Had heard many good reports about Il Baretto, great food, home made pasta along with a busy and lively atmosphere. There are no bookings taken, so you just turn up and request a table, you then can wait at the pub across the street and have a drink until your table is ready. If you don't finish your drink before then, they let you take it back to your table.

Staff are friendly, attentive and informative and are happy to explain the menu if there are any questions. There is a good variety and meals are served quickly. I felt the food was pretty average - just OK,... (More)

Had heard many good reports about Il Baretto, great food, home made pasta along with a busy and lively atmosphere. There are no bookings taken, so you just turn up and request a table, you then can wait at the pub across the street and have a drink until your table is ready. If you don't finish your drink before then, they let you take it back to your table.

Staff are friendly, attentive and informative and are happy to explain the menu if there are any questions. There is a good variety and meals are served quickly. I felt the food was pretty average - just OK, nothing special as I had heard from many people. Two people from my group had the pasta where you choose your pasta and sauce. Both these dishes were very dry and bland. The others ordered from the specials board, one ordering the duck pappardelle and the other the spicy sausage with polenta. Both these meals were fine though neither of them made comment on how great their meals were.

All up it is a great venue, with many positives, though the food on the night that we went could have been better. (Less)

Came here before a gig at the Hopetoun with my then-boyfriend and it was just perfect. This tiny little restaurant just a few blocks from the venue, it was crowded and cramped right at dinner time, but if you were happy to wait, you could take your table number over to the pub across the road, where you could have a nice drink before someone from the bar let you know that your table was ready. (And if you hadn't finished your drink, you could take it over with you to the restaurant!)

We sat at the bench and it was a nice view out onto dark Bourke Street, but we still... (More)

Came here before a gig at the Hopetoun with my then-boyfriend and it was just perfect. This tiny little restaurant just a few blocks from the venue, it was crowded and cramped right at dinner time, but if you were happy to wait, you could take your table number over to the pub across the road, where you could have a nice drink before someone from the bar let you know that your table was ready. (And if you hadn't finished your drink, you could take it over with you to the restaurant!)

We sat at the bench and it was a nice view out onto dark Bourke Street, but we still felt a part of the busy, bustling floor. The open kitchen was a refreshing sight and I really enjoyed being able to see all through the restaurant.

The food, also, was great. The specials were enticing, but you could also build your own pasta dish by picking the type of pasta and the sauce you wanted. I had a carbonara with spaghetti that wasn't too heavy on the cream it was perfect, and my counterpart had the duck special, and it was just fantastic. High quality food, and it was reasonably priced as well. (Less)