Enjoyable and pleasant but i've certainly had better in all areas!!

Pasta was delicious, but service was a little slow. Tables are super crowded. Although we ordered online using a QR code, one drink was forgotten and took forever to come after we asked for it again. Our deep dish pizza came out looking nothing like it should, and we were just given a free drink to compensate. Slightly disappointed.

Overall Vapiano provided an excellent quality and taste in food, service and ambient atmosphere. The portions were good and I appreciated the complimentary basil at each table. I'd highly recommend Vapiano for an authentic experience.

The best pasta available here which is authentic. They prepare almost everything in house. One serving is so filling. Parking here is little difficult.

Food was overly salty (we ordered bolognese and ravioli) and lacked depth or any flavour except salt. The cocktail jug only had a tiny hint of alcohol and was basically coke and ice tea (supposed to be long island). I also wasn’t aware that this place only had pasta as I originally wanted lasagne. Not that impressed.

Fresh and quality Italian food, friendly service and relax ambience, reasonably priced and generous portions

I don’t recommend this place and I won’t be coming back. They gave me a ‘complimentary’ garlic pizza because I waited a while for my order but the guy at the counter proceeded to charge me for the garlic pizza! To top it off my carbonara was so dry. It’s appalling.

Good place for a nice Italian meal in the city. Although you have to go up and order it’s really fast and the food is always nice.

Located at the end of a small laneway, this branch of Vapiano can be hard to find for a first-timers. I came here late on Sunday evening, the place was empty, but cozy.<br/><br/>Ordered the Tim Tam Smash Cheesecake, Nutella Cheesecake, and the Tiramisu. All three desserts are plated in short/wide glass instead of a plate, which display the layer of the cakes for beautiful presentation. All of them were delicious and not overwhelmingly sweet.<br/><br/>Will definitely come back here to enjoy the main meal in the future.

Visit just recently and they are currently renovating but the little place they have still serves quality food and services.<br/>

Vapiano is by far one of the best Italian restaurants!! The food is great. The place is clean and well-organized. The staff is approachable.

Friendly staff. Delicious food. Everything is yummy! Highly recommend! I ordered the pollo spinachi with linguini pasta. My friend ordered the bolognese with ravioli and it was all yum! The staff are all smiling faves which made our experience very enjoyable.

Vapiano is always a good choice for an Italian night. Food is always great, staff are always welcoming and friendly. Only minor issue is parking, however this is to be expected when going into the city.

Located in the city, this chain store is a reliable source of tasty Italian food. When you enter their store you’re given a menu and a card. Once you know what you want, you’ll head to the station that serves that food or drink (e.g. pasta & risotto or the bar). They’ll punch your order in and you tap your card. Some of the stations will hand you a buzzer like the pizza station to come back when it’s ready or others like the pasta where you can wait as they make it to order. You make payment once you’ve finished your meal back at the registers. <br/><br/>Service was good in some parts and slow in others. Wasn’t quickly given my card or shown a menu. Also waiting at the pasta & risotto station took a while as no proper queue and other people that lined up after me got served first as they found a chef that wasn’t as busy. On the other hand the antipasti station and bar were much quicker. Overall friendly but mixed bag of service. <br/><br/>The food and drink were worth the wait though. I had the Prosciutto Bruschetta which had a creamy mozzarella topped with prosciutto on ciabatta bread. Very tasty dish. I also had the Funghi Risotto With Chicken. A lovely risotto which was flavoursome with mushrooms, caramelised onions, added chicken, and parmesan. I had the House Made Lemonade and it was very refreshing.

It’s a German brand serving Italian dishes in Australia and here I am a Filipino living in New Zealand trying them, Globalization. Vapiano is nothing new to me in fact my first encounter with this was in Berlin and I really liked the concept, in fact several concepts where most of them I saw only at this place. First is where you have your own card where they place what you had ordered, this is a good way to pay for your own rather than subdivide and calculate what’s on the table. Second is they cook as you order as you watch (except for the pizza of course). Finally, the fresh herbs in pots where you can grab as many as you like, I love basil, so this was a good idea for me.

Concept was very new where you order from the chefs themselves and wait for your food at the kitchen. I ordered the Carborana pasta from one of the chefs and it was $21 which is obviously not cheap. It was the most terrible pasta I’ve ever had as it tasted nothing like a carborana pasta, no cheese taste, pasta were all sticking together and it was just so dry. Not only did I have a bad meal, all 4 of my other friends had the same problem with their pastas and they were all cooked by the same chef. They had the Pesto pasta and the Aglio Olio which were all sticking and dry and tasted like water. Good thing the manager tried to resolve the issue.

Nicely Italian food and classic environment. Good price and quality of food. Quick service and friends staff. I’m having lunch with Hawaiian pizza and extra Red onion, perfect. Thanks

Absolutely furious after being treated like a common criminal doing a runner. 13 of us were there for lunch and the Mrs and I decide to go outside for a cigarette. We were chased by a member of staff who asked us where we were going. I said my wife and I were going outside the others are still inside. Then I get asked for some ID to hold onto. I’m not sure if it’s standard practice to treat diners who go outside for a cigarette like criminals doing a runner without paying but after working in the Hospitality Industry for over 20 years I can honestly say I’ve never felt so embarrassed or humiliated in all my life. I’ll never be back to this establishment and if I get asked for a review I won’t have anything positive to say after being treated like a dine and dasher. I shall now make it my mission in life to let the world know how appallingly I was treated by this establishment

Concept here is interesting, get your food prepared by your favorite in house chef. Queue up and order directly to the chef and get the tweaks done to you food right away.<br/><br/>What Did I Try<br/>➡️Pasta = Aglio E Olio<br/>➡️Pizza = Fungi<br/><br/>What Did I Like ?<br/>➡️ Fresh Soft Base of the Pizza<br/>➡️ Portion Size is Large for 1<br/><br/>What Could Be Better ?<br/>➡️ My pasta felt very dry after a few minutes and felt the something could be improved. Not sure if there needs to be a saucy texture added to it. Leave that to the chef to improve.

We ordered ravioli and pizza. The ravioli was not cooked through, so was cold in the middle of some pieces and the sauce was so watery, like soup broth. The pizza was overcooked and dry, though it had a good flavour.<br/><br/>Didn't like the ordering system. Although the chef was friendly and smiling, the pizza my husband ordered after I had already finished the pasta.<br/><br/>We used a birthday voucher so for the cost it was an ok experience however I certainly wouldn't pay full price based on the food and ordering system.

I love that Vapiano is uniform no matter where you go. <br/>Lots of seating available. <br/>Love that the pasta is cooked perfectly al dente and fresh ingredients.

The food here was incredible. I had the bolognese and enjoyed it thoroughly. The service could have been slightly faster but wasn’t too bad as watching the process involved in preparing the dishes was quite interesting.

Poorly designed ordering system, stood in line for almost an hour, ended up with overpriced, undercooked, mediocre pasta and cold lasanga. I won't be returning.

Generally good food although pasta can be a little inconsistent and sometimes bland, pizzas are really good though! Wine selection is pretty ordinary and it’s not table service but prices are reasonable

Risotto is one of my favourite dishes and if you want one during your busy lunch hour then, Vapiano could definitely be a place for you to try out. <br/><br/>I usually go to to Vaps a few times a year as I love how they cook your food and you get to watch them doing so which adds to the experience. During the week in the city they have various meals that are on a special of $12! The risotto I ate was on special and unfortunately, it wasn’t as good as I’ve had before at Vapiano which is the reason I’m giving 3 stars. <br/><br/>The experience was great as always however the food was not as good as I’ve had before. Given, the fact the food is cooked in front of you, you can smell the aromas and I start getting hungry as soon as I smell the food nearing being done. When I revived my risotto it looked beautiful, smothered in Parmesan and my pieces of bread at the ready to mop up the sauce. <br/><br/>I dug in with a big spoonful and was confused that the risotto seriously lacked seasoning, so I added some salt which took away the problem but I was then faced with the risotto being slightly undercooked. It was not a bad dish at all but, I’ve had better especially during busy times and the time I went it was really quiet so there wasn’t any excuses.<br/><br/>I hope this was a one off as I haven’t been for a while and I’m sure I’ll be back to give Vaps another go as I do like the concept and have never had a problem before.

The lunch I had at Vapiano today will be one of the highlights of my stay in Brisbane. Went there with a friend and had a great meal of fresh pasta and ratatouille. The chef was pleasant and cheerful, and the accompaniments (the oils and herbs) were a bonus. Loved the general vibe of the place as well as the no-fuss payment method - for an Indian like me, this card system was a revelation. Also, thanks a ton for the Mon-Thurs special lunch rates - icing on the cake, totally! Will come back for sure.

Just ok.<br/>No spicy food here<br/>Pasta doesn’t taste good<br/>The bread one toasted with tomato and chilly flakes gives good taste.<br/>Ambience is good<br/>Not that value for money

They have an amazing lunch special, affordable but fantastic taste! Service of staff who prepares your order are friendly and helpful, assuring of customers that they will enjoy their meal. There’s a bit of wait time but very worth it in the end. Their pizza is superb and I love how they customize the pasta dishes. You can see them prepare your order so you know it’s fresh!

This service is the worst! The chef is so slow. I was in front in line and this lady was behind me got her two orders first because another staff ordered on her behalf but didn’t say anything that I was in front of her. This is the slowlesst service I have been to. Standing here waiting for food to me done . This is just a stupid concept of service. I will never go here again and will never Reccomend this place.

I Had a dinner here today, paid $37 (pasta/drink/soup) but the result was very disappointing. The soup was served cold, so I asked the waiter guy if I can get it heated. He said he will ask kitchen and they offered me to make a new one. So he brought the new one, but it was still cold. I don't even know if they really made me the new one, but honestly the important thing is that I told them the soup wasn't warm enough and they didn't take my comment seriously. As you can see in the pic, the pieces of cheese on top wasn't even melted. I gave up eating it, and started eating my pasta, and it was also very undesirable. The overall taste was too salty, the pasta itself were soggy and just simply no taste rather than tomato paste. I ate about 1/3 and decided to just leave the place because I was getting upset of being there. I took the pasta in a takeaway bowl, so at least I can microwave and eat at work. Anyway, I spoke to the girl at the counter about this and she called the manager for me, and he apologised of what's happened and gave me 50% off. He also gave me a ridiculous complementary drink coupon, but I don't think I will ever go back. Other than the taste, the service wasn't good as well. Don't recommend to go alone! You might feel unwelcome.

For a newcomer at this restaurant the ordering system may be slight intimidating and confusing, and it was for me. You must first collect a card from the front counter, and swipe the card at one of the pasta stations where the chef makes the pasta in front of you.Check out is done as you leave, everything you purchased goes onto the card.<br/><br/>The menu offers a good range of pasta and pizza without being excessive. The pasta portions are generous, though the serving of chicken in my pasta was rather small. Flavor for me was bland, some may find very bland. Prices are generally reasonable. The bread served with the pasta could be of better quality.<br/><br/>Perhaps the most interesting part of the experience was watching the chefs work rapidly cooking up two pasta dishes at once for different customers in a matter of minutes, something that I would think requires a fair amount of practice.

The white chocolate cheesecake is to die for. We went back the next day for seconds. 🙊<br/><br/>Other than that the place is fun, nice staff, good vibes overall.

Loved it best place to have Italian food,Best thing about this place is you will be given a card and every thing needs to put into it nd you can directly order at the kitchen and food is prepared infront of you, but a bit on expensive side. Very friendly staff too

We have been here a few times and always thought it a good place to eat, today though I arrived first and was given the card to purchase at the counters - no doubt a good idea but my partner arrived a few minutes after me and wasn’t given a card. When we were leaving we went up to pay the bill and there was suddenly a huge problem with the fact that he didn’t have a card. We were eyes off suspiciously and it was like they were accusing us of stealing food and drink - pfaffed about for ages trying to work out what to do - when we were in a hurry to pay and leave ... what we don’t get is how you could steal anything if you weren’t given a card ?? Go figure Vapiano - your food is great but this is just too weird. I was paying for both of us and putting everything on my card anyway.

Loved it. One of the best Italian place. Fresh food made in front of you by the chefs customised by your choice. The ambience is also cool. But I would say the place is rather expensive and drinks are really costly.

Great affordable pasta and woodfire pizza. My favourite is the Crema Di fungi pasta and bianco pizza. This place never disapoints my taste buds

My friend and I were starving as walked through the streets of Brisbane. Both feeling peckish for pizza, we stumbled upon Vapiano. Walking in, we were a little confused by the set up. We were given a couple of cards and rushed through the ordering system. We went to the pizza section, ordered our pizzas, swiped our cards and got given a buzzer which would go off once our pizza were ready for collection. <br/>Aside from the bizarre ordering system, I ordered the funghi. It arrived quickly and it was delish.

Who doesn’t dream of a lovely #ItalianMeal on a #Weekend? While roaming on the streets, noticed a board displaying Vegetarian/Vegan and that was sufficient for me to drop-by. Vapiano takes immense pride in them by cooking made-to-order pizzas, house-made pasta, hand-tossed gourmet salads and dolci. The interesting part here is the Chef whips out your food as per you liking and ingredients, and right in front of you which takes the order taking process to a whole new level. So you can be sure that only finest of elements makes their way to your meal.<br/>.<br/>.<br/>I asked for All’Arrabbiata which was simplest of all and it came out very well. Homemade tomato sauce along with onions and garlic finished with shavings of parmesan cheese, accompanied by freshly baked breads. I wish I could’ve asked for veggies too. For $17, the portion was so huge that I had to pack it off for my #Dinner as well.<br/>.<br/>.<br/>The ambience is peppy and fun with olive tree and herb garden growing with in the #Restaurant. Another interesting thing is that each diner is issued with a Card that captures your order pricing and you are billed at the end before leaving. This is essential, especially when you wish to go dutch and in large groups.<br/>.

Vapiano has a really nice system where you put everything on a card and order directly from the kitchen.<br/>They have heaps of veggie options for both pizza and pasta and cook it in front of you.<br/>I had the ratatouille with penne which was quite nice.<br/>It's around $20 for a main so it's not super cheap but it's a nice meal out.

The setting was nice, the food was great and the customer service was great! All around a nice dinner out 😊🍝 look forward to returning here

We’ve been to Vapiano at Surfers and here at the CBD location. We were expecting the great quality meals we had down the coast yet this CBD location left a little to be desired. And talk about PACKED. We waited around 20 minutes for a table and another hour for the meals. The gnocchi was drowned in sauce (without much flavour) and the pizzas were just blah. I’m sure this place is great for big groups and kids seem to love it (they were giving out balloons while we were there) but for us thirty-somethings looking for a nice spot to have a chilled Friday catch up, sorry but it was a disappointing.

When they have their lunch time deals for around $10 I can tolerate their bizarre service system where they may as well be giving me a haircut while I wait. Otherwise it's a frustrating and overpriced experience. Pizzas are decent, pastas can be hit and miss, their bread with the pasta seems to be always good. If you turn up with more than two or are ordering a mix of pizzas and pastas, good luck getting your meals even close to being in sync.

It was really good, foods were so nice and friendly service. If you need REAL itailan food, just visit here!!! And also, they have many foods for Vegeterian.

Good food, Service has improved. <br/>If I am in the mood for pasta or pizza. I will always consider it. <br/><br/>My wife, friends and I have been here a number of times. Never disappointed.

Food was great but the system of standing in 1000 queues to order your food, wait while it’s cooked, carry it to the table and then queue again to pay is terrible and needs to be removed.

Stumbled across this place when looking for somewhere for dinner. Great concept. Can personalise the meals to suit your preference, and you know exactly what is going into each dish as you watch it being cooked, great for people with specific dietary needs. Good portion sizes and the food itself was very filling and tasty. Is perfect for large groups. Would visit here again

After standing in the queue for more than one hour for pasta on a busy Friday night, and found out my family had already finished their dishes, I decided I would not return to this restaurant again.

The lunch specials available from 11-5pm were more than enough to lure me here on a few occasions. I really love the consistency and texture of the pasta here, although there are a couple of times where the pasta was overcooked. I prefer the pizza here as well as the base isn't as greasy as with the more fast food type places. The dishes are very well presented and are more filling than it actually looks. There are a decent number of seat options, however I can imagine the chaos that may happen during the actual lunch hour. Would definitely recommend if a satisfying meal is what you're looking for.

The biggest issue raised about Vapianos in Brisbane CBD is how it differs from its franchise down on the Gold Coast. It's table service prices for food you stand, watch and wait for. <br/>If you've never been it's starts like this: you walk in and they ask if you've been before. They hand you a card the size of your bank card and you proceed to grab a menu and join the line. Timing is everything because even as early as 5-5:30pm the lines are packed. But there's heaps of stations open so you jump into the queue. If queues drive you insane then you're best off finding a table for your party to sit at-try upstairs (there's a bar up there too) while someone orders for you. As the queue moves you tell the chef your order, tap your card and wait to watch fresh pasta/risotto be made before your eyes. Now despite the gripes people have with the ordering system because this place is busy for hours, the food is amazing. I get the risotto fungi with added chicken breast and as far as Brisbane goes it's the best risotto in town. They give you bread on the side, season to your liking (garlic, chilli, Parmesan) then you take your dish to your table and scoff it down because it's that good. The dessert is amazing too! Try the panna cotta or any of the cheesecakes (Nutella or white choc) because this dessert is simple, delicious and you don't have to leave the restaurant. Honestly, given the ordering system I would recommend groups of 1-4 people because you won't get your food at the same time unless it's quiet. But despite the waiting, the food never disappoints. Happy hour (4-6/5-7 I think) is awesome! They do cocktails for $5 and the specials always change. If you work close by you can get a cheap lunch ($10) too.

I am in Brisbane for couple of weeks and this cute place got my attention. The first time I ate there, it was awesome - I had ordered PESTO ROSSO.<br/><br/>Impressed I went again the next day and ordered RATATOUILLE. It is supposed to have fresh eggplant and the chef did not bother to either add eggplant or inform me that they are not gonna add - I don't know if they were out or whatever. I would have expected them to at least inform me. I came back quite disappointed.<br/><br/>I again went there today and as I had liked PESTO ROSSO, decided to order the same. The chef this time was busy small talking around and did not even bother to ask me about chillies, garlic or stuff like that. And I ended up disliking the same pasta that I had loved last week.'<br/><br/>My suggestion is to avoid Vapiano if you can, as they do not deserve the premium they charge.

I have been caught 3 times now ordering your proscuitto pizza and it turns up with HAM instead of prosciutto. So frustrating! I end up going here on busy work lunches with a few months gap in between and I go for my fav Italian dish, the prosciutto pizza. Why do you use HAM instead of prosciutto? Just change the name to HAM PIZZA!!!<br/>

My friend ordered pasta but i didnt btw i tasted some of my friends but it was pretty average which i feel i could make it better than this But i still want to try other pasta or pizza It looked cool and alot of ppl seem to like those so why not have a go again!!!

The concept is good, but sometimes very busy and you waste a lot of time waiting for your meal. It would be better if you could order and sit down, and collect it when its ready.<br/>Food is great though!

This is my favourite Italian restaurant. I love pastas and risottos there. I love it when they cook before your eyes. I also love the bread with olive oil. It's simple but so yummy in the restaurant. It's very noisy though. This is only downside of that.

Ordered a lasagne from here but can't really justify the price I paid. For $18 i expected a bigger serve. All in all the lasagne was served in a hot stone bowl and was fresh out of the oven and tasted great. However it is definitely more on the overpriced side.

Why am I paying $20 to get served like a food court. I went there for a bday dinner, it was so busy by the time the second person got their food, the fist person finished. You can imagine, we have 8 people. The first person wanted to leave when the last person got their food.

Absolutely love this place, the pasta is always so fresh and delicious. It's also an extremely nice set up upstairs perfect for dates or hangouts with mates.

When my friends and I run out of ideas on where to eat in the city, Vapiano's is always our back up plan. The pasta here is fresh and love the idea of them making it in front of you. The carbonara and ravioli are two of my favourite pasta dishes. The pizza is good as well, crispy dough with a good selection of toppings.

Starting with the ambience, it's lovely. We were there In the evening so fairy lights and all are lovely. Definitely a good place for pictures. Not that I clicked one. :P<br/><br/>Food is okay. I feel like it's over hyped. My friends kept suggesting me to go there for a long time. So may be some people like it too much. <br/><br/>Pizzas here are okay. Pasta is a disappointment. And lemonade never disappoints no matter where you have it. So yeah, definitely a one time go and then you can decide.

Bruschetta was flavorless and soggy<br/>Pasta and pizza were very average <br/>Wouldn't go back <br/><br/>Restaurant looks very nice and nice concept to have an open kitchen

Whilst the pasta and risotto are made right before your eyes and the pizza bases are a lovely thin consistency, the food itself wasn't a massive highlight compared to other housemade "right before your eyes" restaurants. What I did think was exceptional was the lovely girl who served me at the bar, not only were her drinks mouth watering but her lovely personality made them that much more special. Ambience wise when you walk in your immediately confronted with line after line at the kitchen and not much 'obvious' seating so everyone acts like their in the Sahara at a watering hole, food frenzie. So I suggest getting your menu and a drink at the bar and take time to find an upstairs seat before heading down, although yes the line dose take time!

Good spot for a quick pizza or pasta! Food is cooked fresh in front of you and there's a wide variety of options. Happy Hour is between 4-6pm on weekdays and includes $5 tap beers.

Popped in for an easy dinner after seeing Tom Gleeson at City Hall for Brisbane Comedy Festival. <br/>Were given a swipe card each and told to line up to order our meals. The drinks are purchased at a different counter. Once food is ordered you are given a device which beeps so you know to collect your food at the counter. After ordering we struck a problem- where to sit. We only had a choice of seats at low and small tables on stools or couches- not the most comfortable way to eat a meal. All the tables and benches were full. Pizza and wine and soft drinks were collected. The food was well presented and generous serves. My only qualm was that the cheese was a bit clumpy- not melted enough for my liking. We ate then paid by handing over our cards which displayed our meal items and cost. Good for a quick relaxed meal.

Pretty consistent Italian. Bit pricy compared to amount of ingredients, but quality is usually always there.<br/><br/>Nice layout and friendly staff, concept is good except when it gets busy... Then it becomes a pain waiting in line for a pasta to be made.

I don't know how this place is still in business. <br/>-They expect you to line up to tell the chef your order but the line up/ordering system is non-existant<br/>-People waiting to be served but the chefs don't acknowledge you<br/>-the "available" pasta stations have chefs working but not taking orders <br/>-there were half a dozen people standing around looking at each other having no clue how to order their dinner at this supposed resturaunt. <br/><br/>Note this occured on a Saturday night 9pm - not a busy time compared to normal dinner time. Can't imagine how ridiculous this set up would be when there's 10-30 people waiting. <br/><br/>When I finally stepped up to one of the chefs to ask if I can place my order or just wait until I'm called, the chef was rude and asked with attitude "what is your order".<br/>I ordered my pasta and received it approx 4 mins later. However the pizza which I ordered prior to the pasta was not ready for another 10 minutes which meant my Partner didn't have his meal while I did. Can't imagine how bad an experience this would be if dining with a large group!<br/><br/>Now the food: not worth it.<br/>-Ravioli con Carne tasted like a jar sauce from supermarket shelves with chunks of garlic throughout. Just delicious when you bite into a chunk of garlic 😝<br/>-Toscana pizza had a thin and soggy base. Can't pick up the piece without the toppings falling off. Then the toppings were covered in mixed dried herbs.. completely ruined the taste of the pizza (or hide the fact that there was no taste).<br/><br/>I felt like I was in an ikea food court complete with cheap benches, stools, food trays and "get it yourself" attitude. <br/> <br/>Hungry Jack's has better service style than this place.<br/><br/>Embarrassment to Italian restaurants everywhere.<br/>

The funghi pasta was great and the atmosphere was comfortable but... waiting for the food to be made for each person in front of you in the line.. took a million years (45mins of just standing in line @ dinner time). Honestly, I was so close to giving up so many times. I probably won't be coming back anytime soon because the waiting almost made me crazy

I like vapianos. Very fun that you get to watch. Although my pasta wasn't cooked through, the flavours and atmosphere were great. Would recommend. Service was good too.

Be prepared to:<br/>1. Stand in a que for 20 mins while you wait to be served,<br/>2. Wait another 10 mins for your meal to be cooked,<br/>3. Eat quite average food that was not worth the wait.<br/><br/>I won't be going back.

First time I came here, it was great! Creamy carbonara tagliatelle with pannacotta for dessert. They were excellent! Second time, meh. Had the funghi risotto which was bland and the tiramisu which was so overpowering coffee-wise I can barely taste the mascarpone cheese. It really depends on what you order and which chef you get I suppose.

I visited here for a late mid-week lunch. I have to say straight up that whilst the novelty of watching your food be prepared in front of you by a chef, initially seems appealing, once you've been standing in line for 30 - 40 minutes the novelty factor soon wears very thin! <br/><br/>That said, I ordered the ratatouille wth eggplant, artichoke, capsicum, olives, chilli, garlic and onions on a bed of penne with a generous shaving of parmesan cheese. The dish was fantastic. The pasta was still nicely al dente and in all other respects, it was amazing. I'd certainly order it again. If I could ever bring myself to standing in line for so long, that is.

Good quality and variety of pizzas and pasta available. Little bit expensive compared to the food. But lots of fresh touches. Slow in ordering as it is queued processing. Worth trying.

The worst setup ever! You need to go and stand in line to order your pasta then in another line for pizza. The buzzer went off while I was in line for the pasta so I had to pick up the pizza, put it on the table then line up again for the pasta!!! By the time the pasta was ready , the pizza was already cold.<br/>Both the Pizza and pasta were very bland. Rockets on top of the pizza were half dead and the pasta was uncooked.

I would rate Vapiano a big ZERO,  their display is $ 10 pasta/pizza. but the catch is its only for $ 17 listed items not for all. and they haven't mentioned it anywhere .. <br/>u would be surprised only at billing..

I returned my pasta. I like Al Dente but that was ridiculous. Not only do u queue to get your food, but it has taken me nearly 45 minutes to pay.

Pizza: D<br/>Pasta: B<br/>Drinks: B<br/>Service: C-<br/>Venue: B<br/><br/>Overall: 4 out of 10<br/><br/>Notes: Garlic pizza was a bland circle of dough. No olives for olive pizza. Bartender left our drink order on an empty table, near the entrance, for us to find.<br/>Skip the pizza, get the pasta.<br/><br/>Food we tried: olive pizza, garlic pizza, pesto pasta, house vodka and cranberry, cocktail of the week, house cider.

very nice food.. nice ambience.. i love it.. tasty.. and 10/10 👍🏻 very recommended and definitely will come back to eat here. if you guys pasta lover this place is totally fulfill your needs.. and Faisal one of the Manager incharge was really really nice and good hospitality..

If you go once, you end up being a bit addicted to it. Pizzas are awesome, but the pasta in my opinion is the winner! Whenever I have time and when it is not busy, I tried to have a meal there

I like the format of this place; each guest gets a card you swipe when ordering food and drinks from either the main counter or bar upstairs, and pay on your way out - awesome for big groups who don't want to muck around with cash and split bills. Also like that 'always open' vibe, you can pop in any time for something small/have a drink etc. Food is good, the bruschetta was awesome.

Service was decent, friendly chef who didn't hesitate to crack a funny while also cooking our order at reasonable pace. Also took into consideration coeliac by eliminating the risk of cross contamination (new gloves, clean cooktop and utensils).<br/><br/>However, the proportion sizing in conjunction with the price was a little too low. You would expect, for a 20+ dollar meal, a larger serving.

Always busy especially holidays. You can have nice pasta and pizza. Also enjoy talking with chef. At the daytime on weekdays, you can have some kinds menu just for 10 dollars 😉

I have mixed feelings on Vapiano. I don’t mind the pizza here, and I’ve had some good pastas (and some bad ones), but the concept of the restaurant can be a little inconvenient. The card system is great so everyone can pay for their share fairly, but the fact you either have to stand and wait while they make your food pasta or go down and collect your meal with a buzzer can be annoying, especially if it's busy. You either have to leave your bags unattended, or face coming back to a table that has been taken by someone else, while trying to balance a big tray with a handbag and anything else you might have on you. There is definitely better Italian food in Brisbane where you can actually relax and have your meal bought to you, probably wouldn't bother rushing back here.

Absolutely ridiculous prices for what you actually get.  I ordered a classic bolognese expecting this so called 'Italian restaurant' to pull off such a simple dish but what I got was a bland mess.  I normally enjoy al dente pasta but my fusilli was dry and was undercooked.   Almost all of my friends also complained about the sauce (or lack thereof) - extremely bland and sour.  Although the food was quite terrible and expensive, I did enjoy the ambiance.  Sadly, I go to restaurants for the food and not the ambiance.  Vapiano was a complete disappointment, just like my son.  Plus, the prices only added insult to injury (I mean $18 for some tomato paste, mince and pasta? Ludicrous).

<br/>Ah the olympics: green pools, drug scandals and free pasta/pizza at Vapiano. 'Fanatico' subscribers got freebies for each Aussie gold medal - whoot! This week I smashed a trifecta of takeaway carbs: penne ratatouille, fusilli pesto basilico and salami pizza. Pastas were pretty huge and everything tasted fine. A step above any usual fast food outlet. Wait times were variable, from excruciating to nonexistent. Would I have bothered eating Vaps except for the freebies? Nah. But will always rock up for their happy hour $5 drinks pre-movie. BAM!

Very nice decor, however the smart card ordering is a bit silly. Especially on a Friday night when the restaurants downstairs ordering area is jam packed with people. Does a restaurant really expect it's customers to stand in line for 40+ minutes to order their food then pray that a table is free for them after all that? It's ridiculous if it's just you and one friend and they've got to sit upstairs minding your table while you're downstairs for 45 minutes ordering and waiting for your food to be cooked. The pasta was quite delicious though and the chef really friendly which did make the meal worth the wait. Only gave a lower score because I think this restaurant could greatly benefit from offering proper table service and still leaving the clear glass so passers by can watch the food being cooked. I definitely won't be coming back on a Friday at 6.30, would wait until peak hour is over and have a late lunch or late dinner.

Having walked past this restaurant a few times I invited a group to eat at lunch time to try the menu.  The ordering system was confusing and not explained at all.  When I went to place the order I was asked a bunch of questions about whether I wanted extra toppings such as mushrooms - which was confusing as I thought I was ordering a menu-based pizza. The hand made Toscana pizza had a very soggy base which was impossible to eat as the bottom in the middle of the pizza was mushy and soft from the tomatoes. <br/><br/>At the counter are bowls of dried chilli, oregano and thyme and two unlabelled bottles which looked like chilli oil and olive oil .<br/><br/>When I went to pay the bill the cashier asked how was the pizza and I advised I was very disappointed.

Vapiano is a restaurant crowded all the time. Generally, i would loke to said that the atmosphere of the restaurant is very good, makes me feel relax while step into the restaurant. I ordered an pizza and i would like to say that the crest of pizza is amazing and it is really crunchy. Good restaurant that i will recommend 👍

Nice venue and caters for groups. The pasta is great, but unfortunately you have to wait in line while they cook it in front of you. Interesting for a while, it can take some time to actually place your order. Table service would be better. Panna cotta is delicious. Gluten free option is gnocchi.

The food here is ok but what I really dislike is the concept. How is it a restaurant when you have to order the food yourself and collect it yourself, and in such a crowded and noisy setting too? Price isn't that cheap as well but I guess it's to keep up with the shop rental prices. Cocktails are not bad (I had the Brooklyn Lemonade recently and it was nice, though it came in a small cup). Unfortunately, I have been here quite a few times as it is just one of the 'restaurants' you think of when you think about eating in Brisbane CBD.<br/><br/>TL:DR basically an overpriced Italian food court<br/>Tip: if you want your food fast, don't order pasta, order the pizza instead.

Not a bad fast lunch for a team outing. Everyone orders their own and there's plenty of large tables. While there's better in the CBD for Italian food this is pretty good for what it is.

During the cold winter nights, there is nothing more filling and delicious than a good pasta, according to my companion the Hungry Little Goldfish.  With that in mind, we went to Vapiano after work for some long awaited Italian food. . We lined up at the door and were given the smart cards to order.

It's so annoying to have to wait in line for food then wait in line for drinks. By the time you sit down with your friends your lunchtime is over and you haven't had a chance to catch up. Give me a regular restaurant with table service any day. This would be my last choice for place to catch up over lunch.

One place that has been having a mainstay for quite a few years has managed to do so for quite a few reasons. The first one has to do with locations, being right in the central area of the central business district albeit down the lane (actually works in favour). A second and viable reason is because of how reliable it is. There is a heap of space around two levels, and it makes for a wonderful setting to either to socialise or have a business meeting in between times. Also, the real important reason is that many people agree the food tastes good. Also, the whole thing just runs so efficiently and has that hard-to-perfect appeal where both the casual and business suit kinds can intermingle and not look out of place. <br/><br/>It had been a while since I had met up with a friend of mine, who is often really busy. For once, I finally managed to get onto him and get a meeting that was seen through. This one was during the evening, just a bit after work, in the city. The whole idea was that he wanted to find somewhere to have a drink, I didn't drink myself but would always take up coffee, plus I had saved room in my stomach for food. As a result, the friend had a couple of ideas in mind and this ultimate place was one of them.<br/><br/>Vapiano is a massive place, right down the end of Albert Lane, it is wide open to the world. This place is three stories tall and open planned. Seating is casual, and is a bunch of long communal tables that all have small pot plants of herbs on them. This is great to season your pasta with; to make it cooler, one level has a tiny greenhouse that has all the herbs you could need to cook with. There is also the oil and balsamic vinegar to compelte it all. <br/><br/>Okay, so describing the service is going to be a bit different than I normally do. This has a fairly unique system where you are given a card that is used to store and tally up the bill on your end which is given at the end to pay for your meal. Then you are given agency to go around to the different stations, which resembles a combination of a cafeteria and a teppanyaki dining experience. Just to up to the appropriate station - whether it be for pizza, for pasta, or antipasti and go and place your order. It can be tailor-made to your requests if need be. After it if ordered, just touch and it is charged at the end. The rest of it is up to you since you take the plate and cutlery to your table. Upon finding out that this concept came from Germany, I am actually not surprised at all. <br/><br/>Getting onto the menu, this is a simplified Italian restaurant. The stations are an antipasti, salad, pizza and pasta, with a drinks one upstairs that also includes alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. "House" and "classic" options are in both the pizza and pasta sections as well as a few others. It caters to heaps of tastes without going overboard. <br/><br/>As usual, to start off the meal the first order of business was the drinks. By now, it is clear I am a fan of coffee, so no double guessing what I got. I can't remember what blend or bean they used to make this drink, but nevertheless this was a servicable drink - the extraction was done just right, the strength was adequate and it did not taste burnt. It was adequate coffee, and that is enough to satisfy me. <br/><br/>In getting there, the thing that I really felt a hankering for was some pasta. Looking at the menu, the one that sounded perfect was "Gamberi e spinachi". Another good thing about the menu is that with the pasta sauces, each one has suggestions of which kinds of pasta go best with which sauces - that is what I went with when getting my pasta with linguine. The sauce was a combination of prawns, onions, cherry tomatoes and a cream with basil pesto, Parmesan cheese, and fresh spinach. As an extra, I got in some chili to spice it up. In addition to that, they offered some bruschetta on the side of the dish. This was one fantastic dish, where there was not an overbearing flavour among them. The taste of chili was present but only added the needed heat. The creamy base of the pasta was brilliant and thick, plus it was contrasted with fresh tomato, onion and spinach, plus those prawns were great. They were plump and had a firm texture. More brownie points are given to not obviously skimping on them - that makes a heap of difference. This was all done on pasta done al dente. Enough to recommend to an Italian mother-in-law I shall say. <br/><br/>I managed to nick a bit of my friend's meal. He got the Caprese antipasti, which is ciabatta, buffalo mozzarella and tomato slices with basil on the side. The tomato was ripe and juicy, and the mozzarella cheese was some of the most tender that I have tried. These flavours were more subtle than most and were brought out well with the addition of basil and olive oil. <br/><br/>The 4.0 score is for a couple of simple reasons. One, I did not really try a breadth of things here so there is not too much substantial in the way of food to base a lengthy critique on, and second, because I feel this was food that was good quality and competently done, just not something that stands out in comparison to many other places. Prices might also put some people out of ease. If it does have something characteristic about it, whether it be service or the structure of the place among others, some points are also given and I feel that Vapiano has earned a couple of extra brownie points for the way it is set out. Vapiano is definitely a good fall back option, and there is definitely a reliability factor in on getting a freshly-made meal.

I have never been and was there to try the new winter menu. I am not a huge Italian fan as you might be able to tell from my dineline but the pizza was a highlight

Decent place for pasta. But I didn't like the ordering system. It's not conducive for large groups. Additionally, the prices were a little steep and they could make the prices more affordable. But nevertheless, the service was alright and so was the food.

Always friendly staff at Vapiano Brisbane CBD. Staff catered well for dietary requirements on both Pizza and Pasta. Pizzas are made fresh and Pasta is cooked straight infront of you :-). Great flavours in all dishes.

Nice atmosphere, didn't think it was too noisy. Food was good. Nice place if you are solo diner, you don't feel awkward. Found staff to be very nice and friendly. Something different.

The pizza tasted as if I was chewing on cardboard. The food took forever to arrive, service wasn't that great, wasn't a very pleasant experience.

Loud and awful. Long queues, average food and pushy wait staff. A stressful and unenjoyable dining experience exacerbated by too loud music piped in from the speaker over the table.

You gotta be kidding me.  <br/><br/>Decided to give them a chance and deliberately went at at time when they wouldn't be so busy (8.30 on a Wednesday night).  Gotta say I don't find anything appealing in standing in a queue (a short queue!) for half an hour before someone can even take my order, just for the novelty of still standing there watching them burn the shi*t out of the oil while they cook my food.  I then have to wander around with a tray hoping there is a spare table for me to sit at.  What kind of service is this supposed to be?  <br/><br/>Get this.  Queue of three in front of me.  The chef cooks two dishes at a time, so the third guy in the group has to watch his friends disappear with their food while he then stands there waiting for his.  <br/><br/>I have absolutely no idea what the attraction is to this place.  I would have walked out (like I did the first time) if my wife hadn't begged me to stay because she wanted to try something different.  Well, it's different alright.  Kinda like fast food but with a long wait!  <br/><br/>Food when you eventually get it is average.  Only possible redeeming feature I can think of is that the serving size was good - enough to fill me up after waiting so long and getting so frustrated I wondered if I was even hungry anymore.

I've always had a mostly good experience whenever I do come here, staff are friendly and it's wonderful you can tailor your food to your preference! The food is also really delicious and fresh!

My absolute go-to/always-safe option when eating out in the city and cbf looking for another place. Fresh, delicious and generous servings; you cannot go wrong!

I have mixed feelings about Vapiano. At peak times, having to queue up in a line just to get your pasta made right in front of you can be quite tedious and can take quite a long time. If you are in large groups of people it's really hard to co-ordinate getting your food at a similar time - there have been occasions where a third of the group I have been with have nearly finished eating and yet the other two thirds of the group don't even have their food yet. I think Vapiano is over priced, especially for vegetarian pizzas and pastas. However, when the food is made well it is delicious and very flavorsome but I have found that the food can be hit and miss at Vapiano.

Despite Vapiano is located in the central CBD, I had never been in a hurry to try it. It isn't not that expensive for dining out, but imo it seems like an expensive price to pay for pasta.<br/><br/>The Pollo spinaci (gluten free) fettuccini was delicious and the chef cooked my pasta was very friendly. Excellent cheffing. I enjoyed my meal very much. Large portion size.<br/><br/>The paying system is a good idea, but the card I got was faulty or didn't register.

I always loved the set up of these stores, the direct interaction with whoever is making your food so you can tailor it to exactly your preference. The system hasn't failed me since and I pray it doesn't ever because I do enjoy this place ! Can always count on good fresh food

Its painful to wait to get in then to queue up again to wait for the chef to cook for us, one by one. The food and the drinks are rather pricey, rather unproportional to what they offer. But the young people seem to be never running out of cash, that's another story

I really like Vapiano for lots of reasons - lovely food, fresh and tasty lots of options, friendly staff and good value. Go early for both lunch and dinner far more dinners then seats!

Stopped by here for lunch yesterday afternoon. The pizza was very good, thin crisp crust and yummy toppings. We shared a Margarita and had two glasses of homemade lemonade, the latter was a little too sugary. I hadn't been here before so was surprised by their system by where they give you each a credit card to put your food and drinks on which you then present when you leave. The only thing that lets it down is the food court esque interior where you order your food.

I am a regular customer and I really like this place. The food is divine and the service is always great, expect for today when I have received a very rude service from the Chef. I was little disspointed with the service provided but after speaking with Robson, the manager, my problem was completely solved. They really care about people and food in here. Very good staff (expect for one staff) and very good food.

Not so good experience. The guy cooking at my line was so slow. He kept talking to his friend who unfortunately was queueing before me. I waited for almost 30 min. While the other line served 7 person, my line only served 4 person! Awful. The bianco pizza was just average as best. The salami pasta was undercook and tasteless. The saving grace was the summer special chorizo pasta.

Never had a bad meal!  Love watching the chef make your pasta and they're always friendly.  Always a good place for a catchup in the city, even when it's busy.  Will be back again soon!

I really like the concept of the place. Food is cooked in front of you with very fresh ingredients. Great atmosphere, awesome food and friendly staff. I will definitely come back!

GREAT food and quantity worth the occasional spend. My ratatouille spaghetti came with 2 piece of bread and fresh grated parmesan. It was just pure deliciousness. It had the aldente pasta and lipsmacking tomato sauce, sauteed vegies and the artichokes... to die for. Haven't tried the pizzas but they did have $10 pizza days.... so glad I still had the pasta. Can't wait to try other dishes.

Vapianos always gets put forward as a potential lunch spot - it's right in the heart of the city and its generally pretty reliable, I always get the salami pizza and it's always good. Nice seating areas up and down stairs and friendly staff make it a pleasant place to catch up with friends. It's a safe bet if you're in town looking for lunch.

As I was walking past this place, I noticed the staff were handing around free pizza- which is what got me enticed to walk in! I saw they had $10 lunch specials which is a great offer. I ordered the margarita pizza which was pretty good. When you add in value for money it was great. If I was paying regular pizza prices then the rating would have dropped. Overall, for lunch, this place is highly recommended.

Really Good Food, Fast Pace and Great Place for quick lunch.  I am big fan of arrabiata pasta.. and happened to get great taste here. Will surely come back soon.

A fast paced city venue that never fails to disappoint.  A wonderful starting venue for a night out with pizza and pasta that can be as heavy or as light as you please!  With the added bonus of watching the chef prepare your pasta. Only down is it can get quite busy, which is understandable.

Delicious pasta cooked right before your every eyes! I love how you can choose the type of fresh hand-made pasta. Got a classic bolognaise, and a garlic pasta. Both sauces were done so well. I would have preferred the pasta to be cooked a little more.

Great concept. Nice venue for lunch and for after work meals and drinks with friends. Can get pretty busy - understandably so. Love the lunch meal specials :)

I had lunch here yesterday for a work gathering. Trying to be healthy - I ordered a large salad with chicken. The salad was huge but was mostly lettuce. I really had to dig around to find the chicken as well as any other ingredient that wasn't lettuce. The salad dressing was nice - though I could hardly taste it as it was sparsely used. This little experience cost me $23. I really doubt that I'll go back unless I want to get pasta or pizza maybe.

I LOVE this place. Has a couple of vegan options for pasta which I find amazing. My "go to" dish is the arrabiata (tomatoe). I have mine with chili, lots of garlic and I add spinach, olives and cherry tomatoes. It's fresh pasta made in store too, cooked in front of you when you order it.

Great concept, great setting, great food. Vapiano allows you to watch the chef cook your food, and you can make suggestions or add in anything you want! They cook fast and you take your food back to the table, no waiting around. There was herb plants on each table too, so you could add in your own basil, parsley, Rosemary, etc. onto your dish. Such a fun experience. I got the ratatouille, however won't be adding pasta next time as it made it too heavy to eat, and my sister got the mushroom risotto which tasted incredible! The bruschetta was also very nice. There was a nice bar both on the top and bottom floor of the restaurant, with a good selection of alcohol. My favourite thing was the card concept however, which allowed you to tap a temporary card every time you purchase something and then pay at the end, eliminating split bills with big groups and more freedom. The restaurant was very spacious, with choice of high or low lit areas and comfortable seating. Definitely coming back.

Food is amazing but the service is hit and miss. The service we had last time was horrible. Didn't pay attention and didn't really want to listen. But over all the atmosphere and food is good.

how can you not love this place? made to order in front of your eyes. is just you will hate it on a weekend with long queue...but that's what i enjoy so u can meet the brisbaners here.

The pasta is cooked to perfection every single time. I love getting the carbonara and pizza. It always gets busy during lunchtime and dinner time so be prepared to wait in line and also for when the food is cooked to order! Great food but always a long wait in line.

Vapiano was a poor choice today. The pasta is expensive and flavourless. The pasta itself was overall salty and the only flavour that was there was with the freshly grated cheese. The only saving grace is that it is relatively fast pasta and the $10 pizza was appropriately priced for the taste. Probably won't go again.

Go to store when making last minute plans! Quality of food can definitely change since there are more than one person cooking but majority of the time the food is delicious!

The pasta is very nice but the line up can take a rather long time. <br/>Had the cook accidentally splash hot oil near my eye but he tried to pretend to not notice till I was checking if my eye was okay myself. Would of been nice to receive a 'Sorry, are you alright?' but guess not

Vapiano is the furthered the thing from authentic Italian. The pasta dishes are not seasoned enough and when I told this to the waitress she suggested I add salt.. What the?? Apart from flavour, the restaurant has a nice atmosphere and the meals were quick.

For the life of me, cannot figure out why on earth this place is so popular. Spent most of our time waiting in line just to place an order, and then wait for it to be cooked, instead of sitting and chatting with friends. That alone took over half an hour. Result? Everybody's food ready at a different time, and by the time you sit down to eat it it's cold.  And lousy quality (had the carbonara).  And on top of that overpriced.  <br/><br/>Sorry, but it seems quite a racket to me. The diner does ALL the work, some of it completely unnecessarily, pays at least what you would pay for full-service, and eats a cold, almost pre-packaged dish for the effort.  Then half an hour after we've finished mains, our dishes still hadn't been cleared.  Water available only in small serve-yourself glasses that you had to keep returning to fill. I cannot understand why anyone would ever come twice. The only plus was that the coffee was good. <br/><br/>If the attraction is watching your food being cooked, then why not give the customer a break and let them place their order with someone and only be called down to the kitchen when their food is about to be prepared. At least they can sit and chat with friends in the meantime.  One more suggestion: have different coloured cards, for heaven's sake - you lose track of which card belongs to which diner in your group.<br/><br/>All in all a bad eating experience, and so overpriced.

One of the key concepts at Vapiano is focusing on using local produce- as much as possible is sourced from 150km radius of Brisbane. Whilst 'eating local' is not a new concept,

How is this place popular?. Average food, basic pizzas and the pasta comes out stuck together in one giant ball. You can stand in line to order your food for 30 minutes on average if you're there for dinner. This place is like Jimmy's on the mall, caters over priced average food to clueless bogans

Average. Nice but far too expensive for a pasta dish I could have easily made at home

Good idea, food is pretty average though. Good idea of ordering fresh pasta cooked in front of you. Pity that every time I've been the pasta has been stodgy and the sauce just so so. The lines are too long, and everyone at the table ends up eating at different times. Been 3 times, always regret it - prices are pretty high.

Garden City Diner. I hadn't been to Vapianos before and the girl who greeted us explained the system quickly. The place didn't seem very busy, but it was a Monday night. The ordering system seemed like a novelty that quickly wore off. 45 mins standing in a queue to order pasta wasn't fun. I stand all day at work and my feet were killing me by the time we got to order. This wasn't what I expected. Dining out is supposed to be an enjoyable experience to be shared with friends. My friends ordered pizza and were sitting at our table with their food for a good 15 minutes before we joined them. They had both ordered the barbecue pollo pizza. Another disappointment with only 6-7 pieces of chicken over each pizza. Basically a barbecue sauce pizza costing $20. I had ravioli, but the only flavour I could taste was chilli. We were exhausted, unsatisfied and not impressed. The staff were friendly enough, but unfortunately the concept isn't relaxing, enjoyable or workable for a group. Sorry guys, we won't be back.

Tucked away in Albert Lane is pretty cool Italian place. A whole three levels of it. With little herb pots on the table! Which is cute! RADvioli Ordered the Ravioli Con Carne ($18.9). Homemade ravioli with Bolognese filing, onions, carrots, spring onions + cherry tomatoes in a light tomato cream sauce. It was good, nice, enjoyable. However if I had to be really harsh and more critical I'd say it was just a little bit ordinary.

A Comedy Of Errors. Unnecessarily complicated ordering system. Lacklustre service. Mediocre food. <br/><br/>Who in their right mind would task the chef to serve the customer? Would you put the customer service staff in the kitchen?!<br/><br/>I could write 500 words on why I'd never come back nor recommend the experience to others, however, I'm still sitting here and the longer I stay the more annoyed I become. <br/><br/>See ya Vapiano, wouldn't want to be ya.

Vapiano - one of the world's most popular Italian restaurant chain. It all began when a couple of German dudes (Yes, Germans and not Italians :S) decided to open an Italian pasta store in Hamburg in 2002. The humble little pasta café has now transformed into one of the world's most popular chain, with more than 150 restaurants in 26 countries. So what makes it so popular? Using only the freshest ingredients sourced locally, their pastas and pizzas are really quite decent. What's more, you can definitely tell their herbs are fresh. How? Well they grow their own olive tree and you can just pluck your basil or rosemary from the pot plants on every single table. The casual and rustic ambience reflects the concept of Vapiano (which translates to Those who have an easy-going and relaxed approach to life, live more healthily and longer ).   Fresh fresh Herbs!! All their pizzas, pastas and salad dressing are made fresh every single day.  

Worst dining experience ever... Stand in a massive line while the table you reserved sits empty.. get to the counter then stand there for another 20 minutes to watch your meal get cooked. Then carry your meal back to your table. There is no room to breathe in the line up and the amount of people that drop their food while trying to weave there way to their table is ridiculous.. whos stupid idea was this. Also the carbonara is awful. Tastes like a cup of milk.

Strange ordering system but great fresh food fast.

Cheap food, low quality. Just a trendy place for teenagers.

Risotto Funghi. It tastes yummmy however my risotto was a little bit undercooked

Terrible restaurant. We went to vapiano. Trust me it's just fast food. They only sell cheap food charging a lot of money. New concept but still in low levels of quality. 4 prowns for a dish of pasta???? Really??? What about the poor higiene of the cooks? They don't cover their beards! It must be compulsory for people who handle or serve food. No chance to come back

Terrible Quality. I haven't been to Vapiano for a year or so. I used to really enjoy the food, but boy have things changed. I ordered the spinach ravioli. I was served with less than 10 pieces of ravioli, barely covering the bottom of the large bowl. The ravioli was hardly cooked on the edges and was drowning in oil. Luckily I'm not a bit eater, so the meagre offering did fill me up, but the quantity and quality provided for $18 was astounding. I could not believe how little food there was. Usually I can't get through half a bowl from here.<br/><br/>My partner had a pizza with mozzarella, basil and tomato. The base was so thin you could hardly hold a piece of it up. The tomato was cut in big thick clumsy slices and it was far from fresh. My partner used the words "lack lustre, oily, cold, uncooked and not fresh" to describe his pizza. I had a piece and it was incredibly uninspiring.<br/><br/>Several young cooks kept me and several other customers waiting around at the counter while they chatted.<br/><br/>We used to come here all the time and we were happy to pay the prices asked, but now I feel like we'll go to Pizza Hut next time, as their quality certainly is higher.<br/><br/>For the record, this is literally the first time I have ever submitted any review of a restaurant - good or bad.

My husband and I wanted a late lunch and a drink on a lazy Friday afternoon and came across Vapianos that delivered just what we wanted and more. It was after the lunch rush so our food came quite quickly. The set up of ordering the food was a great concept and we lived our meals. We had a tropicale pizza and antipasti platter. My husband was also very impressed at the bar with the chance to taste a few beers before choosing what he wanted. Lovely atmosphere and the staff also were super friendly and happy to help. Good dining experience!!!

Bland pasta that didn't match the description. And I'm sorry but I'd rather sit down with a glass of wine while I wait for my (average) pasta to be made. The rocket salad howeve was fresh and tasty and although overpriced it can't be faulted

Taste, quality & service were sub-standard.<br/><br/>No flavour bolognese. The meat was black & burnt in some parts and lukewarm in others.<br/>The pasta was uneven - hard in places and too soft in others.<br/>The wait time and service was attrocious.<br/>Amateur short order cooks (not chefs) were more focused on the 18 year old female customers & making jokes with each other than cooking.<br/>Crowded with teenagers who obviously don't know what quality italian food looks like.<br/>Should be avoided like the plague, especially when there's a handful of better italian restaurants within short walking distance. <br/>I can't believe this restaurant is still in operation.

Awesome Food!. Service may be a bit slow during peak hours but the food is well worth waiting for! pasta is fresh and tasty. Best Carbonara I have ever tasted. Gamberi E spinachi is also a favourite. The basil pizza was also great with a unique flavour to it. Enjoyable dining experience for sure! Can not wait till the one at Garbo opens up in October!

The service and wait time was ridiculous. When ordering your food you simply pick a line and hope it moves quickly, we waited in a line for approximately forty minutes when the customer in front of us ordered five meals, meaning we waited over an hour and twenty minutes ( standing) for a simple pasta dish. They really need to sought out a ticketing order so that people are served in order if when they begin to wait, Rather than how many orders the people in front are making. As we paid at the end, I mentioned this to the manager who attempted to blame it on the chef by saying "if that happens the chef should of made your meal first". The manager was not sincere in his apology and no discount/offer to come back another time, or even a free drink was offered. A disgrace to customer service.

Nice atmosphere but terrible service. We ate here on a tuesday night when it was very, very quite hardly any customers and the time amount of time we had to wait in line to order our food because the chef was busy chatting to the group in front of us AND NOT ACTUALLY COOKING was absolutely ridiculous - it was pushing on 20 mins. when we got our food, it was eating temperature but not hot enough so it went cold fast quickly as time went on. not happy jan.

Not impressed, went there for my birthday and we were still finishing our meals, it wasn't late and they turned off half of the lights. Definately didnt make the dining experience very special thats for sure. A shame as I have been to the gold coast vapianos plenty of times theyre food, service and general vibe is so much better than the brisbane store.

Terrible, don't bother going. The staff were all rude, they put us on a table too small for 8 people even though we booked. And when we got there the guy told us to go upstairs to the right and there was no tables at all. So they screwed that up. And moved us around to three different tables, which was inconvenient because is was booked and planned for a surprise birthday dinner <br/>The bartender went out of his way the say rude/mean things. The only nice staff member was the chef.<br/><br/>But over all, the food was average and the service was outrageously bad.

Diana. Cannot pass a comment on the food, except that I liked the idea of watching them make the fresh pasta from scratch, looked delicious. With regard to the stupid card & the $75 thing if you lose it, I think that is a bit over the top!! I only went in for a coffee just imagine losing the card & having to pay $75 plus for the coffee -JOKE!! The coffee was gian carlo however it was bitter, could not drink it

I don't get this place. Its not that great. I can make tastier pizza than them with my pet goat as an assistant. The goat later became a part of the pizza too ...

Generally good experience. A complaint about one of our meals was handled beautifully by the manager who had a lovely nature. Nice bar staff upstairs. Thanks Vapiano.

Dont go there - nearly fined me $75 for not eating!. I met a friend there for lunch but had no intention of ordering (food takes too long, is overpriced and mediocre at best). After she had eaten, we went to the counter to pay. The lady asked for my swipe card. I said I didn't have one as I didn't order anything. She said that doesn't matter, you always need a card when you enter the door (despite that not being told to me). She said that I would have to pay a $75 fine but that she would "let me off with a warning". $75!!! Ridiculous!! Never stepping food in that place again. Disgusting.

Dont go there - nearly got fined $75 for not eating!. I went to meet a friend but I had no intention of eating there (the food is overpriced, tasteless and you wait too long). My friend had ordered and had her buzzer and swipe card. After she had eaten, we went to the counter to pay. The lady at the counter asked me for my swipe card but I said I didn't get one because I didn't order. She said that doesn't matter, you always need to get one when you walk in the door otherwise there is a fine for $75!!! Ridiculous. She "let me off this time" but I said, "don't worry, there wont be a next time"!!! DO NOT GO THERE!!

Too long to wait. Process of ordering and waiting does not work. I was in three lines for over one and half hours...forget this place

Really enjoyed this after hearing friends rave about it. Wouldn't go on a Friday at lunch anymore unless you fancy waiting 45 minutes and having to rush back to work. Bruschetta was amazing as was the bolognese. I'd go back on a quieter day and would make sure I arrive before the lunch crowd

Ordered a bbq chicken pizza and it was so thin and bare, each slice only had one piece of chicken on it and some without it at all, the garlic pizza was so salty you could not eat it! Definitely the worst pizza and garlic bread I and my friend have ever had and for the price it was appalling

First time to Vapiano. We had a wonderful experience, being able to chat to the friendly chef while he makes your lunch just as you like it was a nice change. Food was tasty, well priced, and look forward to going there again.

7/10. Cool venue and watching your pasta being made is good as the cooks are always full of energy, super nice and add whatever you want into your pasta for you. The pasta is made on premises and is always fresh and delicious, I've certainly had better pizza though. It can be annoying once you get your meal and can't find a table as they've all been taken while you're getting your food, so avoid going on the weekend. Also I love the swipe card idea so there's no problem splitting the bill at the end.

So bad! Waited in queue for half an hour to be served, definitely not the experience I was hoping for and am very upset about this. Staff were unfriendly and other customers very pushy (probably because they weren't being served either)

Arrived 7:00pm on Thursday night, me and my girlfriend ordered a pizza and pasta. Got the pizza in 10mins, couldn't find a table. After 15mins standing with a pizza finally found one. Sitting at the table with stone cold pizza waiting for girlfriend to order pasta. 50mins later my girlfriend finally placed an order. When we sat down to eat the pasta the first bite was horrible, the spaghetti was not cooked. The guy who served us had a beard he was mainly talking to the girls and not concentrating on cooking his food.To the people that are thinking of going to this place, be prepared to get some hungry jack just around the corner.

Complete waste of time. Forced to stand in line for 45 minutes just to get food. Never going back.

Nice to meet up with friends. This place is a great place to meet up with friends as it has a cool interior & each table has fresh herbs such as basil that you can pick to add to your own meal. However that's where the excitement ends. Food is nice but nothing special, the Pizza is not bad as they are trying to keep it authentic Italian but it doesn't quite get there (nothing like the Pizza at Beccofino).

Adorable and delicious! While in not sure if this place is a franchise or not, it certainly doesn't feel like one! The armosphere was chic and 'happening' and the food was delicious. The only downsides would be that it can be pretty loud, and it missed having a server actually come to the table and check in you from time to time for the smaller things (napkins, cutlery, water, eye), although I do realise that is the concept to self-serve.

Yum!. I love this place! The food is always great, their pasttas and pizzas are authentic and delicious. <br/>Items that I recommend are the pesto con spinaci pizza ($10 on weekdays from 11am-3pm) and their pesto pasta. As you can tell, I am a pesto fan. <br/><br/>When you walk in, the person at the counter will greet you and hand you with a swipe card and a menu. They also ask if you have been or haven't, to which if you have not experienced Vapianos, the staff will explain how the process works. Do keep in mind that they may need to check out diners that have finished eating, so some patience may be needed. <br/>The ordering process is quite simple, you choose what you want from the menu and go into the line for the type of food you are after- I think there are 3 pasta lines, one pizza and one for the salads? Line up and once you get to the chef, tell them your order and place your chip card on the machine. Once that's done, you can either stand there and watch your food cooked or go upstairs to find a seat (which I recommend since sometimes the food can be done in as little as 5 minutes or up to 25 minutes). I should add at this point that take away is available so you can just wait around the kitchen area. <br/><br/>Moving on, the ambience of the place is very comfortable, since it is a little dark, the focus is completely on your table alone so for people uncomfortable with dining near other people, this is not a problem. Waiters never pester customers as it is generally not required of them so you can spend as long as you want in the restaurant. A bar is available on both floors of the mega-complex to order drinks and desserts. The tables have a marble ledge that has pepper and salt, balsamic vinegar and olive oil, as well as pots of fresh plants to enhance your meal. It's an unique and adorable idea. <br/><br/>Oh, I forgot to mention, when you place an order- the chef hands you an electronic buzzer that will vibrate, beep loudly and shake to tell you your order is ready to be collected. Therefore, you can just leave your table and go down to collect, simple as that. Once you take the meal back to your table, start having fun with dressing the meal. <br/><br/>Pastas: Are always cooked to a good consistency, not overly done and soft or underdone and hard. It's delicious!<br/>Pizzas, crispy base, authentic and mmmmmmmmmmmmm, I regularly visit for pizza. <br/><br/>Once you're done, take your chip card to the counter and pay for your meal. Eft-pos is available at this restaurant. At the counter, there is a bowl of gummy bears that are great for the kids to spoon up when you are paying, which is a nice touch. Vapiano is always a great experience, and due to the size of the restaurant- no matter how packed it looks, there is always a plentiful amount of space, tables and seats available. My favourite italian place in Brisbane and the pizzas are affordable and much nicer than other junctions. <br/><br/>I also forgot to mention, the chef are very playful most of the time and are happy to chat.

A long wait. We usually enjoy going to Vapiano's in Brisbane City but our last visit before Christmas was a disappointment. My husband waited in the queue for 40 minutes before placing his order. The rest of us ordered pizza because of a previous experience. The pizzas were finished before my husband's order had been placed. The food is nice but not worth the wait. You can get similar quality food most other places without the long wait and someone serving you to boot

I have always been a fan of Vapianos, the atmosphere is fresh and it's definitely still a great new addition to Brisbane's scene.<br/><br/>But after my visit last night, I believe the whole staff are becoming complacent and arrogant as they are obviously turning over a lot of profit every night.<br/><br/>After waiting in line for 35 minutes for pasta, my friends and I were very calm and made no fuss whatsoever. But naturally we were slightly exhausted of waiting and we were eagerly anticipating our pasta. As I was placing my order, I was not doing to impressively on my Italian, I tried my best and he had no idea what I said so I showed him the menu, that's respectable enough considering my pronuciation was abhorrent enough that he couldn't understand (which I can appreciate). Then in a very rude and arrogant tone, he said, "I can't read". Being a bit nieve, I genuinely thought he was serious and continued to make a fool of myself, in aid of his pathetic and juvenile attitude. He continued to say he was half deaf, which then my friends hinted to me that he was not being serious. This genuinely infuriated me and I was at the phase where I said that I'm not even hungry, but the decided I wasn't going to waste the very long wait in line on a coke. Once I tried pronouncing it again, he rudely said, "Start learning how to work it out for yourself". <br/><br/>Needless to say, I will avoid this young man's line if I ever go again. His meal was not even worth his arrogance, he's relying on the fresh, fun nature of Vaps to get away with his mediocre pasta. There was an uneven distribution of spice and my pasta stuck together as if it were made by a five year old.<br/><br/>However, I'd like to commend the young man who was collecting my payment. He was the only person who treated us like customers and didn't judge us because we were a little younger than their average demographic.

Unusual set-up. I don't think the set-up of this place really works. While it's great that they make their own pasta there fresh, the meal options are all fairly simple, and having to line up while they make your meal for you is very frustrating. This is the kind of place you should only go if you have a long time for lunch.

Vapianos Brisbane was a huge let down. The front counter staff member handed my husband and I the charge cards, asked "Have you been here before?" To which I replied "Yes" (as I have been to Vapianos on the Gold Coast, which was lovely). The staff member walked away, All the while he couldn't have even be bothered to make eye contact with either of us. The kitchen staff were great however ordering pasta was a nightmare. There were 7 people lined up, the pasta is made while you stand at the counter and wait. My pizza was made and ready before I even had a chance to order pasta. I was waiting 25 minutes in line before being able to order. Once the pasta was ready our pizza was stone cold. The food was average, I could have spent a quarter of the bill and eaten just as well somewhere else. My husband and I were disappointed all together. When paying out bill, the same rude young man from earlier put our payment through. The only words he uttered was the amount of the meal and "wanna receipt?". <br/>Would have received better service at McDonalds.

Arrived late in Brisbane after delayed flight. Found this open just before 11 and they kindly offered to make us two take away pizzas. Asked for them bianca and the pizzaola only too happy to oblige. Great thin based pizzas with fresh ingredients. Thank you

Terrible service, bland average food and way overpriced. Nothing about this place is good. The setup is ridiculous. You have to queue in one line to get your pasta then a different line to get a garlic pizza, meaning your pasta is cold by the time you've got all your food and the whole process has taken nearly an hour! Will never be back. Do not waste your money or time. AWFUL.

The food here has never disappointed me. The "death by chocolate" cake is delectable!

Pizza was very disappointing. Ordered the barbecue pollo and a pasta to share with a friend. The pizza base was soggy and there was hardly any meat, even more disappointing then fast food places. The pasta was mushy an bland. You're better off spending your money somewhere else

Disappointing. We visited after hearing so much about the food. We wish that we hadn't bothered. We wouldn't recommend a weekend as we felt it was an extremely busy Wednesday evening. We waited in a queue over 45 minutes to order one pasta dish. In the meantime our pizzas were cold. It is not a restaurant for those who enjoy a chat over drinks whilst waiting for your meals. We did not enjoy it at all and won't rush back, if at all.

Mostly good. Food: The food is fresh, cooked in front of you, in reasonably good portions<br/><br/>The downside is that in peak periods it takes forever and is difficult for groups. But even for singles it's hard to get served then find a decent seat.<br/><br/>Seperate billing: This is a good thing. Even if one person is paying, put it on one card or one person gets all the cards...

Not impressed. I went here last night for dinner to catch-up with a good friend of mine. As an out of towner (from Newcastle), first impressions were good. But when It came to ordering food/drinks was very disappointed. <br/>Staff were not very friendly at the bar, the wrong meals were served, and the pizza base was soggy. Was expecting some nice crisp pizza bases, but no. <br/><br/>Very disappointing, and will be avoiding next time I'm in Brisbane.

What a shame of a night. Recently my Mum had organised to have my little sister's 14th Birthday dinner at Vapiano in the City. She had booked it 4 weeks prior to the chosen date which was a Saturday. <br/><br/>My mum had even dropped off a Birthday cake the day before, which the staff confirmed her booking and put the cake in a storage fridge. <br/><br/>When we arrived on the Saturday night we were told that no booking was made for my sisters dinner and the 20 guests who were going to arrive. After a 15 minute wait and being told there was no reservation and that WE had gotten it wrong, my mum had told one of the staff to check the fridge as there should be a cake with my sisters name and the time of booking, which to no surprise, the cake was there.<br/><br/>After finally being allocated a seating area (4 individual tables in a hot corner) we dined and had a pleasant night. <br/><br/>The food was good, atmosphere was better however seemed somewhat chaotic at times. <br/><br/>When it came to pay, I approached to see the manager. I explained the situation and asked if my mum could be compensated for the 'stuff up' which the manager was more than happy to do. <br/><br/>Besides the mistake and pointing of fingers, we enjoyed our night. Not sure if we would organize a larger dining event again, however would do so if it was a small group (2-6 people).<br/><br/>JP

The food, atmosphere and friendliness of the staff makes me constantly crave for Vapiano.<br/><br/>Always fresh, tasty and I believe reasonably priced. The meals are of a decent size (my partner and I share one pizza and 2 slices of pane di casa- house bread).<br/><br/>Wouldn't recommend Vapiano for large groups or large birthday's because the ordering system has everyone getting up and fetching their food at different times. <br/><br/>8/10

Tuna salad. The salad was a great size but was not impressed with having tinned tuna, I could do that at home! I was expecting a grilled tuna steak or something a little more classy!

My favourite restaurant in the city so far. Great service, delicious food every time! Pretty affordable too.

This place is delicious!!! Definitely recommend. The portion sizes are just right, friendly chefs and the free garlic bread is great! Pizza and pasta is great. The creamy pastas are to die for!

Fast Food. What are you expecting? It's basically a refurbished FASTA PASTA.<br/><br/>The swipe cards take away from the table service and ordering that you would usually enjoy from a restaurant but it does make it easy to settle bills when with large groups. <br/><br/>The food is made in front of you. It takes more than 5 minutes to make a good pasta or pizza. Food takes time, love. <br/><br/>The pizza is pre-cooked and stored in takeaway boxes and then added to a hot wok with meat and sauces. The pizza's benefit from being cooked in a large industrial heavy duty looking oven. The antipasto ($14) is good and the setting is great. Great ambiance, plenty of tables. <br/><br/>Pizza's are hit and miss, most of the time lacklustre but good if you're hungry and like eating dough and don't care about toppings. Pasta's are gross, we found ONE piece of meat in the bowl .... ONE!!!!!!!!!!!! or was it two? The sauce is tasteless.<br/><br/>Overpriced. $18 for a pasta or pizza. <br/>They do trick you with their $10 weekday lunch deals.<br/>On first glance of the menu the food ranges from $11 as well.<br/>But that's if you want the basic pizza which is basically ... potato slices on bread.

Fabulous.. I love going to this place. It's my go-to place when I need a change of pace.<br/>It's so relaxing, the food is great and I love the availability of fresh herbs, along with olive oil and balsamic vinegar, on the tables.<br/>I've eaten both pizza and pasta there and have been very satisfied each time - the portions are so good, I often take a while to finish them (and I'm a fast eater who eats a lot, normally), which leaves much room for even more chatting (when/if I'm with other people).<br/>I have no problem with the card system nor waiting in line - I knew what I was getting myself into, as it was explained to me in detail the first time I went, and the cooks were understanding if brisk (to be expected in such an environment!) and I recommend the place to all of my friends (some of which I've already taken along with positive results with most! [Just that one bologna/bolognese connoisseur...])<br/>Main thing to absolutely remember: DON'T LOSE YOUR CARD!!<br/>Srsly.

Love Vapiano, fresh pasta cooked right in front of you. The herb boxes are a great idea to add extra flavor to your dish. Great spacious area with plenty of seats.

Great!. To all the people complaining about the "Canteen" atmosphere, why do you go there if you can ́t stand waiting in line. Would be the same as complaining that McDonald ́s serves fast food. That is the concept of Vapiano ( and quite a successful one in Europe). <br/><br/>The chefs and cooks that prepare your food directly in front of you are always nice and chatty and the food just tastes amazing. <br/><br/>The atmosphere is great, very modern but still homely.<br/><br/>The prices are reasonably for the size of the meals ( go for the calzone!) and it ́s hard to find good Italian food in that price range.<br/><br/>Go if you ́re open-minded, stay at home of you ́re an old fart.

I can understand why teenagers would come here on a date and for gatherings, but really can't figure out why one would return to this place after one bite.

Swipe Cards a winner. One of the most frustrating things having lunch with a large group is splitting bills at the end. Vapiano swipe card system is very impressive. Forward thinking, and great food.

Went to Vapiano with a group of girlfriends last night and I absolutely loved it! The atmosphere and the little pots of herbs were gorgeous! I understand what other people are saying about standing and waiting but I personally believe that it's all about the experience. The pasta was beautiful and the staff were lovely :) will be bringing my partner back to try again!

Hmmm the food is.... Been to Vapiano's at least 5 times. I like the variety in the menu, the selection of pastas and also how we get to see them cooking it as well. However the taste is alright. There's nothing to brag about it and really wasn't memorable. The pizzas were well in my opinion, worse than the pasta. Brittle..and flavourless. I also like how they make their pastas as well and we get to see them doing it too, however I find the taste of their pasta a bit off putting at times...I can't put in my finger on it but there's something there that isn't right. On whole, would I go back to this place and recommend it to others? No, not really. You're paying between 15 - 20 dollars each for mains and I'm pretty sure I can spend it elsewhere that's a bit more worth it. Be my guest if you love the place and can't get enough of it. For those who haven't tried it and are wanting to, just to satisfy their curiosity..trust me..you're not missing out.

Hate concept of waiting in line. Firstly the food tasted fresh and full of flavour. We had the chicken, mushroom and bacon penne and it was delicious. However, we won't be back purely because of the crazy system of waiting in a long line to order from the chef, who can't get through many customers at a time because he/she is cooking. We arrived at 6pm Saturday and it took almost half an hour of waiting in a line to order. During that time, the rest of our group were sitting talking while I just stood there. This is not why people go out for dinner, and ruins the entire experience.

Yeah it was a bit above average. The wait was long, it was a little expensive for the amount they served. The setting is modern and they have random basil plants around for you to pick and add in your dish (I assume). The ' Funghi' dish was quite nice. You choose the type of pasta and type of sauce you want and they make it in front of you.

This place was great. Lots I atmosphere and noise. The pizza took a lot longer than I thought it would so go and sit down while you wait for it but apart from that the food was amazing.

Marinara pasta sticks together. Friendly staff but perhaps focus on cooking than chatting?

It's just too salty!. Went there with a friend during one of the weekdays' night.<br/><br/>we order the most expensive range of their pasta. It looks so yummy based on the menu but think that the chef was talking too much with the chef next to him, and he added double portion of salt in there. we can barely finish half.<br/><br/>TOO SALTY.<br/><br/>but the place is great for a catch up with friend :)

Very very good! Closest u can get to the real deal. Fresh, fast and yum.

Absolutely great business model, great fresh vibe unique concept. Food is very simple and may not challenge a seasoned palette. Would recommend to a younger crowed with more interest in talk than taste.

Tasty but small. The food tastes fantastic. Fresh ingredients and lots of flavour. With regard to the pasta though, the portions are quite small; especially for the price.

Nice layout but pretty overpriced considering you have to line up to order and wait for your food to be cooked. While the chefs are lovely, it's feels like they were trained to make awkward small talk with the hungry customer watching their every move. I also don't like the concept of the dry pasta being stored in plastic containers - I found a broken plastic bit in my food once!

Wow!! It's so yum and cheap!! Took my dad there for fathers day and he loved it! The workers there are so friendly and chatty, don't even think twice about going just go! It was only $50 for my dad and I to get a pizza, cabanarra with extras, an drinks, definitely worth the money too!!!

Best idea ever! Love; the .... Best idea ever! <br/>Love; the pasta<br/>The layout<br/>The service<br/>The atmosphere<br/>The bag hooks on the tables! <br/>The little herb garden randomly placed up stairs! <br/>The card idea, love spilt billing!!! <br/><br/>Disliked; I have no sense of direction in the city always get lost finding the place! Haha! <br/><br/>Normally just went their with my friends, but my boyfriend finally agreed to come not a fan of pasta and he loved the place going there again this Friday with his mum! <br/>I know we will both now find any reason to come here for dinner with friends :)

Cool concept, fresh pasta and fun times. At time overwhelming, but full of energy. My favorite part of the night was the finale, coffee. Best I have had in a long while

Bad service!

Slipping. This was my third visit to Vapiano and I have to say after tonight I won't be returning. First time there was great service by the chefs/cooks, it all seemed pretty organised and I enjoyed the food. Since then, each time the experience has been less and less enjoyable. <br/><br/>Tonight I went with 4 people - we lined up in q's beside each other, it was confusing as one of the chef's had the sign up saying "closed/not in service" - I asked him if he was definately closed or about to open (because he seemed to be cooking for people lining up) to which he said he wasn't taking orders - then proceeded to ask other people if they wanted to be served! He kept doing this on/off with customers which was very confusing. It took about 10-15 mins to finally get served. The chef I ordered off didn't seem very professional - she was flustered and at one point rolling her eyes at a customer! I ordered my dish and then went to get a drink - when I returned the chef I had ordered with was no longer there and another guy was cooking - he went to give my pasta away to someone else until I interrupted and asked it it was mine! He fumbled and then acted like he'd always known it was for me. To make matters worse I'd asked for Spaghetti pesto - I was given a creamy chicken pesto dish with fettuccine. <br/><br/>Both mine and all the other's in my group's pastas were gluggy/overcooked and we were all pretty frustrated by the time we sat down - because it was so disorganized with the chefs, we were all eating at completely different times too. We left out barely touched dishes and left - disappointing.

Cool concept but essentially overpriced, quality and portion sizes don't meet expectations, and also annoying lining up system. That said I think the place has potential to be good, but they do have to lift their game a bit and perhaps have the option of ordering from your table which would make a lot of people a lot happier

Don't understand the hype.... This place is worth a visit purely for the experience, but it's not somewhere I would go again. I think while the concept is kinda cool, I cringe at the fact you pay restaurant prices but have to line up, order and collect your food as if you're ordering from McDonalds or Dominos. While the meal was tasty, it was nothing amazing. Their card charge system (each diner gets their own card and all drinks, meals are charged to that) was a plus though, as we had a table of 8 and it made it much easier at bill paying time as everyone just paid their own card.

Dont bother!. I had never been here but had heard people talk about it. The concept of standing in line to order your food is somewhat lost on me. It took forever, i would rather be sipping on a wine seated at my table. They had run out of wholemeal pasta - both kinds, if something is popular enough as wholemeal is then ordering sufficient stock is a must. I ordered the pesto which was bland and oily, it cost $17 which to me was rich for the portion size and i seemed to line up in the only line where the pasta heater (sorry i cannot call that a chef) was not giving bread. Sorely disappointed and i will not go back or recommend this place.

Didn't even get there. Didn't even get past the booking process<br/>dont take my details, to ring me back 24 hours later to say, no can't accomodate you<br/>won't be trying again<br/>Not an ounce of service

Nice if you don't have much time. A lot of my friends have said Vapiano is a nice place to eat, it's ok. I have found it a good place to go when you don't have too much time and you want to get food quickly. It's always busy and I always end up having the anti pasti plate to share which is nice and at a reasonable price. <br/><br/>The staff are friendly, price is reasonable and it's just off Queens Street which is handy.

Gets Worse Each Time. I've been to Vapiano several times. The first few I really enjoyed because of the "Swipe-and-go" nature of the place and the modern fit out but as I get dragged to this place more by friends and co-workers I'm increasingly disappointed. <br/>Pros:<br/>-Great location<br/>-Modern, minimalist decor<br/>-Cosy coffee lounge<br/>-Swipe card makes group dining easier<br/>-Fresh herbs and spices on table to season to your taste<br/><br/>Cons:<br/>-Overpriced for what you get<br/>-Costly additions to already overpriced, minimal dishes<br/>-Terrible coffee<br/>-Bland pasta dishes and expensive salads<br/>-Carrying cafeteria trays upstairs can prove to be challenging and ungraceful.<br/><br/>Overall interesting concept but poorly executed dishes.

Canteen Meals. As a dinner party of 10 it was our first visit to Vapiano. We each received charge cards as we arrived but were not told anything about how they worked or what the ordering process would be. Seated at our table upstairs we all read through the brief menu and decided what we would get. We then discovered that we had to line up downstairs in a canteen-like fashion to order our meals. Several of our party went to order, and the rest reserved our table. There was a choice of about 6 pasta types, but they ran out of fettuccini and linguini by 6.30pm. It was unique getting to watch each chef prepare our food as we waited in the cue. But by the time we had our orders and arrived back upstairs, half the party had already finished their meals. Most of us ordered pasta and although the portions looked fairly small, we were satisfied afterwards and glad we hadn't ordered extra dishes. At least two of our carbonaras were slightly underdone, but we ate them anyway. Upon commenting to the waitress she did offer to have them removed from our bill. The bar upstairs was closed for some reason, and members of our party decided not to bother with drinks as they didn't want to negotiate the lengthy staircase while balancing their glasses from the downstairs bar. The overall service and food was average, and we didn't think the canteen style setup was conducive to a social setting. 5/10

Line up to get in. Find your own table. Line up to order food. Line up to order drinks. Average food with below average service. I thought I had to wash my own dishes as part of the 'experience'. Won't be back!

Overpriced "food court" style. I've had just as good, and better, pasta for the same price, if not cheaper, and served to me at my table by attentive staff. The food was certainly tasty, but the Vapiano "experience" is no different to visiting a shopping centre food court. Certainly won't be back.

Lives up to its name"go slowly". Kids love having the charge card and the fun of queuing - personally I'd prefer to be served. Portions are small- my pasta was swamped by a very oily pesto. Probably good for a group and for students - not my ideal. Will give it another chance eventually I guess.

Not interested in going back. I went there early this week for lunch with two friends. It had been highly recommended, but sadly lived down that reputation. I ordered the funghi pasta, it was $16.90 from memory and one of the cheaper options. It's far too expensive for a bit of pasta and a few mushrooms. The flavour wasn't great, it is nothing you or I couldn't cook at home. The portion size was good but it was so boring to eat I lost interest finishing it. I won't be going again. The service was bascially self service so no service really, do it yourself and pay a premium. The restaurant is swanky looking which is the best thing about the place.

Horrible customer Service !!. I would like to share with everybody specially the owners my really bad experience with a Manager that apparently is a kid that just got out of school and his dad sent him to his restaurant to be ... surprise surprise A MANAGER !! yes, manager... do you believe that ?? <br/><br/>If Im not wrong his name is Christian, a Really arrogant, unprepared, irresponsible and rude with his own staff and worst ... with the customers as well !!<br/> I was one of them and im not alone, I've talked to other people ( around 6 aquaintances ) that had the same experience which is really bad. <br/><br/>I used to love spend my arvos at Vapiano but now I can tell I wont feel good be serving as a dog anymore by staff like this.<br/>Thats a shame a really good place with an amazing and delicious pasta like Vapiano with no control about its customer service.<br/><br/>Hope this help.<br/><br/>W.A.

Meh. The first time we went there it had just opened and the food was actually really good. Although pricey for what you got, the pizzas had lovely, fresh ingredients and the staff was friendly and efficient.<br/><br/>One subsequent visit saw burnt, inedible pizzas which, after showing the waitress, were not removed from our bill and nothing else was offered to compensate us. Considering we couldn't actually eat the pizzas, it was incredibly bad service.<br/><br/>The final time we were lined up to order and a very loud woman obviously pushed in front of us but was served first regardless. When we pointed out to the chef we were next he basically told us to suck it up. So we did suck it up - we left and never returned. What is it with Brisbane customer service?

A nice place, fresh food but I didn't find this for value for money. But I would retun as it was nice food

Tasty pizza / pasta in the CBD. I ate here on Thursday night at around 7:30 and the place was buzzing. The pesto pasta was quick to arrive and was creamy and delicious - i couldnt finish my plate! This restaurant is kept very clean and staff are always on the look out to ensure empty plates are cleared away promptly. Love the option to add chilli, fresh basil, rosemary and olive oil at the table if i like. I'll definately be back the next chance i get!!

I really enjoyed vapiano's I had a lovely meal BUT i was with my mum who found a small cockaroche in her meal (the size of a 10cent peice) such a disappointment!

Food is good, if you can hack the ordering process. Food is good. A bit too expensive for a quick everyday lunch. The ordering process is an ordeal though. You have to queue at the actual counter where they prepare your food in front of you. If you are after a social affair whilst saving a table... it doesn't work. Better for a group rather than a couple because one of you is usually sitting by yourself saving your seats while the other is queuing waiting for your food to be cooked.

Silly concept.. Hate the concept - it translates to you basically feeling like you're at a canteen. Terrible service - got overcharged and the cashier rolled her eyes and acted like we were the biggest annoyance because "we" swiped our card twice accidentally and it was SO hard to delete something at the counter. She acted like it was the biggest encumberance on her day. Perhaps this happened because nobody bothers explaining anything and we had no idea how anything worked, it being our first time?<br/><br/>Food portion was ridiculously small, I could have eaten three plates and I don't even eat a lot of pasta normally. Regardless, it still felt disgusting and oily. Very cheap with the fresh ingredients, there were three cherry tomatoes in my (otherwise plain except for the cheese) pasta and two sprigs of rocket. What they stinged on in the fresh department they more than made up with butter, oil and cheese. Yuck.<br/><br/>Didn't expect much, didn't get much, don't know what the hype is about, won't be back, hate hate hate it. Do yourself a favour.

LOVE THE PIZZAS. We go here a lot.<br/><br/><br/>The pizza is AMAZING! <br/>I've tried :<br/><br/>GAMBERI E RUCOLA<br/>prawns, olives, rocket, our own tomato base, mozzarella <br/>MARINARA E RUCOLA<br/>prawns, calamari, rocket, our own tomato base, mozzarella<br/>CAPRESE<br/>fresh tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, basil, our own tomato base, mozzarella<br/> The good thing about the pizza is you get the buzzer and can go find a seat have a drink...relax and you are buzzed when it's ready to go pick it up.<br/>The annoying thing with pasta is you have to stay in the busy line for sometimes 25 mins as people in front order for 4 people!! <br/>So pizza is the way to go for me personally.<br/><br/>The pastas that I've had:<br/>GAMBERI E SPINACI<br/>prawns, pesto, baby spinach in a cream sauce (LOVE IT!!!!!) <br/>POLLO PICCANTE<br/>our own chilli orange sauce, chicken breast, pak choi, red and green capsicum <br/>(didn't like it at all as too much sweet chilli sauce. I like CHILLI but that was too sweet. I just wished I ordered the pizza as the half hour wait for the pasta was not worth it that time.)<br/>RUCOLA RAVIOLI<br/>ravioli with rocket and ricotta, cherry tomatoes and pine nuts<br/>(there is something spicy peppery about this I couldn't put my finger on it..possibly the rocket?)<br/>.

Great atmosphere, and a cool concept watching your meal being cooked chatting with the friendly chefs. My meal was lovely and cooked exactly the way I wanted it. I would recommend it to anyone that wants a quick and nice meal.

Average. Like many others, I found the service system a real turn off from the minute I walked through the door. I let the 'welcome host' know it was our first time, inviting an explanation, but she just handed us the cards and pointed to the order bar. Even Sizzlers explains their style of service. If you are going to use a gimmick, you should at least make it an easy experience. We ordered the Amatriciana - it was a decent size serving but quite bland. All in all, it was okay, but there are definitely better Italian places to eat.

Nice and Casual. This is a good place to go for a casual lunch. I went with my 2 sisters, 1 of whom is a coeliac. <br/><br/>Pastas and gnocchi were both lovely. As were the salads. The chilli orange sauce is delicious, though I'd recommend adding chilli to it if you like more spice. It's quite mild. <br/><br/>It is quite loud inside, but a nice place all the same for a casual lunch. Would not recommend for a romantic dinner.

Best Pasta. I love the idea of choosing which pasta and watching my meal get prepared, it's different. I always get the Cabonara, and it is one of the best pasta dishes i've ever had. The atmosphere is nice, fancy but not too over the top. Only bad thing i can say is that there is always a 10-15 minute wait, but it's totally worth it. I will definately be going back soon

Rude bar tender but otherwise fine. Everything was nice, food, service etc. Until we went to order drinks. I ordered a cocktail which the bar tender begrudgingly made, a friend who was undecided on what to order decided to get the same as I had as she thought it looked nice when finished and was actually yelled at by the bar tender in front of a room of people and told that if she had wanted the same drink she should have ordered it at the same time. Completely unacceptable.

Food here is actually quite nice and contrary to other reviews I dont think it's overly expensive. However, the service, ordering system and payment system are terrible. The guy at the bar served 6 other people who had come after us. Ordering food and having to wait downstairs was unsociable and trying to arrange just 1 payment fir our group turned out to be just way too hard for them. And the smokers in our group tell me that they were made to leave their drivers licence as "security deposit" before they were allowed out. We certainly won't be going back here.

Brisbane CBD store is a joke. Turn up at 5pm on Sat and 80% of the tables are reserved so walk ins have to sit in noisy bar/kitchen areas.

Ridiculously overrated. My friend had been hailing this restaurant as to-die-for for a while before I joined her there for lunch on a Friday. The card system seemed ingenious at first (especially when you need to split the bill) but the ordering procedure was convoluted & very disorganised. My friend had the mushroom pasta which to my surprise was a generous helping. I had the chicken pizza (for $20.00) but it was nothing but a small spot in the middle with a few pieces of chicken and 70% of it was just crust & tomato paste. Very disappointing. And the menu is unnecessarily complicated & restrictive. I wouldn't waste my time visiting this restaurant again.

Inexpensive Dessert. The first thing I said when I walked in was "Wow, it's like an Italian Subway." I do like the concept of this place and the fresh herbs set amongst timber fittings. It works if the place isn't busy, and the interior is lovely without crowds. However, in peak times the whole waiting in line system and serve yourself does not appeal to me. I have tried the pizza and pasta here and whilst they are yummy/acceptable (yet not outstanding), I do not think the queueing and the price justifies them. <br/><br/>Yet, I like to go alone and sit on a couch in the bar to enjoy drinks/dessert. With a choice of tiramisu, strawberry creme and vanilla pannacotta at 3.90 a pot, I'll try to drop by when feeling slightly peckish. My favourite is the vanilla pannacotta with strawberry sauce. Oh how I love these moments with my little creamy pot of indulgence (including its black particles of vanilla bean) whilst I people-watch over my spoon.

McPasta. Two visits were enough to this overpriced, overrated, pretence at good food. I ordered pasta & was forced to queue endlessly in line for it to come my turn & then carry my food upstairs. Fast food would be faster, real restaurants let me sit & talk to my friends while the food is cooked. The second time I had one of the lamest Ceaser Salads of all time, luckily it was empty but when I asked for anchovies I was told that wasn't possible - but they are adjacent to you in the pizza section! This is totally formulaic & just pretence of something more. Subway offers more choices & is of similar quality.

Fresh pasta to the rescue!. We've been in and out from Vapiano so many times since it opened its door last year. We have mix feelings about this place. We do love fresh pasta which is pretty hard to find a place making it unless you spend a fair bit more money to go to a fancy restaurant. The texture is just totally different from the dry pasta we can buy from a supermarket. It's slightly chewy and is cooked really quickly. We believe that is what makes Vapiano's pasta special. Their pasta is also well made and cooked.<br/><br/>However, we found the taste of pasta varied from chef to chef. Sometimes it can be so saucy and nicely seasoned. The other times it can be dry and slightly on the bland side. Like a lucky dip. <br/><br/>We don't mind waiting in line or their card system like few people have commented. We think their food is worth it when they do it right and the card system is a good no-nonsense idea if you can oblige to it.<br/><br/>Try our favourites, Conchiglie Arrabiata with Extra Prawns, Salami Pizza, and Bruschetta Pizza. Because we just can't help but adore their fresh pasta and pizza with an affordable price, we'll go back again.

A bit overrated. I liked it at the time, but looking back on it now I can see that it was overpriced for a basic pasta. I was disapointed at the lack of selection on the menu and i feel like I could cook better pasta myself. The novelty of watching your food get cooked quickly wore off. <br/><br/>Not great food. Overpriced. Service good. Great location. Wouldn't go back.

Have been here a few times and like the idea, good that is has a bar so good for a special mid week lunch. Food has been good though my last visit it was slow on delivery even though we were at the end of the lunch rush.

Don't bother. I was silly enough to go here twice for lunch and will never go again! The food is expensive and bland, the staff are rushed, and the whole experience is noisy and far from relaxing. To top it all off you have to wait in line to order and then collect your meal. Prices should at least include table service!

They're pretty smart.... Why hire wait staff when we can get the customers to do it AND charge them for it!<br/><br/>Charging $20 bucks for average pasta, making me wait in line, fetch my own food, my cutlery, water and walk around their restaurant for 10 mins to find a table, trying desperately not to drop my over-priced, under-whelming meal.<br/><br/>You might fool me once Vapianos....

Flavorsome and tasty! Great price and great concept. Lost all romantic hue to the evening whilst my partner and I stood in different lines to order though. Worth a try - will be back, I dig the gimmick!

Mixed feelings. The first time I went it was like a novelty..the concept of using a card and watching your food being cooked was all new and exciting. Second time I went I realised how stressful it would be to be a chef there, to have to take peoples orders and basically be on display to everyone. I think chefs need to just focus on doing what they do best, which is to cook and leave the customer service to other industry professionals. The food was nice and simple and staff were friendly, loved the herbs.

Expensive and bland. Again we went there for a friend's birthday celebration<br/><br/>In theory, the idea of watching the cooks make your dinner is entertaining until you have to carry your meal through a crowded restaurant back upstairs to your table which was underlit so the guy sitting on the end looked rather sad eating in the dark ==<br/><br/>It's crowded so you'd think that the food was nice - but no, the only thing I wanted that had chicken in it was the sad overpriced pizza. The seafood pizza was tasteless too as well as the other one that I can't even remember now cause it was that unmemorable.<br/><br/>The carbonaras looked alright but the gnocchi and the vegetarian pastas looked bland too - basically everything was boring.<br/><br/>Overpriced and lacking flavour - they didn't even have any salt around - maybe that would've made a difference?

Not the romantic evening I had hoped for. First of all Vapiano's wasn't all bad. I can see how for some people it would be a great experince, but not for the chic and relaxed meal I was expecting.<br/><br/>Vapiano's has a very different dining concept where you watch the chef actually cook your meal. (No it's not an Italian teppanyaki as others suggest.... more like subway) Problem is however, since it was busy, I had to wait in line 20 minutes before even seeing the chef. My partner ordered a pizza while I ordered a pasta. This meant we were waiting in different lines. She got the the front of her line before me, and by the time we had both got our meals hers was cold.<br/><br/>I was planning on getting a glass of wine, however being seated at 'bar stool' height chairs and right behind where everyone was lining up for the chefs, the atmosphere wasn't right for me.<br/><br/>Maybe if I came at a different time (other than 7:30 on a Saturday night), I was seated in a different section and if I was with friends rather than my partner maybe I would've enjoyed it. But for now, I am very disappointed.

Gimmicky without substance. I walked into Vapiano to dine for the first time with a fair dose of skepticism, having heard mixed things about it but was interested to see for myself. The layout of the place is quite open and welcoming and the wooden and red accents are pleasing. Sadly, the decor was probably my favourite part of the whole experience.<br/><br/>I went for the first time on a Sunday night with a large group. We walked in at around 9 o'clock but when it came time to order, the chefs at the stations quite obviously wanted to close soon. Most of the them wore displeased expressions, and made a point of hurrying us to order despite closing time being listed as 11pm. That being said, the wait staff (who aren't there to wait on you so much as to clear tables) were significantly friendlier.<br/><br/>The card system confused me a little and though it was relatively easy to get through the ordering process on a quiet night, I do not envision the same ease would apply during peak dining times. I also did not understand the necessity for non-dining members to take a card to go upstairs - why do they need one if they're not ordering? - and unless I misunderstood it, the statement on the back stating the customer must pay a $75 charge if they lost said swipe card was just ridiculous.<br/><br/>I ordered the gnocchi and my dish was passable, erring on overcooked, though frankly you'd find similar quality in a university cafeteria. Other guests seemed reasonably content with their orders but the standard of the food did not match up to the price asked.<br/><br/>So if you go to Vapiano, do not seek table service, do not seek consistently friendly staff, do not seek perfectly cooked food, maybe go for the decor, but definitely do pass 'GO' and leave your swipe card at the counter - because apparently there's a $75 charge for that.

In one word... preceded by a few more.. I can't really like or dislike Vapiano. It is very rarely poor quality but you'll never get a great meal either. The ordering system is fun the first time and infuriating every time after that. It is the Starbucks of restaurants. Vapiano can be summed up in a single word: "Meh"

Vapiano, a genuine and relaxed restaurant the CBD has been craving.. Good honest food, cooked in front of you to order in a few minutes. <br/><br/>These days we like to know exactly what we are eating so to see it being cooked is a new and intriguing concept but works very well. <br/><br/>You can visibly see you are eating fresh and healthy ingredients. The food then exceeds your expectations for taste, the fresh pasta melts in your mouth, the prawns were perfectly cooked almost caramelised, the pizzas are full of flavor and no short of topping! <br/><br/>A great restaurant aspires to exceed expectations and is a whole experience. I can safely say Vapiano doesn't fail to satisfy for ambiance, extensive menu options, location, portion size and customer service. <br/><br/>The atmosphere and decor is original and well composed, the finishing touches of fresh herbs on each table adds authenticity and originality to the Italian theme. <br/><br/>The staff are really friendly and accommodating, it seems very well managed and under control. <br/><br/>We had a fun night out and no arguments over the bill! <br/><br/>This restaurant comes highly recommended- thanks Vapiano, see you again soon!

Not surprising. Went there with a friend in an off-peak time, wasn't really busy, we could find a seat easily and didn't have to queue up. The staff were really friendly but the food were just normal, the ingredients were fresh but it was nothing surprising.

My third underwhelming visit. Nice concept but the food's average. I think all the positive feedback about the pizza speaks more about the poor quality of Brisbane's pizza than how good Vapiano's is. Avoid the gnocchi pollo piccante also, the gnocchi is heavy (overcooked?) and the piccante sauce is too sweet.

2nd visit, will be the last.. Went there tonight for my fiancee's father's birthday, after not being able to get a seat at JoJo's (for some reason he decided not to book a table on Valentine's day weekend), upon arrival at Vapiano we were given our charge cards and told to find a table, none to be seen anywhere. After approaching the main desk, a staff member kindly offered to find us a table, which was wonderful, and after waiting a short time, were ushered to a table right near the line for the pasta (not an issue, they were really busy). We looked through the menu and decided on what we were after. And this is were it all went pear shaped.<br/><br/>Stood in the pasta line for over 45 mins waiting to place my order, I understand they cook while you wait, but surely there must be a better system than this! FINALLY make it to the front of the line, place my order (one of which was for gnocchi) and began to watch the food being cooked. My gnocchi was cooked last and I wasn't really paying much attention to the chef, more concerned with fitting 2 pastas on the tray. I look up and was flabberghasted by what I saw. My gnocchi was being fried in oil, in a wok. What the hell???? As a result, I ended up with somewhat crispy, rubbery as hell, downright HORRIBLE gnocchi. Italian grandmothers the world over would be turning in their graves.<br/><br/>Sauce was passable, the Funghi sauce my fiancee had was very bland and dry. All in all, not the best dining experience. I for one will definately be avoiding this place, they have had 2 chances with me, they don't get a 3rd.

I first went to vapiano in Europe & was surprised that Brisbane had one too. I love vapiano as it's just so casual, relaxed and easy to order! The pizza and pasta are good sizes and have always been delicious. Wine is nice too. Staff are always friendly and seem happy, and I love their newsletter deals each month so I can always find a bargain when I go. Love it!

Finally a great new concept in Brisbane but Unfortuantely the food does not match. Ordered the seafood pasta and the whole dish was quite underwhelming. Very soft pasta with no bite, pasta sauce that did taste worse than mass produced and seafood with no flavour because obviously it had been frozen for a few months. It's very sad that all that money had been pumped In to this place but the food was forgotten

Vapiano = overrated. I don't believe my experience at Vapiano was good at all. Our pasta was gluggy and I think this is because it is half pre-cooked. <br/><br/>We waited for our food and once we had it (there were four of us) we had to wander around looking for a table. We did this while we had trays in our hands with full plates of pasta, salads and drinks. There were no tables to be found and eventually we found a high bar with two vacant stools. By the time we actually found somewhere to sit/stand our dinner was almost cold. <br/><br/>I don't think I would go there again!

Ricardo. Bar staff are geat, food is quick and cheapish.<br/>However, their card charging system is a shambles if you go as one group. Vapiano require that each person charge their dishes and drinks individually to their card - it is a nightmae if you are hosting an event.<br/>Don't challenge the manager about this system - he is a very unhelpful grouchy fellow.

Trendy, but simple. It works.. It's definitely a strange set-up, but Vapiano works on so many levels. When you first walk in, you will be given keycards which correspond to what dishes you order at the self-service counter down stairs. Drinks are also charged to these cards at the bar as well. <br/><br/>Once you order from their great little menu, you have to find your own seats. This can be a matter of luck on a Friday or Saturday night. And while at first it may seem as though you're eating at a shopping centre cafeteria, as soon as you try your food, it's worth it. <br/><br/>I last shared a pizza and salad with my date along with wine and some mineral water. The food was very quick to be made and was far better than I expected. And although there are quite a few people, you can find an intimate littler corner here and there. The basil plants on each table are also a nice touch

Uncooked then unfriendly. I've had many people tell me this place is pretty good however I beg to differ. My first visit was a disappointment after waiting nearly 20minutes at the counter for our meals, only to get upstairs and find that my ravioli was still raw and hard. <br/><br/>My second visit just recently, a couple of months after the first one was no better. I went in on a Monday afternoon and there were no customers there except one guy still deciding what to order. I basically walked straight up to the service counter to order, only to be completely ignored by the cook. He stared right through me and proceeded to serve the other fellow who had finally decided what to order. So I was pushed out of the way. <br/>I went to try and be served by someone else only to have this same guy follow me and pretty much push me out of the way again. Needless to say I was quite angry and told the staff and this rude individual where to go.

Takes a while but the food is worth the wait.

Terrible. The chilli spag dish had an overload of salt and no chilli. The gnocchi dish was dry. The cooks were rude and offhand. They were not busy. No excuse. Will try this place one more time...maybe...

Came here twice both for takeaways... 1st visit great fast friendly service and tasty pizza... 2nd visit slow below average pasta and too heavy handed on tomato base on same pizza

What's the whingeing about?. Great service for us first-timers. Nothing complex about a back-to-the-basics (even if a bit spare) menu and the need to queue up individually for pasta/pizza/antipasti and then coming back later to the same counter to collect your order. Ate on a saturday at 1300, and with lots of people milling around, i must say i didn't expect my food to be lightning-quick. I lined up to order pasta for less than three minutes and was served by a nice young man who cooked my tagliatelle in front of me. Perhaps my caprese pizza could have done with a couple more minutes in the oven though because it was soggy in the middle. The pastas are fresh and lovely, but nothing an average cook wouldn't be able to whip up at home. Pasta, pizza, and drinks for two who left quite sated, for well under fifty bucks, good value for a quick, no-fuss meal. Come on, guys, this isn't fine dining, and not somewhere to bring a girlfriend to impress. It's good enough for me for the cheap prices, fresh ingredients, and warm service.

Tonight was the second time I've been to Vapiano, and it will definitely be the last. The first time, while the food was lovely, was not nearly enough considering the price. Tonight I had the carbonara, and it tasted like flour and undercooked onions. Good concept, poor execution.

Good fun for grown ups. Vapiamo was the site of a 'girls night out' on a Thursday night over pizza, pasta and a glass of red. The concept of your own swipe card to order food and drinks was terrific - especially at the end of the night when it came to paying for your own share. Similarly, the order-at-the-counter-and-bring-your-'cooked while you wait'-meal back to the table worked well but we all agreed that it could be problematic with different groups of diners (I wouldn't recommend the concept if you were bringing small children out to eat). Nevertheless, the food was good and the capacity to add your own fresh basil and roseary - in terracotta pots - as well as olive oil and balsalmic vinegar at your table was a novel and fun innovation I'd not seen before. I rather liked that the Tiramisu was served in a preserving jar and made for a quick dessert. Despite how busy the place was, the staff kept the tables clean and cleared. Similarly the loos were kept clean to the end of the night (although the lighting was not great for reapplying your lippy) <br/>All in all a good venue for a casual, fun dinner with friends.

Okay food.. I thought the food will be awesome, but it's not. I had Carbonara and it tasted dry and tasteless.

We wont be back!!. Read about Vapiano when in opened and thought it sounded novel and good. We ate there last Saturday night, both ordering pizza, my pizza had prawns and calamari on it but it was more a marguaretta than a seafood pizza, it had next to no seafood on it at all. And I don't get why you have to line up for pasta when they have those buzzer things to tell you when your pizza is ready?? Definitely not a place to go for a social night out as you have to line up and wait for your meal and so don't get to spend time with your friends unless you make new ones in the line up!

Outstanding pizza - I would rate it as the best I have ever had as the base is to die for. The atmosphere is just awesome with well appointed tables, shoot upstairs to help yourself to fresh basil and other herbs. Very unique experience, well worth a visit if you are in town.

Lovely start to the night. I actually saw Vapiano highly rated somewhere and decided to give it a try, price-wise, it was really good for students. The pizza ingredients were quite simple, the pastas the same. We were greeted warmly and told how the system worked as soon as we walked through the door. We did have impeccable timing though, me and my friend came early on a Saturday night which meant the reservations hadn't turned up yet and the place was very well staffed. We both got pizza, simple ones, and they were delicious. You're allowed to use the self service dried herbs thyme, oregano and chilli as well as chilli oil, and olive oil. There's also vinegar and more oil on the tables. We used thyme and chilli oil on one of our Margherita-esque pizzas and it was mind-blowingly delicious. The other pizza we got was slightly plain, the pesto cream got boring after awhile but still it was definitely good. Some of the staff were not so polite, the chefs were, they seemed to be trying really hard even though some of their English was poor and I appreciated that, but the wait staff, didn't really seem to be there to 'wait', they just seemed to be frantically running around. I know this because I almost bumped into one guy two-three times because he was rushing around. There was even a pitcher of cold water with lemon and lime near our table and the bar tender told us to help ourselves. For me, the experience was really enjoyable, maybe it was just timing, maybe we just got lucky, hell maybe it was our own flavour additions that must one of our pizzas really delicious, but we'll definitely be coming again.

Check out charlie. We ate here late one Friday night after a friend finished work. My friend was famished and felt like pasta. I wasn't really hungry and went for the salad bar with no line. My poor friend waited about 30 minutes in line. By the time her meal was made I was finished my salad. My friend was furious by then as we must have timed the staff breaks with our meals & the dish wasn't what she expected. The 4 chefs behind the station diminished to 1 with a room full of customers waiting in line. We returned a week later to have a quick drink before a movie. I was drinking water & my friend a wine. On walking in my friend collected a charge card & I kept walking upstairs (as I wasn't intending to have anything) the person behind the counter started yelling at me to come back and chased me up the stairs. When I explained that I wasn't having anything he insisted that I had to have a charge card no matter what & I must return to the counter. When we did make it upstairs the wine my friend ordered wasn't in stock so we decided to give it a miss. Went back downstairs to then wait in line to check in our charge cards and wait for them to be scanned to show there was nothing on them.....phew! Kudos for the girl at the 'check-out' for trying to make convo with our 2 sour faces.

Not Impressed. I did not like waiting in line for 40 mins to order my food (seriously). Did they think that there may be a group of people who wanted to eat at the same time, instead you have to order pasta, pizza and salads all in seperate lines? When the food did come out, my pasta ravioli was undercooked and had no flavour. There was just no respect for ingredients or flavours..no real thought was put into the menu. Good concept in writing, but does not really work in practice. One positive was the waitress taking around bruschetta, but unfortunately could not make up for my bad experience. I don't recommend Vapiano, but try it out for yourself.

Overrated. Went to this Albert Lane store based on many people raving on about its excellence and I must admit I was somewhat underwhelmed. While it was ok - had a pasta dish, it was not spectacular. Pasta was fresh but the sauce was average.

Tuckshop Slop. Hands down, the most overrated, substandard, pseudo Italian restaurant I have ever been to. This faceless German conglomerate has tapped into how blindly stupid people are, who think the concept of standing in a cafeteria line for 30min to be served slop from an underqualified tuckshop cook, is a good idea. It was terrible in school and even more tiresome in the real world. The pastas were bland, overpriced, unimaginative and simple to the point of boring. <br/><br/>From a business perspective, the concept is pure genius. Herd the cattle in, castrate, brand, delouse and send them packing on their way. Anyone who is a self-respecting food lover and enjoys the dining experience will be sure to avoid this place like the plague. I will never queue there again and will be certain to instruct as many people as I can to do the same.

Sleek. Modern, clever, new and interesting. Great pizza too.

Awesome place to eat. Great pizza and fresh pasta. Different concept ultra trendy and brand new!

Quite impressed as was my friend. This is similar style Jojo's restaurant and bar on queen st mall, but much nicer and more affordable. Card system interesting and efficient for seperately billing. This establishment is deffinately not one for service, but well worth a visit!

Average but has potential. I love the look of the place and the idea.<br/><br/>I went there on a friday at lunch time which I assume it one of the busiest times. We were handed a card with little instruction. Went upstairs to find a table then my friend went down stairs to order our meals and wait for them to be cooked. This took 30 minutes. <br/><br/>I organised the lunch to catch up with a friend but we spent half our lunch hour apart.<br/><br/>The pasta was spungy and cluggy - you'd think with that much oil and the fact its a pasts/pizza bar they would have this right.<br/><br/>I will wait a month of two to give them a chance to sort out some teething issues before I return.<br/><br/>I wish I loved this place becasue the idea/decor/vibe is great.

Bad food and service. An absolute waste of time and money, I could not imagine anything more overpriced and utterly tasteless. The set up in designed for customers who have no expectations of service and quality of food. I would not recommend this to anybody.

Possibly the worst experience ever... I recently took my girlfriend to the newly opened Va Piano restaurant. I mean, watching pasta being made in front of you is quite an appealing concept!<br/><br/><br/>When we arrived at the restaurant, we were shown to our seats and shown their card system (where the card is swiped everytime food is ordered and paying for the total at the end). <br/><br/><br/>I then approached a counter to order, There were 3 staff standing behind the counter, one washing a pot, another talking to him whilst a third (a manager) was also chatting with the 2 staff.<br/><br/><br/>I stood there waiting for approximately 5 minutes before the manager looked up and noticed I was standing there waiting to be served. She then proceeded to look away and pretend I did not exist. <br/><br/><br/>At this point I started tapping my hands and feet loudly to which another staff member randomly walking past asked if I was being served. I told her that I was not sure whether this counter was open to which she replied yes it is. (Obviously I was completely invisible to both the chefs and the manager behind the counter).<br/><br/><br/>I was told that one chef can cook 2 meals and shown to the next counter over where my girlfriend was being served. We ordered our 2 pastas and since I was paying, we only needed to swipe one card with the cost of both meals. My girlfriend then left her card on top of the counter as it was not needed.<br/><br/><br/>The meals were made in front of us (which was quite impressive) and we returned to our table to eat. In all honesty I would have to say that a packet of 2 minute noodles would have more flavour then Va Piano's pasta. <br/><br/><br/>After the end of a very unsatisfying meal I paid using my swipe card. The person behind the counter then asked if we received a 2nd card to which I responded yes, however we did not require it as the chef put both meals onto one card. She then told me that since the second card was not returned to the front of the desk we would be charged an extra $70 on top of original bill. I told her that we had left it on the counter with the chef to which she replied I can't see it there, clearly implying that we either wanted to steal their card (which is completely useless to us) or was trying to skip out on our bill ( it was clear that I had paid for 2 meals already).<br/><br/><br/>She then called down another manager who looked at us up and down and told us that since we looked trustworthy, we could leave as long as we came back to eat at Va Piano next time!<br/><br/><br/>All in all, two thumbs down and 2 fingers up to Va Piano

Crapiano?. Lining up 3 times to buy 1 pizza, this was just the beginning<br/>Quite frankly, too many novelties for my liking.<br/>NOVELTY 1 - The whole charge everything to a card then pay at the end is a novel idea but really masks how much you are spending. Also it means I line up to order and WAIT for my food. I line up to pick up my food and I line up to PAY for my food.<br/>Surely I could have done this in one transaction!<br/>NOVELTY 2 - The plants on the table. We tried to share our pizzas but couldnt because they have big marble plant boxes that create clutter and destroy the communal feeling the long tables try to portray.<br/>NOVELTY 3 - BUZZERS - These are a blight on the hospitality industry and ours went off twice before the meal was ready.<br/>Needless to say each pizza (3 ordered) came about 3 or 4 minutes apart. As we were upstairs we were all up and down like jack in the boxes, not an ideal lunch environment for mine.<br/>THE FOOD - Didnt inspire me to return BUT it was their second week so i will give them another chance and see how it goes but I am not convinced the place needs these novelties to draw people in, let your food do the talking!

This window also showed us what Vapiano is all about, fresh and quick Italian pasta and pizza.  This Italian restaurant is hidden in the alley way of Albert Lane off of Albert St in the city.

Uber popular Italian restaurant chain, Vapiano's, has just opened a new restaurant at Garden City and the pasta is life changing! Garden City is THE dining hub that every foodie in town is talking about. In case you hadn't heard the  outdated, boring outdoor dining area recently underwent a major renovation. It emerged from the dust as a shiny, vibrant new Brisbane dining precinct! So fellas... now when you take your lady out to see a movie at Event Cinemas you have a hell of a lot more dinner options to choose from. No more Hogs Breath, or Mad Mex for your girl. I'm sure your wallet won't be too happy about that... The Garden City restaurant is the fifth Vapiano to call Australia home. Vapiano's is also located in Sydney, Melbourne, Surfers Paradise, and the Brisbane CBD .  Vapiano began in Europe in 2002 and now there are more than 150 restaurants in 26 countries, on 4 continents. So when we say it's 'uber popular' that's not an overstatement.  One thing that sets Vapiano apart from the rest is their revolutionary dining concept. When you arrive you are given a chip card to charge your meals to. These chip cards allow customers to dine at their own pace. If you want to relax with a few of your mates and have a few drinks before ordering you can! No problem! There's no rush. Order as much as you want, when you want and simply present the card to the cashier upon exit to pay.  Vapiano's is all about creating classic Italian recipes using fresh, local Australian produce. Wherever they can Vapiano source their fresh fruit and veggies within a 150km radius of each restaurant. You know their herbs are fresh because you can see them growing all around the restaurant. There are even olive trees growing in the middle of some of the shared dining tables! All of their pasta, pizza dough, pizza sauces, and salad dressing are made on site each day. You can even watch as the pasta is being made from your dining table. Be careful though, it can be a bit hypnotic... The pasta has

I agree with many people who find Vapiano a little over-priced with there range and quality but I guess having that discount, I'm just gonna eat until my heart's content. My choice was the Ravioli Con Carne and a Stolen Recipe Ice tea in berry and pomegranate. I actually liked what I chose. I usually go for the safe Cabonara but felt I needed to try something new for a change. The complimentary bread is always a treat as well as the refreshing Ice tea I tried.   Tanya chose her us

Overall, I have much love for Vapiano’s wonderfully fresh pasta, the unique interactive kitchen and lovely dining area :)

Vapiano serves Italian meals, so there's pasta & pizza for sure! I've once doubted this restaurant because I heard that the food isn't that nice. However, after trying, I'm pretty sure that's just a rumour (bahhaha!)

There's a lot to like about Vapiano. Like all well conceived brands, it's got a reassuring solidity to it. I don't have to venture to the Sao Paulo outpost to know what I'll find, and that's comforting. I'll charmed, there as here, by the communal pots of basil and crisply thrown pizza bases. I'll probably even find a flavour combination as delightful as fig, honey and proscuitto; and I'm sure I'll find it in quick measure and at everyday price point. But the concept--that on which the business seems to be run--just isn’t doing them any favours.

Things are done a little different in Vapiano, each diner is issued with a card that contains an RFID chip. The card is an essential part of the dining experience, which can take a little bit of getting used to if you're used to table service. Vapiano takes the concept of counter service to the next level by putting the diner in direct contact with the chef, who takes your order then gets you to scan your card, which collects the billing details.

Vapiano works like this; when you enter the restaurant you’re given an order card, you go up to your respective pizza or pasta counter to order your meal whilst swiping your card and you’re either given a buzzer if there’s a wait or you stand there and wait for your food to be cooked!

It can get really busy here at lunch times, where you see people from all walks of life, from the professional, suited-up folk, to students, and mums. It can take a while for your food to be cooked, as you wait in queue behind a counter with a designated cook. This, per my perception, can detract customers. But i guess if you have the time, and are willing to wait for the pleasure of eating great pasta, albeit a little bit pricey, then go ahead!

The calzone was massive; well worth the money. Everyone enjoyed their pasta.

Con carne The pizzas are true to the italian philosophy of being light on the toppings which enables each ingredient to speak for itself. The con carne pizza has ham, pepperoni, salami, barbeque sauce and mozeralla, all on a tomato base. The toppings were nice however I would say the base is not really to my liking. I prefer my bases to be thin, with some nice charred bits from the pizza oven as well as some elasticity from a well worked dough. The standard here is a bit thicker and missing the elasticity I crave.

Vapiano has been reviewed just about to death already but I still plan to add in my 2 cents as this was our first visit. This restaurant is located in Albert Lane, a very cute extension off Albert St in the city, which contains

Yes the food was fast, but it was nothing special. I didn't want a meal that was cooked so fast that none of the flavour had a chance to infuse into the food.

And then there is the return trip to collect the pizza. More jostling, less chat time. It didn't make for a relaxed lunch.

We're always really excited about new things cropping up in Brisbane. A few months back there was a period that I didn't really step into Brisbane City. When I finally go the chance to, I noticed a LOT of change. Brisbane is great for a lot of things but

Vapiano is a new stylish Italian restaurant designed by Italian Architect Matteo Thun. Thun designs the award-winning Hugo Boss Factory in Coldrerio, Switzerland as well as all other Vapianos around the world. Once you enter the restaurant you will be giv

The pizza was some of the best I’ve had in Brisbane

The Italian/Australian food isn't fantastic. However, it seems that people will not be deterred by this small issue. Dining at Vapiano is more about the dining itself.

It was quite nice to watch the chef make the pasta as it instils certain trust that the kitchen is clean (not to be assumed at times!). Pasta also comes with a few slices of bread, perfect to mop up any left over sauce.

Tell me this - when was the last time you walked into a Restaurant and saw the Chefs making the pasta you were just about to eat? Or what about the last time you got to chat with your Chef while he whipped you up a quick Pappadelle Carbonara? Or - just fo

Today we have another guest blog from Jetsetting Mum reviewing her excellent recent visit to Vapiano . Lots of exclamation marks! Another tip-off from Jetsetting Joyce ( Ed : Thanks to Eyes Bigger Than Belly and FourThousand ) saw Jetsetting Dad and I ste

If you don't know where Albert Lane is in Brisbane's inner city, you will soon. Albert Lane is a clever rework of laneway space in Albert Street butting onto the the T&G Building. It's sort of opposite the goods entry to the Myer Centre carpark. Wander do