My colleagues wanted to have some good Italian dining/bar vibe on the day and we reserved a table upstairs over the phone because they mentioned we could have little private dining. Unfortunately, the experience was not that great. They booked us a very small table downstairs. After every few minutes, staff come and asked us to order more food or drink even though we were still not finished our food. They always come and disturb us either trying to take our dishes and glasses or forcing us to order more. It was really disturbing. If you want a nice and calm dining experience, this is not a good place. I would never go there or recommend this restaurant to anyone again. For the four of us, we spent a little over 250 bucks, but the dining experience was not that good.

I grew up eating the most incredible Italian food (all thanks to my mum and Nonna), so I rarely find myself wanting to go to an Italian restaurant. I mean, why pay for it? Well Bar Idda has convinced me otherwise. We had a few plates but I only took photos of a couple because a cleaned my plate to quickly. It was so delicious. The asparagi and house made capacollo are an absolute must, closely followed by the purpetti. Do yourself a favour and get the Connolly for desert. Delicious. Sorry Mum and Nonna, I still love your cooking but I can't wait to go back here!

What a fabulous dinner at @baridda 💖 We felt like we had just stopped into Nonnas house with the table decor and the ambience! It was so cozy We loved everything that we ate but the highlight dishes would be the woodfired flatbread, with dried herbs and garlic olive oil, the casarecce and the slow cooked lamb shoulder, which felt apart! The only criticism was that the lamb was a tiny bit too salty on the surface area! Definitely a spot I will continue to revisit! Cannot wait to come back! 4.8/5 💕

I haven't been here in a few years due to the pandemic etc. Ordered the macaroni ragu, it was dry, dull and lacking in flavour or meat for that matter. The meatballs were just ok, nothing special. Overall, not worth the visit. Better places elsewhere and a shadow of it's former self when Omar was cooking.

Bar Idda is that local neighbourhood restaurant that you've walked past dozens of times and wondered if you should pay a visit. When you eventually get around to dining there you realise you should have done it much sooner. Everything about the experience at Bar Idda is wonderful. The staff are well trained, very friendly and make you feel welcome which is complimented by the mouth watering Italian food that you'll be raving about to your friends. The Mulinciani (eggplant dish) is an absolute must for entrees and the meatballs are equally delicious. Everything on the menu sounds incredible and I'll be back to try them all. Next time you're walking past and wondering if you should give it a try, do yourself a favour and make a booking.

It took me so long to find the best spaghetti restaurant in Melbourne! The flavours just perfect. Service was great & friendly . Definitely my go back often list now .

I went there with my partner for his birthday dinner, the place brought me straight back home to France, I know this isn’t a French restaurant but the smells, the traditional food was something I hadn’t had of felt for at least 20 years. It brought me back to being a kid at my grandparents place, just for this flash back I wanted to give a 5 start review. Haha The food was really delicious and generous in serving. The overall price was fair and I will definitely be back when I want to share a special evening with someone close. Better get in early as this is often packed !

We decided to have our much awaited Christmas dinner at Bar Idda; mainly because in the past the restaurant delivered and surpassed all of our expectations on ALL fronts. Sadly on this occasion it failed miserably ! The room was very hot and stuffy - and the food was disappointingly bland. Thank you to the wonderful English waitress that was the only highlight of our night. We won’t be back 😔

Amazing food and our drinks were incredible, I believe the artisan behind the bar was named Samuel, a body like Adonis and a mind like Aristotle, the drinks he made us must have been spiked with ambrosia.

It’s disappointing that this place calls themselves Sicilian… a bar, yes… Sicilian, no. Giving low rating especially for the food. Ragu was more like a dry bolognaise… it was terrible! We had a few dishes but nothing was authentic Sicilian tasting at all, not even the cannoli (& that is coming from a Sicilian, myself) it’s OK for bar food but honestly not a Southern Italian experience at all. ….Also the alcohol was cheap tasting. *Hot tip, not a romantic, cozy setting … more like a hipster bar that belongs in Fitzroy or Brunswick.

When you enter this cosy restaurant you feel like you're stepping into a Sicilian restaurant. It has this authentic feel to it that is impressively matched by the exquisite traditional food. The menu is designed between two or larger groups with shared plates, and there's a large range of dishes to choose from. Seafood, beef, chicken and vegetarian offers a delectable platter to pick and choose amongst you. While the food was absolutely divine, the service didn't quite hit the mark. I arrived earlier than my group and hadn't been there before, I was pointed to my table (rather than seated) and was handed the menu - without any explanation. This made it difficult as most of the menu was in Italian or had ingredients I needed to Google. This was disappointing, it felt like just because I was alone they weren't going to bother until everyone was there. Also we had to help ourselves to our own cutlery and continue to ask for water to be refilled. Nothing too excessive, but the hospitality was a letdown and didn't match the excellent authentic feel and food. Overall a recommended restaurant for great food!

Reasonable and rustic. High point were the sausages, low point were the breads and starters. Tried to order 2 bottles of wine from their wine list, none in stock, just substituted a 3rd without any explanation. Whatever.

The food at Bar Idda is generally pretty good. I felt like they were skint on protein in their pastas (we tried a few) and the ragu could have benefited from being reduced a bit longer to get more flavour out of it. Nevertheless, the tuna pasta from their specials board was very tasty (if a tad salty). The crab pasta was okay. I think for the price you get a good deal, especially since it's on Lygon St.

bar idda..what a delight. a cosy, warm little spot that feels like you're walking into an italian grandmas home, also reflected in the food. despite the REAL tight seating arrangement, we loved absolutely everything. from the friendly and kind staff (who didnt rush us out of our seating despite how busy it was!!) the hearty, homecooked food made with so much love, and the generous servings for the much cheaper price point than most popular restaurants in melb these days! that dessert...choc torta with italian coconut pudding was truly something else. i love the sicilian influence here, really creates that point of uniqueness compared to other italian restaurants with your standard burrata fried calamari vodka pasta tiramisu blah blah. i cannot wait to come back!! thankyou bar idda xx

Everything was delicious, but make sure you get the Aranchini - we had two pastas, meatballs and the house salad. I would go back for the branzino and potatoes. Great vibe and delicious food.

We had been wanting to come here for a while and Bar Idda did not disappoint! Lots of gluten free options which were all delicious - The baked eggplant, cauliflower caponata and ragu pasta were the stand-outs. Friendly service and a cosy restaurant transported us to Italy. Great Italian wines and digestifs!

Went for dinner to celebrate my birthday weekend and it was a really lovely evening. We chose the chefs selection which was a great idea. Food was delicious, the ragu and lamb shoulder with crunch potatoes especially - and the pickled vegetables and cannoli to finish off! Mama Mia! Gorgeous ambiance reminiscent of being in Nonnas kitchen, place was packed - service was pretty good. Met a lovely Canadian couple who were traveling around on the table next to us. I like the close proximity of people as you can converse if you want too. Laid back and rustic. We really enjoyed our evening and will go back. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Came here for a birthday dinner so we went all out: set menu plus the wine pairing. We went for with the option with the bonus barramundi course - this wasn’t on the menu in person but we’d seen it on the website and the staff were happy to do it for us. Started off with some antipasti and prosecco – woodfired flatbread, olives, pickled veg and some ‘gabagool’. A nice way to start the meal. Pasta dish was next - a classic pork and beef ragu which went down a treat. Was served with a fresh fileja-style pasta - worked well and was super tasty. Paired with a rosé which was nice. Fish course was pretty good - nice crispy skin on the barramundi and the fish was well cooked. I didn’t mind the almond flake garnish but I think there was a bit too much of it that distracted from the texture of the fish. That said, the flavours were on point, well complemented by the salsa verde and the white wine. Lamb shoulder came next and was a showstopper - super tender and rich flavour. The potatos were crispy and well seasoned and the chickory salad was a nice light touch with a lemony vinaigrette. By this point, we were in full-on food coma mode. With a struggle we managed to fit in the nutella and ricotta cannoli. Went really well with the amaro to cap off an excellent meal. Really happy with the choice to come here. Food was very good, set menu is a steal (5 drinks for a measly $45, in this economy!), the service is unfussy and the atmosphere is super nice. We’ll be back!

Sat down for the tasting menu. Starters were alright, flatbread was the best part in this section. Tasty pasta and we loved the lamb + potatoes. Super cozy and intimate little restaurant. Be warned - it’s busy inside and the tables are all very close together, just like a Nonna’s kitchen. If you want extra space - you won’t get it here!

It's one of the best pasta dishes I've ever eaten. Go here.

Taz is amazing!!!!! The most friendly and helpful waitress I have ever met. She is lovely. We had a group of 8 and she made the experience so much better. The food is great and authentic. Would highly recommend this place

Amazing flatbread with stracciatella! The maccaruni was ok, great texture for the pasta. Strong flavour but was not quite I imagined.

We were sat outside and were looked after really well by our waitress! Food was delicious and timely. Dessert was a stand out. Thanks Bar Idda!

Staff was attentive ,service was good.Portion size was adequate,not too much..not too less.. Eggplant dish is a medium portion dish but was very flavourful and well done. Scilian Olives were great in taste,please put in more green ones than black.Cavatelli,was ..hmmm..interesting...needed salt..would I order it again.. No.. Would I order Layered Eggplant again..Yes. All in all a good experience..overall.

Had a bad experience, down to two things - a dish missing its key ingredient, which was not disclosed, and some clear poor communication among staff that was brought back to the table. Ultimately, the food was good despite missing its key ingredient, which was a credit to the restaurant. But when a waiter tells a table that waited more than 15 minutes for its drinks that its mains were delayed at least half an hour because it'd ordered an entree (which was never cleared), it's not a good look. Especially when its neighbouring table is in the same situation and a third table has arrived later, been served by someone else, and been served its mains. And even more so when it's framed to a table as their problem for ordering bread. Clearly there was an error. That's fine, it happens - ingredients run out, let the table know; the restaurant is short staffed, tell people there will be a wait when they get there. Communication between kitchen and floor sometimes breaks down. People get stressed. But giving a table of hungry people the message they should be grateful they got their bread will never go down well.

Really good service and food to match. It's very simple so don't expect some crazy fusion. Simple, well cooked Italian. Would appreciate slightly bigger portions, but other than that, it's great.

Finally made it here for dinner recently and it was certainly worth the wait. The food and drinks were great with a relaxed casual style of service. The menu is very Italian, being delineated between courses, with pasta served between entree and mains. We shared one of each course with a bottle of wine between two of us. The food was great and the white wine paired with the seafood. The blue swimmer crab pasta and the fish were excellent. We were full by the time we left without emptying our wallets. While extra points awarded for the selection of amaros.

My fiancé and I hosted a bridal party dinner in the upstairs private dining room. The Staff were incredible all night, very accommodating. We got the Set Menu and the food was excellent, the highlights were the Twirled Pasta and The Barramundi. We mostly drank the house wines and the Italian Beer option was delicious. I would absolutely recommend Bar Idda to anyone that would listen.

Went again for the 3rd time to Bar Idda and once again it didn’t disappoint. We had the set menu, which was great size amount and all super tasty. Would definitely recommend!

The vege pasta seemed very uninspired. Although the pasta was cooked well, the ingredients were basic, and although it did not taste horrible, it did not taste great either, like I’d made it at home (and I’m not a great cook). The cocktails tasted watered down as well. Considering that the food was on the slightly pricier side, I really expected better. On the plus side, the staff were really lovely and attentive, and the ambience was nice.