Meatball & Wine Bar

It’s been a long time since I’ve been compelled by a hospitality experience — good or bad — to write a review.
We waited an hour for our meals. They didn’t even notice we hadn’t received our dinner — we awkwardly brought it up. They reassured us it would be 5 minutes. 10 passed and they gave us the wrong meal. It then dawned on them that in fact they hadn’t put it in the system. They barely apologized and assured us it would be 5 minutes. They offered us a single drink to alleviate our dissatisfaction. We just wanted our dinner.
When it finally came it was cold and tasteless.
They were super generous though and gave us a whole 10% off at the end of the meal. We saved $ 6. Hashtag worth it! It wasn’t. Don’t go here.

Thank god the meat balls were great cause the service here was pretty poor.
Had to ask for menus and then had to constantly ask for service when at our table as all the staff decided to sit and have their dinner during service.
One staff member decided to turn the lights down so we could barely read the menu let alone see our friends across the table. Thank god this was rectified an hour later by another staff member.
It has the makings for a good night out, but the service is just so poor, which they can’t afford on a strip like smith st, where competition is fierce.

Oh man, I really really wish Meatball nailed it. I think the meatballs here are amazing — super tasty, great quality, relatively healthy and the combinations are endless. Chicken balls with pesto sauce and cannelini beans? Pork balls with red sauce and polenta? Or maybe fish with white sauce and green market vege? They’re all good, with punchy flavours and generous proportions. The prices have recently gone up to $ 21 for this plate full of meat, sauce and base but it’s still good value.
But what lets meatball down is the service. It’s not that it’s bad, in fact the staff are rather friendly and quite good at their job, but on the three occasions I’ve been here they have been badly understaffed and customers suffer along with the staff who try and rush around pleasing everyone.
My last experience was excruciating to watch as two staff members worked a full room and tried to keep a smile on their face. We waited over 15 minutes to have our order taken, and then the bringing of basics like water and cutlery took longer than it really should have. God forbid we wanted more drinks, because there was no chance of getting any with a packed house. We felt so bad for the two staff that we left a generous tip! It’s wasn’t their fault that either a) team mates called in sick or b) management haven’t rostered appropriately.
Every time I’ve been here I feel like I’m taking a massive risk walking in the door. Will tonight be good? Will I wait over 40 minutes for my meal? Will I be able to get a wine glass refilled? They’re lucky that their balls are so damn tasty, otherwise I’d scrap this Smith Street dining option for good.

I started to compose this review during the end of the 45 minute wait in the empty restaurant on the south side of midnight before the food arrived. Admittledly the sliders from the late night menu were absolutely on par for what one could expect from meatballs, but if they arrived maybe 3 minutes later I may have taken a walk…

The sister to Meatball & Wine on Swan St and the brother to Meatball & Wine on Flinders St. I have only ever been to the Richmond one and loved the experience. The Collingwood bar follows much the same script hence just the neutral rating. I think I was perhaps hoping for something more unique or edgy to make this place feel more Smith St grundge than Richmond prep. As with its siblings the sliders are a must, little morsels of deliciousness!