Review Merchant - Melbourne

A great place for a quick bite for lunch or a catch up over coffee. Plenty of seating inside and out (great people watching). Traditional Italian dishes are all on offer from pasta to mains and quick eats such as focaccia topped like pizzas, panini and desserts. The service is friendly and helpful with the menu. Give it a try.

Cozy place for some regional Italian food. Service was great, although the food portion could be improved. The dishes weren't that spectacular as before. Taste: *** Environment: **** Service: ****

Cozy Italian restaurant tucked away from the main road. The place is dimly lit and offers a great selection of Italian dishes. Pasta is homemade. Had the black pasta with crab - the crab was too salty but the pasta was good. Tiramisu was a huge slice - perfect for sharing.

It's always a pleasure dining at Merchant. A broad range of delicious Italian dishes complimented by great coffee and a lovely selection of wines and beers. The service is always friendly and accommodating. The decor is also quaint and makes the premises feel warm and inviting.

Came in for lunch the other day. Had the sirloin, cooked to medium rare. I was honestly impressed. Meat was succulent and delicious. Will definitely visit again. Very quirky establishment. Nice ambience.

It’s like being invited to step inside an Italian cookbook - delicious traditional Italian fare without pretentious hoo-ha. The lunch menu is full of favorites but I usually go for the specials as they’re usually what’s seasonal. Staff are typically very helpful and happy to chat when the rush settles down. Wine list is better than usual with a nice balance between local Victorian, European and other Australian regions. Prices are reasonable for a CBD location of this caliber.

Lovely Italian dining experience. Also a great spot for breakfast or a coffee date.

Really underwhelming experience. Restaurant was quiet on a Saturday night and with an open plan kitchen you could really see how bored the chef's were as they stood staring blankly waiting for something to do. Meals were average at best. The most disappointing part would have to be the waiting staff though, they were simply slow and for no reason. menus weren't provided until after drinks were served, drinks were forgotten, water had to be requested and it just goes on. Overall disappointing and wouldn't bother returning with so many better options in the city.

Review First time here today after searching for a place to have a coffee date with my special friend today to treat her to. I was amazed at the warm and inviting atmosphere, the chef’s cooking in an open plan kitchen. Great coffee and a selection of biscuits to enjoy A nice place to go for a coffee or a wine Vintage and genuine Italian cuisine Xx

Very impressed....without prompting, they offered to make a vegan meal for me. Lots of places force me to settle for vegetarian. This sort of initiative from staff sets a great venue apart from a good one. The wine was sensational too.

My partner and I shared the 4 course meal. Absolutely amazing, a taste of what's on offer and really great quality food. I strongly recommend this restaurant

Fantastic food from start to finish. Great simple Italian food that was good enough to make me forgive a few minor service flaws. We will be back. A hidden gem.

Food was very ordinary! Very pretentious waiters, nice place though apart from graffiti all over the wall �

Fabulous meal, attentive and experts at their craft - Chef's specials are definitely worthwhile. Noisy but that's an Osteria isn't it? Loved it!

Our large family experience was excellent. The food, the staff, the fact that it is a busy environment all added to the experience. The wine list is extensive and the plates of food true to Italy with flavour and subtilty. Merchant is now on my favourite restaurant lists. Thank yhou again.

We are from out of town and my son chose this restaurant because he studies Italian and hospitality in Year 11. It was hands down the best dining experience I have had in ages. Food superb and service amazing. Loved it. And thank you for switching on my son's perception of what is possible. Xx

Very good food and exceptional service.

Food was good, waiter was a little too arrogant for comfort

Beautiful food and lovely staff - a veritably congenial dining experience.

Amazing Atmosphere, brilliant food and wine! Highly Recommend!

OMG I had the braised rabbit and it was fantastic!

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Excellent!

Everything was delicious. Service and food was 8/10. I would recommend and definitely would visit again. I would give the pasta a miss next time though, ordinary and quite plain.

Our lunch experience was enhanced by our charismatic and super friendly waiter. The bread was lovely, but the highlight was the extra virgin olive oil served with it! Arancini were delicious, albeit larger than expected. My duck tortellini was delicious. A very reliable option, even after all these years.

Had a meal here last night, service was good and waiter allowed us to taste wine prior to ordering a glass as we were unsure which to go with. Had the pumpkin ravioli which was really delicious and rich but a very small serving. My friend had the gnocchi which was quite plain

The food was ok. The mushroom risotto was very undercooked. The beef ragu was delicious. The service however was very poor. I had to ask for a glass of wine FOUR times and received no apologies. Very disappointed in the service considering the price.

While I enjoyed the food, the ambience is a bit lacking in this locale, and it can get very loud in the space. Enjoyed the Superb octopus with artichoke, however my squid ink pasta with crab was a bit too salty and the sweetness of the crab was overwhelmed. The fish was well cooked and the 2 unmatched pieces served alone, so while a beautiful tasting fish I felt the presentation was a bit weak. The tiramisu was too sweet for my palate and lacked the slight tang of marscapone and the complexity of Marsala. Service was good but mixing still and sparkling in the same glass is poor form.

enjoyed a spur of the moment lunch here today. Had beefcheek croquette for entree and shared the fettuccine spiced ragu (although couldn't taste any spice) and grilled calamari cherry shallot (that was super tasty). Restaurant was busy and service was quick for lunch service.

Extremely poor service. Table of 9, forgot half our entrees - when we asked for them they said “oh don’t worry about them, and just order some mains” <br/><br/>Took our drinks order 4 times and we still didn’t get ANY drinks the WHOLE night.. <br/><br/>Asked twice for plates for our entrees, took 15 minutes to come. Even though the place wasn’t even slightly busy. <br/><br/>Our waiter, was SO sarcastic and rude and kept making really horrible dry, lame jokes. <br/><br/>Food was average at best - considering the enormous price tag. <br/><br/>Worst part was they tried to make us pay for the entrees that didn’t even come! Even though they admitted they were coming during the meal!<br/><br/>Don’t go, it’s sooo not worth it, and your bank account will be thankful. <br/>

Worst customer service.<br/>Staff were snobby. Did not apologise for poor service. Replied to feedback obnoxiously. <br/>Had to sit ourselves because no staff attended to us. One staff at the bar was busy daydreaming. I had to approach him first. <br/><br/>Would not come back / recommend to anyone.

Had lunch at Merchant recently and it was very good. I had a grilled snapper dish with sides of roast potato and salad and everything was yummy. Service was pretty good.

The food was mostly good, with the only disappointing dish being the beef carpaccio with horseradish and grain salad. <br/><br/>The pacific oysters with vinaigrette were superbly fresh, followed by a main of skirt steak with a chimmi churri like condiment which was the perfect touch of acid to the buttery fat of the steak. The sides of the green salad and grain salad were a little lack lustre, and failed to impress, although the crispy potatoes seemed to live up to expectations.<br/><br/>The desserts of ricotta cheesecake and tiramisu were outstanding, and the perfect way to end the meal. The cheeses seemed also to impress the wine lovers, who were getting a bit merry by this time. <br/><br/>I would recommend this place to anyone who enjoys causal but upmarket dining in the middle of the city. It offers some respite from the hustle and bustle of the Rialto and feels like a different world.

Great food!!! We were a large group and the restaurant had organised a sharing menu. <br/><br/>The food was well selected and a great balance of the macro nutrients. Each course was well presented, beautifully cooked and wholesome.<br/><br/>For starters we had some calamari, fish, roasted peppers, buratta cheese, prosciutto and bread. All were great, especially the fish which was impeccably flavoured. <br/><br/>In mains, we were served a pumpkin tortellini, mushroom gnocchi with ragu, tagliatelle pomodoro & beef steak. Each dish was amazing. It was accompanied by a lightly dressed salad. <br/><br/>Dessert was spectacular. A hazelnut and chocolate ganache, tiramisu and fig pudding - each better than the other. <br/><br/>Definitely worth going to! The wine selection is also great and the staff are very friendly.

Great place for a work lunch, quality food and knowledgable wait staff without being too stuffy. Fit out looks great and the pasta dishes were all delicious. I would come back and spend my own money! <br/>

What a suave venue. The Dear Luncher managed to walk on through to this place through the Rialto at random when the faint aroma of meat was detected from Collins Street. Inside, they were preparing some lamb and chicken on a spit. It was like a siren song, echoing through the mist .... begging for attention and yearning for that Dear Luncher appetite. Does it count if you only eat from their temporary outdoor spit roast? You bet it does. This chicken from the spit was utterly divine and the relish in the panini roll complimented it wonderfully.

The food was OK. But not worth the price tag. I came for a lunch with colleagues and it took 40 minutes for our food to come out so we had to scoff our food down and get back to work which was frustrating. The portions are extremely small. The complimentary bread was delicious. Beautiful building and friendly service

I really like Guy Grossi's Merchant restaurant which can be found at the bottom of the intercontinental hotel. They serve delicious Italian food with the standouts being the polenta dishes and the risotto. They are also open for breakfast so is perfect for a pre-work meeting. I went for breakfast recently and really enjoyed the ricotta Hotcakes with mixed berries. They have a elevation of pastries and biscotti as well as panini for lunch if you want something quick. The service is always on point too.

DINNER<br/><br/>This place was great, it looked great, was clean I loved dining here. The food and service were great and it was actually pretty perfect. I really enjoyed the atmosphere and I'm glad that I went to this place and had an amazing meal. Loved it.

Enjoyed dinner here for a work function. A very comfy atmosphere to enjoy a few drinks and a very hearty Italian feast.<br/>Highlight of the night was the Bellini cocktail - the waiters make the prosecco and peach puree at your table it was a such a delight to start the night off. We also ordered the salumi and smoked beef carpaccio they were both melt in your mouth - delicious. I had the Filel duck and mushroom pasta and made room for a tiramisu  and a variety of biscotti with coffee. <br/>The service was impeccable and the staff were very attentive. A nice restaurant to go out for a treat.<br/>

The food wasn't good and the service was poor. Definitely not somewhere we will visit twice. Even more disappointing because we were really hungry at that time.

Came here for lunch and ordered the day's special - some seafood spaghetti dish. It was pretty good. For a bustling venue at lunch time, service was quick. Wouldn't mind coming back here

Great date night at this Northern Italian gem. Menu suited both of us and the drinks were definitely a good match. Overall a cozy restaurant and will definitely return.

Great new menu, friendly and helpful staff. Very authentic Venetian food! Highly recommended! The ambiance was fancy but not pretentious at all

I came for a work dinner (sorry, no photos) from a selected limited menu - three courses that I couldn't finish a single one of!!! I started with a salt and pepper calamari/baby octopus entree that was massive (but very salty). I had a perfectly cooked, medium rare scotch steak for main that was so tender I kept eating even when I was fit to burst - I didn't need the massive steak knife to cut through it as it was so tender! It came with some crisp green beans and crunchy roasted garlic potatoes.. but it too had a lot of salt. <br/>I enjoyed the cheese plate for dessert - when I requested no blue cheese I was offered a sample as there was a mildly blue buffalo cheese available - although it wasn't classically blue it was too blue for me so they happily swapped it out for another divine (strong!) cheese, with plenty of crispy toasted bread to have it with and a juicy fresh fig and some fresh nuts. Again it was too big for one, but so hard to stop eating!!!<br/>The service was friendly, attentive but not at all intrusive. It was a wonderful night that I planned to sneak out of early but couldn't stand to leave incase I missed out!! So glad I stayed on! <br/>It was all wonderful - except the amount of salt...

A wonderful experience at Merchant for a special occasion. The food was fantastic, and the service matched. The saffron arancino was crunchy on the outside and delicious on the inside and the meatballs reminded me of an old trattoria I visited in northern Italy as a youngster. The star of the appetisers though was the bacala crostini - creamy and tasty and just yum! I could have been content if the meal ended here with my spuntini and cocktail, but I had the veal tortellini (star of the night!) next and a cotoletta to follow. Washed down with, what else, a bottle of Soave. There have been a few Italian fine dining establishments that have let us down recently but Merchant certainly wasn't one of them. Grazie!

Merchant Osteria Veneta is one of those Italian classics that never fail - sometimes forgotten, it's one of those places that every time you go you think to yourself "now why don't I come here more often". Tucked under Rialto, it's a bit tricky to get to with all of the renovations, but don't let that stop you if you're in the mood for an Italian feed. The venue itself has as much character as the food - with graffiti on the walls, an eclectic array of colours, and an open kitchen on display, it's hipster cool, but not so much that you feel like you have to be raised in Fitzroy to feel at home at this place.

Overall service was slow despite the restaurant being almost empty (late dinner), ordered the squid ink pasta which was extremely salty. Disappointed.

Highly Recommend!<br/><br/>We dined here on Saturday evening and was greeted by each and every staff member working which automatically made us feel welcomed and important.<br/><br/>Seated in a gorgeous little spot near the kitchen area, the tables dimly lit by candlelight created a really cosy and romantic atmosphere.<br/><br/>The service was outstanding, the two people who primarily looked after our table showed so much passion and pride in their job, they were extremely knowledgable and engaging  towards us and provided very efficient service.<br/><br/>Food and wine was outstanding, we were open to suggestions especially when it came to the wine list and all recommendations were spot on, I really enjoyed trying Italian wines.<br/><br/>The mushroom risotto was a real standout for me, full of flavour and my partner throughly enjoyed his spaghetti calamari. <br/><br/>Dessert and entrees were also delicious!

Awesome. Amazing food and chefs. <br/>Very pleasant atmosphere. <br/>Great people. <br/>Love it.

Very good, food and seafood was cooked perfectly, service was great, place was clean. Nothing else to say. Maybee time for a menu change? Come here a offten and will keep comming, but hard to come reguarly if zhe menu never changes :)

Been here many times before but this time around I nearly got lost as Rialto was going through a bit of a refurbishment and I couldn't easily see the entrance to Merchant. <br/><br/>As soon as I arrived I was greeted by almost every staff member I walked past ... "Bongiorno senora". Very prompt service. The offered to take my jacket to the cloak room, which was attentive of them. <br/><br/>I've tried several dishes here in the past but the most memorable were:<br/>1. Wild boar ragu pappardelle: very yummy and filling. 5/5<br/>2. Pea and pancetta risotto: great balance of creaminess and flavours. 4/5<br/>3. Spaghetti vongole: super yum! But not as filling as the others. 4/5<br/>4. Spiced pork sausage risotto: great but found it a bit on the greasy side. 3/5<br/><br/>Service is great. I've always been able to get a seat with minimal wait times too. Great for lunch catch ups in this end of the city.

Great northern Italian food. Service always good. Fantastic risottos and grilled fish. This is a place that is always busy for lunch and caters perfectly for the western end of town where options are sometimes limited. Full Italian wine list.

A little bit of Italy in the middle of the city. Not the tacky Italy that you can sometimes (not all) find on Lygon. You may be surprised at the $26 risotto but you're paying for restaurant quality food. The risotto is worth the dollars.

Been here a few times over the past couple of years and found it very consistent in quality. Awesome food and they obviously take great care in selecting and training capable, intelligent staff. It ticks all of the boxes for me very well and I'm going to call them this afternoon to book another table next week.

The Swine loves the Intercontinental and Merchant. This place is quality Italiano all the way be it in main serve meals, deserts, drinks or coffee. The Swine is a big fan of the coffee here. Barristas make each cup with love - very consistent! Very very good. SWINE APPROVED!

So very very good!! Would go back in a heartbeat. Great food, service and wine. We were there for a midweek lunch so wasn't overly busy which was nice.

18/Mar/2015<br/><br/>Here for dinner after a long absence and the restaurant still looks great, modern and clean. We were shown to our table and ordered some drinks. The server was very friendly and attentive and was quick to offer suggestions on meal choices and serving sizes. For starters our stand outs were the panzerotti and the polenta Gorganzola that was so flavoursome (if you like Gorganzola) and for mains the Tagliatele Neri were great as was the Risotto di Zucca but the best for me was the Capretto in Umido, the goat was so tender and in a deep flavoured gravy – one of the best I’ve ever had. We finished off with some Semifreddo desserts to share. In summary a great night with great service and even better meals – thanks again for making a great night.

Had an great meal for a farewell of a colleague. Some of the group were not happy with the pasta but I thought it was delicious. Very simple and traditional flavours. Not the cheapest but a nice find in Melbourne.

Came here for a birthday dinner and had the set menu. The food was divine and there was so much of it! The cured meats and duck liver pate were a great starter followed by polenta with ragu, risotto, braised lamb and potatoes. We barely touched the lamb and potatoes so they offered to pack them for us to takeaway. The polenta with ragu was simple but full of flavour, this was my favourite dish. We wanted to try different desserts so they let us swap from the set menu. Excellent service and a very enjoyable dining experience.

Haven't been in years but I have such fond memories of this place. The service was good, the ambiance was fantastic, and TV was visible out the window during the Australian Open - brilliant! The food was great. We dined here twice during our stay - dinner was fabulous but I didn't think breakfast was all that amazing.

Great place, great chef. Good sharing dishes, really nice quality and always good service. Great for a family outing for something special.

Simply the most wonderful Italian feast we've had in Australian for many many years. Coming from Sydney we get so disappointed with the standard of Italian restaurants here so we were thrilled to experience such an authentic Italian menu. For a non wheat eating diner like myself its a joy to have polenta dishes as part of the offering. Guy Grossi - please open one of your restaurants in Sydney!!!

A great evening and even better ambience.. The cocktails were served just right ! I love a good cocktail .. Vodka goose !! <br/><br/>Some amazing pork risotto and my favourite tiramisu post the main course was something I enjoyed thoroughly .. Want to thank the management for being so warm and my compliments on the crazy wall Graphiti at the restaurant ... It's amazing ! Definitely visiting soon and if u guys are reading this .. Go check it out :) !!

Pleasant service, the entrees are nice. We ordered marinated octopus and creamy salted cod. For main, the wholemeal bigoli has quite interesting texture but it's duck ragu was a little lack in flavour. The other main was cuttlefish ink risotto but it was rather ordinary. Maybe we have higher expectation and was hoping to find back the special Venetian cuisine we had in Venice. However taken into its environment and its friendly service, the overall experience is all not bad!

Very good..... But not as Great as I was expecting.<br/>Don't get me wrong, food was good, but seemed to be lacking something to make it a great meal.

It’s a nice spacious Italian restaurant with a friendly and relaxed atmosphere – just what we needed that night. They have an extensive menu with dishes mostly designed to share. So we decided on two polenta dishes with different toppings: duck ragu and porcini with montasio, the braised rabbit as a main and two glasses of red wine. Soon after we ordered we were brought complimentary bread and olive oil.

I really wanted to like this place and they have clearly put a lot of effort into the decor and layout. That said, unfortunately the food was just ok and the service was mixed (quite slow).<br/><br/>The bar for Italian food in Melbourne is high, and unfortunately this falls short.<br/><br/>They do have a great wine list though.

Disgrace to Italian food. Unbelievably disgusting food and service. Risotto was way underdone ( however the staff did not care to apologise) and when sent back it returned over done and watery ( with of course trying to recook it by just adding heaps of extra white wine) . the pasta was cold and stuck to each other (obviously the chef didn't care to cook some fresh pasta). Can't believe a celebrity chef can be associated with such horrible food. What a waste! If you really wish to ruin ur dinner head to merchant.

Below average Italian for price paid. Ordered a pasta and salad to share. Pasta was served cold and five minutes after we ordered food so go figure as to how much care and presentation was taken in cooking the food. Salad was nice but nothing special. Service was commendable with a good wine selection however too many options on the menu for the type of restaurant it is. I would not go back here as there are MANY better options for decent Italian in the cbd at the same cost. If you are wanting good Italian, think twice before going here.

Service here was good...The restaurant itself was nicely decorated...I'd come back, prices were decent for the quality and service of food that you were getting.

In an environment which potentially could be viewed as 'posh', it is surprisingly casual.  It had a warm ambience and guests are encouraged to take a texta and graffiti the walls. We sat in a rustic little booth. There were plenty of young kids running around on a Friday night. So maybe this is pseudo-casual or nouveau-posh.  The prices were definitely in the fine dining arena.  The service was impeccable as one would expect in place like this. Graffiti is strongly encouraged here For starters we ordered a selection of little plates to share: Marinated olives, marinated octopus in chilli, lemon, olive oil, coriander.  It was soooo tender.

Merchant is a Venice inspired Guy Grossi Osteria style restaurant and one of the first times I visited this restaurant I was pleasantly surprised to see the man himself there! Ever since my first visit to Merchant, there have been many many more which is a testament to the consistency of Merchant.

The menu is designed to encourage sharing amongst diners and we decided to opt for the San Marco feast which placed us in the hands of the Chef who served up six signature dishes and 2 sides as well as dessert. Amazing value for $70 a head. The wine list is comprehensive and favours Italian imports. We settled on a mid range Merlot from Trentino which was smooth enough to cut through the hearty flavours of Venetian cuisine.

This was the most disappointing dish of the night. Given that is it a Guy Grossi restaurant, I knew the focus would be Italian. I was expecting to be given a beautiful piece of pasta or some cold meats such as prosciutto but an arancini, something that is quite simple to make? The arancini tasted nice but there was nothing original about it. I wanted the dush to scream Italian and to be original and convince me that the next lunch I have with work friends should be at Merchant The arancini did not do this. Like Cafe Vue we were only given one dish rather than two so this didn't give us much of a taste of the restaurant.

The Merchant is a restaurant located at the bottom of the Rialto Tower, 495 Collins Street, Melbourne. It’s a very mediterranean restaurant, managing to look modern and warm with a massive open kitchen and lovely staff. Now I don’t normally mention the bread usually provided by restaurants, but the bread at The Merchant was incredible. Made fresh on site and seemingly warm from the oven, the bread was absolutely divine. The fact that it came with dipping oil instead of bread was just icing on the cake, as it were. Their menu is fairly straight-forward, with simple english translations. For my main I had the Bigoli de Bassan, a duck ragu with pasta. The duck went well with the mushrooms and tomatoes in the sauce without being overpowered, and was perfect for the tail end of winter. My little three year old son had pasta napoli, and judging by how enthusiastically he ate it all, and the way he kept saying it was “dewishus” it definitely got a thumbs up as well. We also shared a flourless

Overall, it was a good experience mainly due to the pasta dishes being superb. I’m dying to go back to have more pasta!

Another magical pairing was between the superb Enkir saison (seasonal) pale ale of Birra Del Borgo from Italy and the Einkorn Tortellini, Cuttlefish, Pancetta Pangratto, Lemon, Mint and Parsley dish from Merchant Osteria Veneta. Italy is known more for its wine than beer but the craft beer scene is on the rise. The tortellini was impressive featuring large pieces and a huge hit of rich fish, while the beer complemented with its fruity tones. Clever was the inclusion of the same grain in the tortellini as in the beer. Birra Del Borgo have one of the most attractive bottles in the market and brewer Leonardo di Vincenzo was in town for a degustation pairing with Guy Grossi.

A no fuss talian menu, each with short simple descriptions. The pastas we had were in the same fashion, but cooked well.

This has got to be my favourite Italian food experience for quite some time, as most places would serve overly large proportions of risotto or poorly cooked pasta. But here at Merchant the dishes were cooked at high quality, and the service was very attentive.

Not anything horrible but not amazing too. For the price the mains were tiny. I ordered Traditional Venetian Pork Sausages and I got 3 small sausages with a quarter of a lemon and some oil dressing. That was it. A friend ordered a steak and he got just a steak. These were not main sized meals. If you don't order a pasta or risotto you'll be hungry after. Thank goodness we ordered some extra sides. This was a work lunch but for the price it wasn't worth it. I won't be going back.

Average, much better Italian available in Melbourne. Interior - a little drab. Staff - friendly. The food overall disappointing. Arancini and the octopus salad were very good, but the pate lacked depth and punch and the tuna carpaccio was bland and thickly sliced. Polenta with duck ragu - gluggy. The risotto was very flavoursome, however the quail in it was very dry and rubbery. Was excited about the brioche with pistachio ice cream but the brioche was dense and the ice cream was bright green (never a good sign with pistachio). Expected much better for Guy Grossi.

Went to dinner here for my 21st birthday and it was absolutely gorgeous. Fabulous staff and mouth watering food.<br/>Thank you Merchant!

An enjoyable experience. I have visited the Merchant Osteria Veneta a number of times over the years. Earlier this week I was staying at the adjoining InterContinental for business and visited the Merchant Osteria Veneta twice. <br/><br/>On the first visit I dined alone, and ordered the Polenta with Porcini and Montasio and the side of green vegetables. I also received a substantially sized side of bread. The polenta was fantastic with great depth of flavour, and I actually found the entree sized portion too filling to finish. The side of green vegetables was a little disappointing, being just a plate of chiccory which was quite boring after the first couple of mouthfuls. Still, the service was great, with the waiters quite attentive without being annoying.<br/><br/>I returned the following night to meet friends for a pre-dinner drink (we ate elsewhere) and again, the waiters were very attentive. We received a small tasting plate along with each of our drinks which was a lovely touch.<br/><br/>The one thing I would mention is that I dislike being asked at the point of payment if I intend to tip. Tipping should be at the discretion of the customer, not at the prompting of the staff.<br/><br/>That said, I enjoyed the experience overall.

Great food, disappointing portions.. I are at Merchant a few nights ago with my girlfriend. Service was great and very friendly. Cured meats were a fantastic appetizer. Aronccini ask so excellent. We had two different pastas for the main which were good and tasty (still not the best I've had), However the portion size was quite disappointing. I left still hungry even after desert. Although all in all the food was quite nice, it's still extremely disappointing to leave a venue still quite hungry and I don't consider myself an excessive eater.

I am from Veneto, and unfortunately this fusione is nothing close to our traditional food. I came here cause I was home sick and left very disappointed. The Valpolicella by the glass is NOT a quality Valpolicella, very bad..

Booked dinner with our son & daughter & partners - very disappointing. Difficult menu to navigate, poorly trained waitstaff, small portions, overpriced drinks, unappealing decor. Never again.

Fantastic customer service, we dropped in here on the spur of the moment had a drink and nibbles. The food tasted beautiful, so fresh and enjoyable. The staff were very friendly and professional.

A true taste of Italy. I visit Melbourne quite often and make sure I have dinner at MOV every time I am there. Delicious, authentic and wholesome Italian food. My favourite is the gnocchi with gorgonzola and walnuts - it wasn't on the menu last time I visited but the chef made me a similar sauce with ravioli. Very reasonable and conveniently located.

Love the venue...but the risotto? Ho hum. Lunch is a weird thing in Melbourne City.... When you are in a hurry, everything needs to be fast, and the service here can be a bit so so, they don't really seem to listen. Or want to let you know which dishes take too long. Oh well. Went in with a friend for lunch, had exactly 45 minutes and ordered a few starters (good selection here, decent prices on the most but $12 for olives is crazy!!) and the mushroom risotto and gnocchi dolcette, and the food came out in weird order. Odd. Stared at my risotto whilst waiting for pasta to arrive. It's never good to eat a cold risotto, no apology from wait staff, and frankly, serving the risotto in those bowls makes it look like a chunky soup. Flavours were good, texture really odd. Much better risotto elsewhere.

Ok but not great. The food was the highlight of the night but the service was only ok. Turning up on a Wednesday night and being made to feel like I've missed out on a table when I said no to having a booking seemed a little ridiculous considering the place was never filled more than a third full.<br/>I guess I just expected more after having been to a few other of Guy's restaurants in the past.

Food was good but be careful about additional charges. We ordered a bottle of water which was taken away half full, when I asked for its return they brought a new bottle. Then we got charged $20 per bottle.

Sensational. What a lovely experience. This is a late review, we visited Merchant for lunch in November 2013.<br/><br/>I'd highly recommend you share some of the little starters because you are spoilt for choice and we had difficulty narrowing it down to three - all were great - ranking in order #1 the almond crusted 1/2 shell scallop (with a little bit of hot garlic butter - excellent), #2 the octopus and potato salad (great fresh flavours, excellent texture), #3 the salt cod fritters (beautiful smooth flavour, and served with an excellent aioli).<br/><br/>I had a Balmain bug, chilli and garlic spaghetti which was sensational. The pasta was perfect, the bug sweet, and the chilli and garlic was just right without overpowering. I can't see any pasta dishes on the current menu online which is a shame because they certainly nailed this dish. My companion had a risotto, which he complemented favourably - to my taste the rice was a little bit too al dente, but it's certainly authentic. My other companion had the venetian sausages which we all felt were too dry which was disappointing as the flavour was very good. <br/><br/>The service was excellent and you can see into the kitchen which always gives me great comfort :) Also, the fit out is really stylish. I love how Merchant has a real point of difference in serving Venetian fare - they have a whole section on the menu devoted to polenta. Highly recommended!

Paying for the rent. Disappointed with the risotto's (we had two)... seemed like a generic risotto base to which the actual fare was added to, on selection.<br/>At the price they are commanding, each dish should be individually cooked from the start.<br/>I might be wrong, but that's what the food was telling me.<br/>Still, overall, a reasonably authentic and enjoyable experience.<br/>PS. Their Grossi Prosecco is spot on.

Pasta was below average. Don't waste your time. The waiter was the best thing about the restaurant. Tiramisu was tasty. Better and cheaper to go to your local Italian restaurant.

Reliable Northern Italian. We have eaten at the Merchant of Venice a number of times over last couple of years. It offers good Northern Italian food (and wine). We can recommend it. It's not cheap but the food is good. Service is also good. Polenta is great, so is pasta, risotto and other traditional Italian dishes (most recently I had calf livers with onions, excellent, brought back memories of recent visit to Verona and Venice). If you just want a steak or grilled fish I would probably go elsewhere.

Polenta!!!!. Great to see so many polenta dishes available considering Northern Italy is known for its polenta!! A lot of risotto dishes to choose from but only 3 x pasta dishes which seems a little bizarre. I tried the Beef Carpaccio which was truly amazing & the Polenta with Porcini & Montasio....also delicious. Unfortunately I was let down by the Risotto with Truffle & Fontina. It just lacked flavor. I should have gone with my gut and got the Prawn Risotto as my friend had it and it was very good. Finished off with the Vanilla Crème Brulee with Saffron Ice cream which was very very good. Service was also great (staff were very attentive to everyone’s needs) but I did feel like a lot of up selling was trying to take place in a pretty direct way.

What a ripoff! After trying almost all of melbournes best fine dining restaurants I have experienced a first - walking away hungry. This included loads of bread. $125 per person in Melbourne does not guaranteed great quality but you generally walk away full but not at merchant. The quality was v good, especially the risotto but tiny portions were laughable.

It's such a shame. An enjoyable dinner and attentive service were completely spoiled when the bill arrived.<br/>At the beginning of the night our waiter brought over what appeared to be complimentary pre-dinner drinks, which we had thought was a nice touch. When we received the bill at the end of the night we had been charged an extra $15 per drink!<br/>While I can fully appreciate the need to up-sell in business, the approach taken by Merchant was dishonest and deceptive. <br/>While I would otherwise have considered returning for another meal, the misleading business practices they use have left a really bad taste in my mouth.<br/>Such a shame....

Nice wine! Chilled atmosphere. Lovely place. really enjoyed the atmosphere . The walls around the booths are for writing on and are alive with past consumers doodlings . A few nice veg options here . The wine is scrummy!

What a rip off! $166 for two tough steaks, mash potato, green beans and four glasses of very average wine. Service was poor. The wait staff were literally running in the restaurant. Not a good look. Maybe that's why they wear trainers???

Bad coffee. Came here for a coffee and it was almost undrinkable. Burnt and bitter. Cannot comment on the food.

Delicious. The food here is fantastic. I highly recommend visiting merchant for a wonderful dining experience, from the open plan kitchen, the charcuterie and cheeses on display, the friendly staff, and to try my favorite dish being their sensational Gorgonzola gnocchi! I definitely look forward to our next meal at Merchant.

Regular spot for my morning coffee... Sometimes a line but good consistent coffee & professional service everytime. Decor and ambiance makes you want to sit and catch up with friends on a cool winter's day...

Third visit in six months and doesn't disappoint. Great food matched by service. Chefs on display work like a well oiled machine. Would recommend the San Marco Feast - will include special requests and the food is a sensation. Favourite Melbourne restaurant!

Loved it! We had a great night out at the Merchant. Free tapas at the bar while we waited for the rest of our friends. Once we were seated at our table, service, food, wine and atmosphere were all fantastic! Special mention to our waiter, Peter, who was a really good sport and had a laugh with us :)

Great food, great wine and great service. Best night out in a long time ... Highly recommend :)

Ignored. I have been here about three times. Two of those three times I enjoyed the food very much. The third time though, i walked out after waiting for ages without being approached by a waiter. Maybe they were all too busy doing something else. And just as nobody saw me walk in, sit down then wait, noone noticed me walk out. Funny that, i recently went through something similar at another Grossi establishment. When i did eat here on the other two occasions though the food was quite good. I will be back but i will be cautious

Leave room for dessert!. When we booked a table for lunch for 4 people, we advised that one of our party would be in a wheelchair and we were impressed that they gave us a table with plenty of room around us. A very thoughtful touch. <br/>We ordered seafood risotto, pumpkin tortellini and duck ragout with polenta and the flavour of all dishes was outstanding. The serving size was just right for lunch but left a little bit of room to spoil ourselves with dessert. If you order the tiramisu you will get a shock when you see the size of it as it is a lot larger than you would imagine it to be... but it was simply perfect. I enjoyed every bite and as it is my favourite dessert which I have had at many restaurants, I can say it was the best I have ever had! The flavour was intense without being overpowering and the creamy texture was just as it should be. Even though it was a large serve, I didn't feel totally "stuffed" afterwards, just pleasantly satiated.<br/>We ordered an Italian sauvignon blanc which we liked. The price of the wines is considerably more when compared with the price of the food which we thought was quite reasonable but they have clearly been chosen with quality in mind. No cheap plonk here!<br/>The service was casual, friendly and very efficient. We were there early, before the main lunchtime rush and I thought we might have to wait a long time for dessert as they were very busy by then, but no, it came within an acceptable time.<br/>The staff were all very friendly and nothing was too much trouble, I look forward to returning next time I am in the city... I really want to try the rabbit dish!

True Melbourne. Not perfect, but thats not why you go. Have been 4 times and love the selection as well as entrees as tasting plates to share. Service is 8/10, but you go to enjoy company and food, not to critically review. My suggestion, do tasting plates with a main to share. Salami board, grilled prawns, duck pate, kingfish and scallops are sensational. Wine selection a bit of a gamble as they're all italian. Don't do this ala carte, otherwise it might not seem as attractive. Give the private dining room a miss for larger groups. It lacks atmosphere. Otherwise a great restaurant for friday lunch for 3-4.

I don't get it. Here for my birthday with parents and sister. Good food. Empty restaurant really. Every dish was tasty. No complaints. Winner on the night was the rabbit. Wines will hit you on the hip-pocket - they will suit the adventurous type as they're from Northern Italia. We ordered meals as a family to share, however, for some reason the restaurant is not really set up for this type of dining despite the food??? i.e. the table didn't work, far too small in width, even a lazy susan could have fixed this. Kind of annoyed my father (being a full blooded Triestine). <br/><br/>I just didn't get the vibe. I want to love this place and rave about it as Grossi is my favourite restauranteur. Loved the Cafe, loved Pietro's and then there's Florentino's. Merchant, tandis que, didn't give me that same feel.<br/><br/>I'll give it another crack though.

Tired of waiting. Monday Feb 1 at around 10am. You have got to be kidding, 25 minutes wait for coffee and tea for nothing. You did not notice (or care) that we left. This place has nothing going for it. I had a bad lunch experience some time ago, poor food, overpriced and no idea of service. At least when you had the Sophia Loren uniforms for your staff, the service was bad but you had staff. Thought you could at least make one coffee and one green tea. Either lift your game or close shop and do everybody a favour. Never again.

Terrific place. Excellent and attentive staff. Food fantastic and about the same price as pub food. Great quality and good size servings. Best duck pate I have tasted. The ricotta mousse with berries is sensational - doesn't sound good but just light and heavenly. If you have any room left for desert, it's a must.

Best coffee ever!. Friendly staff, absolutely great coffee. When I'm craving for a coffee, in the morning or any time during the day, it has to be coffee from Merchant. No exaggeration there at all! Would love to try their food items for main meals someday :) Best-est Bacci di dama...

Great venue, great food, excellent service, give it try!

A pound of pork flesh!. Ok, so I went to this restaurant last Thursday and had a fairly mediocre experience. It just so happened that, by complete chance, I ended up there again on the following Saturday night. I had slightly different experiences.<br/>It was purely a service issue the first time. I was there with a friend and the service was kind of botchy - a very nervous waiter was basically at me every 5 minutes suggesting drink and menu options and then completely scarce for the last half of the dining portion. <br/>The second time, I went with a larger group (I think this is what works in a restaurant like this) and we had really confident service from a young lady who was helpful and attentive. With a larger group, we were able to sample more of the menu (which is aimed at 'share dishes'). <br/>Highlights were the calamari, almond crusted scallops, warm olives with lardons, an amazing pork rib in tomato braise (highly recommend), the crispy potatoes with garlic & rosemary and the braised cabbage. Some of the less than impressive dishes were the somewhat flavourless arancini balls, the very flavourless polenta dishes (duck ragu and mushroom) and the chopped salad. The crab and radicchio spaghetti was good, if just a little salty. <br/>Overall, we were well fed and you did get the feeling of being at someone's nonna's house eating her traditional Italian fare. Pricing is good with a larger group, perhaps a little pricier with a couple/small group (and less variety in food). Also, the chairs on the tables are rather uncomfortable - ask for a booth if making a booking for 4 or more!

FANTASTIC!. My partner and I ate at merchant last week. Service is fantastic!. Friendly, efficient and warm. We were welcomed and seated by a lovely girl who I assume was the manager and we felt like nothing was going to be too much trouble. We ordered some marinated Octopus and some roast peppers to start. They were both delicious. Our waitress was a lovely Italian girl who actually made us feel excited to be there, with her enthusiastic demeanor. <br/><br/>We shared scallops and sardines for starters. The scallops were to die for, the sardines were absolutely lovely. We shared a bottle of lovely Italian wine to our taste as recommended by the female manger. We then had had a very well handled and balanced saffron prawn risotto and a delightful polenta topped with a ragu. The deserts looked good but we had had our fill and left very happy and future loyal customers. Food was delightful, but the service was fantastic. A number of finer dining establishments could take a leaf from the merchant front of house.

Certainly not a food merchant!. Service: unlike many of the bloggers, my experience of the service was that it of a high standard. Attentive, organized, happy to provide more information, quick to respond to emptying glasses, finished plates, offers of more bread. Granted it was a weeknight so the floor wasn't overly busy and there were plenty of staff around<br/><br/>Ambiance: sweet restaurant which almost forces you to feel like you are not in Melbourne. Un matched chairs, mosaic floors and bench tops, variable table tops. Very cute. <br/><br/>Food: well below par. Sorry Mr Grossi, but this one is a fail. Although the menu is basic, it is quite accessible and I sort of understand what it is trying to achieve. Calombaris does it well at the Hellenic Republic. But the food delivery is really un inspiring and well below expectation. Even the most basic dish-gnocchi with blue cheese, was tragic. Tasteless white sauce without even a hint of blue cheese, covers a small portion of the pasta. The food needed salt added in order to give that dish any flavor whatsoever. The prosecco to start was warm, the potatoes were chalky and tasted old and reheated multiple times (don't know how you can get rosemary potatoes wrong). Pork ribs were ok although we didn't quite expect them stewed, but rather bbq'd- we even tried to qualify this at the beginning. <br/><br/>Desserts- again, un- interesting, so we passed. <br/>Overall 5/10. Wouldn't go back. For a Grossi restaurant, this one disappoints. Grossi's Cellar bar waaaayyy surpasses this one in terms of food quality. Lucky the location will draw crowds for this place because the food won't.

One of the best in Melbourne. Having heard only good things about this place my hopes were definitely high and I was not disappointed. Very attentive and friendly staff and even better food! Be sure to try the spaghetti co le caparele (clam pasta) which is to die for. Everything is incredibly fresh and even the starchy foods manage to feel light. The last few times I have been I have also done quite a bit of celebrity spotting!

Merchant of Mediocraty. Lives off location and business people from the Rialto to busy to walk any further. The pastas and steaks ( the basics) are home economics 101 standard and the service is either great or terrible with nothing in between. So if you like your food and wallet you will leave doubly disappointed

MERCHANT OSTERIA VENEZIA A TRUE OSTERIA. Two of us dined at Merchant on Friday evening 14th September for my birthday, as we were visting from South Australia. <br/>I had thought it was going to be a bit formal, but was pleasantly surprised to find it set up like what I consider a true osteria, a place for food and wine.<br/>We were welcomed warmly, shown to a table for two, and offered water choices. <br/>We had pre decided on San Marcos Feast, and asked the waitress what it consisted of. To our delight, she said that she could have the Chef make up a "feast"for us, and asked whether there were any meats, etc. we didn't eat. She also asked whether we wanted wine by the bottle or glass. When we replied that we would like by the glass, she said she would have the Sommelier match wines with the Chef's choices. She later came back and asked whether we would like flights or full glasses- full glasses please!<br/>The experience was a delight, so much so that I didn't take any pictures of the food, which is a first for me! We must have had 6 courses, some with 2 offerings, making a total of around 10 -12 dishes. The wines were in our opinion, perfectly matched to the dishes, and in some instances we had two wine offerings to a dish. Everything was perfectly cooked, the staff were very efficient and knowledgable; I felt sorry for the Sommelier having to go back to the Bar to pull beers after imparting his wine knowledge to us. <br/>A perfect finish was a very unique dessert wine with our desserts, and grappa and thick black coffee.<br/>A truly wonderful dining experience