We stopped by La Camera Southgate for lunch during our trip to Melbourne, and unfortunately, it was our least favorite dining experience of the holiday. Starting with the positives: the atmosphere was lovely. We sat outside, and the seating area was very nice and breezy--perfect for a relaxing lunch by the water. The pizza was also cooked well with a good crust. However, the food overall really missed the mark for us. Compared to the incredible flavors we experienced at other Melbourne restaurants, everything here felt very bland. The lamb was significantly under-seasoned, and the penne pasta lacked any real depth or flavor. It just felt uninspired. As for the service, it was pretty average--not bad, but not particularly attentive or welcoming either. With so many world-class Italian options in Melbourne, we were disappointed that the flavors here didn't live up to the location. Great views, but the kitchen needs to be much bolder with their seasoning. read more

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Our first dinner in Melbourne. We walked along a Riverside Quay and chose Italian. It's on the second level while first level is the food hall of various stations like subway, chatime etc. We ordered their pizza of salami and Italian sausages and bowl of stir fried green beans with zucchini's. Veggies are too salty. They bring you the whole pizza unsliced. You slice it yourself. It's kinda odd that an oval shaped pizza is placed on a small round plate. Pizza is hanging and on the table. Oh well, guess this is the Australian style pizza. read more

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I've not eaten at Southbank for a long time. This place brought back many great memories of both profitable and indolent time spent at restaurants overlooking the Yarra. Linguine alla Pescatora was excellent. Pasta just right, seafood mix just right. There was a great mix of Italian and Aus wines, well suited to the food. I'll be back with customers or friends. Just great to see that good quality, not over the top, restaurants are doing well in Southbank. read more

La Camera Southgate - The view from the (nicely heated) outside deck - Italian Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

The spaghetti puttanesca was sadly, a joke. It was a bunch of spaghetti tossed around in copious amounts of oil with diced olives and tomatoes that looked like they were straight from a Subway salad bar. There were pools of oil at the bottom of the dish. To charge restaurant prices for that is a disgrace to the Italian community of Melbourne. Learn how to make proper Italian food or adjust your prices accordingly, or better yet, just stop altogether. My advice to punters - don't bother with this joint unless you want to be severely disappointed. read more

La Camera Southgate - Italian Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

Excellent service, great wine, and delicious food. We forgot to reserve a seat by the windows, but the atmosphere was still good. Due to recent ankle surgery, my mobility is severely limited and one of the staff helped us immensely by guiding us out to the nearest Uber pick up area. I am also gluten and dairy free and had several choices. Highly recommend! read more

Full Disclosure: we came here for a team dinner as our boss is close friends with the owner. But don't think this affects my review: all opinions are my own, and we all had our hearts originally set on a different venue. I'm glad we decided (read: had no choice) to eat here instead. We started with garlic bread, which smelled and tasted incredible, although I prefer my garlic "bread" to be on a baguette or ciabatta loaf rather than a pizza base. Next up was the antipasti platters, with plenty of cured meats (salami, prosciutto), marinated olives, grilled capsicum and eggplant and deep fried gnocchi to share. The eggplant was a particular standout, with notes of basil and an almost creamy texture. I ordered the rib eye steak with greens, and both were perfect. The zucchini and beans were buttery and perfectly blanched; a lovely shade of green with the perfect crunch. The steak was cooked perfectly medium - not too bloody and not overdone - and was all kinds of flavour some. I ordered the jus, which I enjoyed as I love to smother my steak in sauce, but it would have been excellent without. We sat on the balcony in the middle of winter and didn't freeze to death thanks to the heating and the plastic tarp protecting the view and the customers (alright so the wine probably helped me forget about the weather). All in all a great spot for excellent Italian food - particularly large groups. Bonus points if your boss is paying. read more

La Camera Southgate - Rib eye with greens. - Italian Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

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Booked a table for my partner and I's anniversary online (as soon as lockdown was announced over). I received a call hours later from who sounded like the owner to tell me there was no room available and there was a glitch. Even though I had received a email from the restaurant saying my booking had been approved. The man I spoke to was not apologetic at all, in fact I didn't hear him once say sorry. He offered me a time 2 hours prior to my originally booking but that was way to early. Quite disappointed as by the time he did try and contact me, I couldn't book any other restaurant as they were all booked out. read more

I had the pleasure of coming here right after a fun run that ended up in the Kings Domain. With thousands of people running in these races, it was hardly surprising that tons of people were looking to go for breakfast/brunch afterwards and La Camera being right round the corner in Southbank was a popular option. There you can get some awesome views of the Yarra and the Melbourne skyline. Unfortunately we couldn't get a seat on the balcony and had to settle for something inside. The service was good considering it was so packed and the food arrived without too long a wait. It was good hearty Italian food with a tasty pizza and pasta dish. It is reasonably priced considering its location and I would definitely go again. read more

La Camera Southgate - Italian Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

Great food, wide variety. Good prices and great location. Clean facilities not too far from the restaurant, but not inside.

Of all the beautiful places at South Gate, we picked this one that's inside a mall mainly because compared to the rest of the places, the prices at this restaurant was more or less reasonable. Nevertheless, (not so) cheapness comes with its price. The food wasn't that great and the service was even worse. The drinks are good but expensive, the "red camero" cocktail i had was delicious but the $12 price tag raises an eyebrow. My veal scaloppine for $27 was not very memorable. I've already forgotten what that expensive dish tastes like after a short week....i think the mashed potatoes are good? I think my boyfriend;s chicken parmagiana was slightly better for $23...but again, not memorable. What was quite memorable was the fact that the service was so slow we felt like we were back in Paris. If you needed something from a server, you won't be able to find one for 20 minutes. I don't know where they go. For dessert, my boyfriend tried ordering three different things on the menu and each time the server came back to tell him that there's no supply. He ended up with the tiramisu for $13.5 which is super expensive, but at least the portion was huge. The passion fruit panna cotta i had for the same price was too tangy and no one ended up finishing it. It's a good place to go for a large group because their menu is extremely extensive and the price-range is also extensive. You can get away with about $15-20 a person if you ordered pizza to share or something. I've definitely had better though. read more

Wandering through Southgate looking for a casual but not food court style restaurant can be a daunting experience. We were about to give up when we found La Camera. What a lucky break. It was early Saturday evening and was starting to fill up. There were a couple of larger groups already enjoying the ambience. It is hard to get good food, good service and attentive staff, but it happens here. The staff were well trained, attentive and always close by without being in your face. We wanted simple Italian fare and we're very pleased with the range of antipasta and starters, then went for the pizza margherita, topped off with a good Italian Chianti. We went away happy without paying dearly for the experience. This is a winner and we'll worth the hustle and bustle of Southgate. read more

Me and my husband went in for an early dinner, around 5:45 pm. It was almost packed. We had no reservation but, thankfully managed to get a nice spot outdoor. Service was Excellent, Great Food was good, not great. read more

Italian deliciousness. We are return customers and havent had a bad meal yet! Veal and lamb mains are yummo. Risotto and Spag Bol is good. Big pizzas. A little on rhe pricey side but it is Southbank. read more

This Italian place had great reviews on Google, so I gave it a try. Great location overlooking the bay, friendly staff, good and affordable wine and booze, and then there was the food... Having been to Italy and had some amazing dishes there, I would give this place a score of 1 out of 5 for their Italian dishes (I can confidently say that regarding the ravioli that I was served). I'm sure any Italians out there who've eaten here would agree with me on this! read more

Lvu this place, staff and food was amazing! We ordered the chicken and mushroom risotto, my wife ordered the gnocchi and aranchini balls. We had the house wine. Our came to $55.00. Whch is cheap for us, the staff were hands down 5star. I would recommend them to anyone. Thanks read more

La Camera Southgate - Chicken and mushroom risotto, yummy - Italian Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

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My second visit here. A better experience than my first. This is a nicely fitted out restaurant with inside and outside areas and some good views of the river and the city beyond. We had a lovely pizza here. Pizza normally doesn't excite me much but the one we had here was extremely tasty indeed. The Caesar salad we had on the other hand was very ordinary. It was watery and almost tasteless even though it looked good. The staff were good here. They were polite, efficient and unobtrusive. Cost was manageable. The background music was too loud however here and it detracted from the atmosphere. An average venue that could go higher. Overall 3.5. read more

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I recommend always asking for a table on the balcony when you make a reservation at La Camera. The views from the outdoor area over the Yarra River, Flinders st Station and the CBD skyline are second to none, and make for a beautiful back drop to any meal. The menu is Italian, and offers so many options that its hard to know where to start when you are looking at all the available dishes. I'd recommend any of the risottos - both the Risotto ai funghi with chicken, and the Risotto alla La Camera are mouthwateringly delicious - the type of dishes you remember long after your meal has finished. They also have a fantastic lunch deal- for $10 you can order a main meal off a shortened menu, and included is the choice of a soft drink or glass of house wine. Alternatlively, a $15 pizza will leave you very happy at the end of your lunch break. The service is not bad - efficient, but not overly amazing, or anything to really comment on. It can be very busy on the weekends so be sure to reserve a table ahead of time or, expect a long wait at the door. read more

La Camera Southgate - Italian Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

Came here for dinner with friends and had a nice meal. I had spaghetti puttanesca and the portion size was just right. The people with me had the calzone (nice but a bit bready) and the chicken Parma which was also quite good. Ordered a hazelnut shake which seemed more caramel towards the end. Would come back and try some of the other dishes. read more

I've been in the La Camera for lunch and breakfast multiple times. Food and drinks have been very good. You can get a decent Flat White and great steaks. Service is very nice and open to special needs. I can recommend this place. read more

Came with 6 kids and left ....smiling! This is a classic 'familia!' Italian place. Warm and inviting despite its location in the touristy Southbank. The food was fast and really tasty. My chicken and mushroom risotto was delicious, with just enough spice, not soggy at all, just perfect really. The waiters were all very polite and we were served quickly and efficiently. Really couldn't fault it. The only negative I can pull out of my hat is that is a bit pricey, but for Southbank you have to expect that. Although I have noticed they do usually have deals on during the week, eg on Yelp I got 25% off this meal!! Winner winner chicken risotto dinner!! It's a super place to come with the kids for a bite to eat before or after an activity in the city. Check it out. read more

If you're a vegan, avoid this place. The vegan options are just lazy - bland, boring food. No effort put in at all. Vegan pizza was a base and almost nothing on top of it - for $25. Roast Vegie salad was the most basic you could do - not even a single herb or anything to make it tasty. They clearly have no interest in having their vegan customers come back. read more

Beautiful view of the city and delicious food. Definitely recommend the pizza!

Great food and fantastic service, we ordered and the meal was ready in minutes. also beer tasting when we visited . We had parmigiana which was huge and tasty. Caesar salad was good with lots of croutons, the pizza is thin crust and was shared around and enjoyed by all. The calamari was a stand out, and really tender with just a nice amount of chili.Would visit again . read more

La Camera Southgate - Italian Near Me - Melbourne, VIC

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Great food, Great atmosphere and service. Only been twice and loved it both times. Especially sitting out on the deck! Definitely recommended! read more

My second time at La Camera was as good as the first. Friendly wait staff, a lovely view from the balcony tables and a wide variety of things to choose from on the menu. Gnocchi Fritti and Arancini off the Antipasti menu was amazing and served very beautifully. Pizza and pasta came quickly after our entree and was also lovely. Quick service, good food. read more

One of the best restaurant's in Melbourne...Great food and great location. Located on the balcony facing the Yarra river at night viewing all the buildings surrounding The city of Melbourne . Additionally the staff are great, friendly as always and very helpful with all questions about the menu. read more

casual with friendly staff, everything we ate was tasty and well prepared, great for a quick pre show meal