Review Ipsos Restaurant And Bar - Lorne

Ipsos is a very relaxed yet intimate Greek restaurant that is great for couples, families and more. Beautiful Greek cuisine done very well, with quality ingredients and some new flavour combinations. Good serving sizes and save room for dessert too! Wine list is extensive and the staff are knowledgeable enough to direct you to matching wines too. Staff are friendly, attentive and service is quick and timely. Highly recommended this place and we'll be back! Gray atmosphere

Service was warm and friendly. Luckily we arrived early and they were able to offer us an indoor seat by the wall. The restaurant was full by 730 with about 3 tables outdoors. We had two sides, one appetiser and one main. Everything taste good! Especially the octopus which was tender and grilled with a slight char at the edges. We were also given complimentary bread and olive oil. The olive slice is so generous. The white baiting has some fine bones so need to eat with care. The crispy potatoes are dense with a crunchy skin. I asked for some sauce and they gave me a nice beetroot aioli which goes very well with it. Make a booking to avoid disappointment. Will recommend to anyone visiting.

I desperately wanted to give this restaurant a five star review. Their calamari was fantastic and flavourful. Their wine and beer selection was impeccable. The roast potatoes may be the best I’ve ever had. Two let downs: our lamb back strap special was too small for what we both paid and were looking for. This dish could’ve been perfect by making it slightly larger. The second was masks. Staff were either not wearing masks at all or not wearing them properly fitted. Overall, a good meal in a stunning restaurant with quality service.

The food here is very good, we were extremely impressed and satisfied. I haven’t eaten Greek in Melbourne which was as authentic as this. Greeted into the restaurant by staff opening the door for us and on the way out which was a nice touch. The waitress with the short shaved hair was incredible, so attentive and helpful with the menu and suggested things we could have. She saw we had eaten all our bread but still had dip left and brought us over more bread! It’s those little touches which made the experience wonderful I wish I got her name. Also, the crispy potatoes are the best I’ve ever had and would highly recommend!

Next-level fare, funky decor, brill staff and nostalgia all wrapped into a moist, delectable package. A sort of bricks and mortar bougatsa. Do yourself a favour.

IPSOS was amazing! My husband and I didn’t have a reservation but they welcomed us in and before we knew we had food on our table. The chef’s selection was recommended and it exceeded our expectations. Service was fantastic, so fast, friendly and efficient. I highly recommend this restaurant and go for the chef’s selection 👌

Service was good and food was nice. We loved the chef's special, it was delicious. However we found the octopus to be a bit on the chewy side, and the cured ocean trout had some bones which was unpleasant. Having said that, we will still give it another go when we head to Lorne again.

This is one of my favourite places to eat on the coast. Beautiful modern greek food in an elegant venue without the side of pretentiousness. The food is always fresh, seasonal and so delicious with an incredible wine list. Staff are friendly and helpful with suggestion. My favourite way to order is to leave it to them with the "feed me" option.

Best restaurant on the great ocean road. Never disappointing.. gets better every time I visit in Lorne

Lovely food, attentive and kind staff & a great drinks menu with a vibrant atmosphere inside & out. Best restaurant we tried in Lorne.

A very nice dining experience. The staff were very friendly. We had grilled octopus as entree which was a very good start to the dinner. The octopus was cooked well and the humus comes with it was delicious! For the Main we had daily special roasted pork and char grilled fish. Both were yummy! We definitely will come back when we are in town again!

Thank you for a great experience. Will be back next time. Food was amazing. Staff very friendly. Great venue.

Lovely little restaurant. We started with olives and bread/olive bread. We then had croquettes which were yum! We then had the special which was wagu scotch filet with crispy potatoes and salad, all was amazing. We didn't stop there...oh no no, we had dessert too, which was the mousse. (We did share all meals except dessert of course) Altogether with 2 soft drinks was $124 which we thought was very reasonable. The staff were so friendly and lovely. Thanks guys for a great anniversary dinner.

Friend searched for a place to eat Lunch after our activities. He found this 'Greek' place and I was hyped. Thought we were getting some souvlakis after our hikes... Pleasantly surprised by their menu. I got the Lamb shoulder as I was mad hungry and it fed me well! Walked passed this restaurant during the night it was buzzing! Great atmosphere for sure. Would differently come back when we next stay at Lorne.

Absolutely delicious food and set in a beautiful location. Wait staff were incredibly friendly and knowledgeable about the tasty food. Ipsos is a must visit for anyone travelling in Lorne.

With the original operator taking over this restaurant, Ipsos has come full circle. When "Kosta's" was opened it was a good Greek restaurant offering good Greek food. It was eventually sold and the place went downhill.....severely. Kosta has since come back and has transformed this place. The food at Ipsos is a standout along the Great Ocean Road. We had the Htipiti dip, mushroom pita,slow cooked lamb shoulder, and assorted sides. Everything that was ordered was thoroughly enjoyable. Keep up the good work Kosta and team.

We were staying in Lorne for 2 nights and decided to dine at Ipsos on the recommendation of a local. It was a weekday evening and the restaurant was very busy. Everything about the service is friendly and energetic. The menu is interesting - not necessarily something for everyone. The couple on the table next to us left after 10 minutes as they could not see anything they wanted to eat. We went for the chef’s selection and requested that it include the pork belly dish. We received 5 courses each of a decent size - excellent value for $55 pp. The food was all very good quality and many interesting combinations of flavours. It was delivered too quickly and we asked the staff to slow down to allow us to better enjoy the food. The wine menu is also very good although the mark up on retail prices was at least 100% on the wine we chose - a delicious Tasmanian Pinot Noir. We had a very enjoyable dining experience and am happy to recommend - subject to suggesting you check the menu online if possible before choosing to dine here.

the customer service was a great disappointment, can’t say I will be likely to return. There are plenty of other restaurants in Lorne that serve food equally delicious.

Was really looking forward to going here as it was always full house when we walked by. First of all, the staff were very friendly and attentive but that as far as it goes. The food and wine are way over priced and not really Greek. We ordered the King Prawns $36, of which we got 4 and a half on top of some zucchini that was very sloppy. The fried calamari was very fried and dry $26. The potatoes were great, we couldn’t finish them and only $10, very generous serving. The beans were ok $13.

Excellent service, Greek food with a modern yet tasty spin, maintaining authentic Greek flavours. The fried calamari, the fasolakia (green beans in red sauce), olives were all superb. The chorta (withered greens) were a pleasant surprise in what seemed to be kale and baby beetroot leaves in a delicious subtle garlic dressing, a modern take on the traditional Greek chorta (dandelion leaves, chicory, endives, etc).<br/>Being Greek, I wanted more olive oil in my chorta dish and the waiter kindly brought me some along with some delicious bread - gratis.<br/>If I were to criticise anything, it'd be the price of the mineral water at $10/litre-bottle. Had I known water was so pricy, I'd pay a little extra and get one of the many delicious-sounding cocktails; speaking of which, three out of the numerous cocktails in the menu included mastic (Greek resin, found uniquely only in the island of Chios, acquired taste for some, delicious for all those who have grown up with the Greek cuisine), not commonly found in bars/restaurants.<br/>I would definitely come back, as I'm intrigued to try out Ipsos' version on the other dishes and for sure one of the mastic-containing cocktails.

Loved our experience at Ipsos. Great atmosphere and fantastic food! Would go back for the saganaki and the galaktaboureko with lemon curd ice cream!

Impeccable service and food every time. Loved the zucchini flower special, however classic saganaki with figs is very hard to surpass. Hands down the best restaurant in Lorne. Worth the 2 hour drive from Melb just for dinner!

If your looking for Greek food dont go here.<br/>There is nothing Greek about this place.<br/>I dont want to be cruel but honestly the food is nothing to rave about.<br/>Staff are amazing and really nice.<br/>I asked the owner why there wasn't any Greek food on the menu and his answer was "we have never said were a traditional Greek restaurant and were good at what we do as you can see how many people are in the restaurant. If you want traditional Greek food there's heaps in Melbourne".<br/>Seriously???? Why the hell have you got traditional Greek restaurant sign at front and you have alot of people because its school holidays.<br/>That's ok for a family of 4 we paid just over $200 but ull never see my money again.<br/>

Really great food and reasonably priced for what you get. Service from waiter/FOH Dom (?) was excellent. He was super accommodating and friendly on an extremely busy night. Cheers!

First of all great service! My partner and I had a lovely late lunch. To begin we had the house olives, eggplant dip and olive bread. The eggplant dip had a beautiful smokey flavour and was topped with feta and walnuts. Next we had the calamari and grilled feta with peppers. The calamari was fresh and crispy and the feta with peppers had a kick! We also had the octopus and crispy potatoes - again these were well cooked and had good flavour. Overall a nice Greek restaurant on the great ocean road - worth a visit!

Absolutely stand out meal! Definitely the best Greek restaurant we’ve tried in Melbourne and surrounds... and we’ve been looking for a good one for a long time now. Hands down beating a lot of venues even in the city. The cheese entree was a perfect balance between salt and sweet. The grilled octopus was nicely charred. Crispy pork belly was devine! This place is always packed for lunch and dinner. Great wine list. Amazing service. Can’t wait to come back for more!

Came here for dinner while i was in Lorne for a night, Ipsos was beautifully decorated but i think the music is a bit too loud that i cant really have a conversation in there. I ordered the spatchcock with garden salad as a side. i must say that i was disappointed with both of my food. The spatchcock wasnt really fully cooked and it was really bland. The sauce that was on the plate was way too little and doesnt have much taste, same things go with the salad. It was just salad with a hint of dressing i almost cant taste the dressing

Staff were very friendly and attentive. Food and cocktails were great. They are accommodating for children. Definitely recommended going here.

Great Food, will definitely be coming back here again. Really authentic, but need some noise dampers other than that though 5stars. Slow roast lamb is very very good !

Went here on recommendation. First up we had the calamari which was underwhelming. It wasn't necessarily the way it was cooked, more about the flavours. Something didn't quite hit the spot:( the potatoes were different, but good. It was like they were broken in half, skin left on and crisp on top. Expectations for next course were low. We got the moussaka and another lamb dish. These definitely hit the spot and we're more like we expected. Garden salad was ok. Overall solid, however not in top echelon

Delicious food! Great service and vibe. This is comparable (if not better) than most of the Greek restaurants in Melbourne! Flavours were intricate and everything superb.

Had the deep fried feta with honey and sesame and the octopus dish to start. Next the kalamari and prawns, sides of potato and broccolini. To be honest nothing was stand out. We really didn't love anything. Shared all between the two of us we were both SO full at the end. It was all very rich. Also Felt we were very very rushed. The service is friendly and everyone was happy and great but you literally put down your fork and they clear the table then someone whips out the next course. We were no joke in and out in 45 mins... when we spend $150-$200 for dinner we like it to be an occasion but unfortunately being rushed out like that means it was not here

Absolutely beautiful food! Got carried away and spent a lot more than I expected but well worth it! Had the lamb which was cooked to perfection as well as the lokoumades for desert, again absolutely perfect.

+1: attentive wait staff<br/>+2: staff are quick to explain items on the menu as some items are in Greek.<br/>+3: food came out really quick.<br/>+4: great well balanced flavors <br/>-1: a bit loud with music and other diners<br/>-2: sometimes difficult to make a booking as it is closed Tuesday and Wednesday. Ring ahead for a weekend booking to avoid disappointment.<br/><br/>They do 2 sittings 6:15 and 8:30.<br/>Very friendly staff and we will be going back.

Anything but "casual dining". Tasty good with great service and good atmosphere. We were in a big group trying many options from the menu, all were great but very low in proportion and high prices.<br/>Nice to have Greek food around here, but too expensive for what you get.

Great food, great service. Reasonable prices for quality of food. Great atmosphere. Lamb shoulder was massive. Shared a Calamari as well and could hardly move. Interesting cocktail list and wine list ok too.

We left this restaurant to last on our stay in Lorne. We had high expectations. It was always packed when we walked past in the evening.<br/>It was great. We had a lovely meal and the waiter accommodated our young demanding children's needs.<br/>Highlight would have to be the slow cooker lamb shoulder. It was pretty large and too much for two with everything else we ordered. <br/>We didn't try desserts but they looked delicious.<br/>I would definitely return- maybe without kids!!

Overall we left disappointed. Had been looking forward to visiting this restaurant for quite some time and arrived with high expectations due to many positive reviews and a love of Greek cuisine. <br/>The staff were attentive and friendly, however it was the size of meals that left us famished. We ordered king prawns and snapper mains which were relatively tasty but barely met the standard size of an entree. Aside from the food, the cocktails were amazing so we would definitely recommend a visit to the bar 😉

Amazing food and warm hospitality by Alex and his team. Slow cooked lamb a must try. Best Greek food our party has eaten and beats Melbourne Greek restaurants. Subtle yet delicate flavours through all dishes and nothing was disappointing. Highly recommended. We'll be back next time we visit lorne.

Seafood was amazing. Service was great. Would definitely recommend and come again. Try the hapuka its amazing.

Best restaurant in Lorne!! Amazing food, outstanding service, friendly environment. Highly recommend and lamb shoulder for 2. Even though it's a bit expensive it's well worth the money.

Positive: fabulous food, every dish carefully put together. Delicious. Groovy vibe.<br/>Only good restaurant in Lorne really apart from Bottle of Milk and Pizza Pizza. <br/>International wait staff are generally pretty friendly and accommodating.<br/>Negative: Ridiculously noisy. Actually you just can't speak to anyone else at the table unless you are seated at an outside table. Come on Ipsos, put some egg cartons on the ceiling!<br/>And, hard to get a booking because it's good.

As a person who doesn't get excited about Greek food, my lunch at Ipsos forces me to re-evaluate my position.  The food is great! Be sure to try the haloumi with apricot as a starter.  The  spicy lamb keftedes were a treat, and the side dish of roast potatoes, alone,would have made the visit worthwhile. Other's have commented about expense, but I found the prices to be on a par with other similar restaurants, and commensurate with quality of the food.  Staff are friendly and attentive. Ipso's is definitely the best that Lorne has to offer.

Ipsos is the best restaurant in Lorne. Perfect location on the beach on Mountjoy Parade. Uncomplicated, handsome fit out, using blue pastel, fawn, white and black.<br/><br/>We came for lunch on a Sunday afternoon. The restaurant was quiet (expect a bustling dinner service in the evening), and the service was warm and personable.<br/><br/>We ordered lamb keftethes (meatballs), which were juicy and full of flavour, and came with crispy roast potatoes and a delicious tzatziki; chargrilled cuttlefish cooked to perfection; roast root vegetables as a side; and a few Mythos' to wash it all down. The food is all authentic Greek done exceptionally well.<br/><br/>Highly recommended. We'll come back again and again.

the food was all delicious....very busy because the best restaurant in Lorne ...great service... gorgeous Peruvian waiter ...! tried the cuttlefish yum ..calamari yum desserts lovley ...

best food in lorne everything was delicious service was great ..had a lovely peruvian waiter ..very busy because the best in town by far ..well done to the owners ..serves maybe a bit small ..but i wld rather eat something small and delicious than big and inedible..

<br/>I think this restaurant is run by the sons of the owners of A La Greque in Airey's Inlet and is a busy and bustling restaurant. A reincarnation of the original Kosta's (who i think we saw while there).<br/><br/>For a seasonal tourist town, the service was great. They turned up, they new what the food was and they did not forget us. <br/><br/>The stand-out was the lemon ice cream served in the Pastourma dessert. It was exceptional and I'm told made by the patisserie chef at 'A La Greque'. <br/>The spatchcock was also great.<br/><br/>Regardless of venue, it was simply a cut above. Worth travelling for.

Food was absolutely super, service was good and highly recommend the Farr house wine. Just watch the noise inside, got to shout when it's full.

The fact that the staff could not find a trace of our<br/>booking was a bad start although we did eventually manage to negotiate a table<br/>by the window. The acoustics are terrible: it’s almost impossible to have a<br/>conversation without shouting, which means that when the place is full – and everyone<br/>is shouting – the noise is deafening.<br/><br/>The staff are efficient … but seem to work hard to maintain<br/>an air of pretentious indifference.  The<br/>menu is rather obscure in places and largely indecipherable, and any requests<br/>for clarification are granted in a generally condescending manner.<br/><br/>The food was excellent, though obscenely expensive and<br/>served in tiny portions.<br/><br/>When I tried to pay with my Australian HSBC Visa, this was<br/>initially declined with the comment “sorry, we do not take American Express”.  When I politely escalated the matter to a<br/>senior member of staff I was told that the confusion was due to it being an “International<br/>credit card”(!)<br/><br/>We would not recommend.

Lorne's best restaurant ... then daylight. Having said that if you want to leave full, you will have spend good money. Justifiably so, easily the equal of any of the best Greek restaurants in Melbourne. As a family of 5 we ordered more than half the dishes on the menu, and every dish was a winner....

This restaurant is run by the sons of the owners of A La Greque in Airey's Inlet and is a busy and bustling restaurant.  The service is great, with very attentive staff, however as some of them are very new to this restaurant, their knowledge of ingredients can sometimes be limited.  The food is very tasty and authentic Greek.  I'm looking forward to returning soon, as Lorne has been missing a good Greek restaurant sine Kosta's closed down a couple of years ago.

Really lovely food. I had a great feta dip with chilli for entree then calamari for main. Left full. Service was good although holiday staff didn't know the menu at all. Otherwise great night out

Sensational food. Simple Greek food with an abundance of taste. Modern restaurant and great service. Finally a restaurant in Lorne with great food and service! Highly recommend. <br/>If you love A La Greque in Aireys you'll love it here too.<br/>