Songbird

Small restaurant hidden in the alleylane. Waiters were very friendly. Unfortunately the meal did not meet our expectations. For a fine dining experience, we expect near perfection with each course as the sizes of each course were so petite. The snacks served were fairly average, we did enjoy the crispy chicken skin with the roe sauce. The oustanding course would have been the spanner crab crumpet. The duck was chewy and needed to be rendered more as we could still taste the fat and the skin was not crispy. The cauliflower puree was delicious however the amount in the bowl was so small that you could barely scoop any out of the bowel. I would recommend increasing the sizes of your dishes as they are quite small as most people will leave feeling hungry. The time each course is served needs to be sped up. It is not acceptable to wait 20-30min between courses. After reading the reviews of other customers I am also left unsatisfied with the food and price point as there are definitely many fine dining restaurants in Melbourne which would have delivered at this price point. We left feeling disappointed and not completely full.

Dined at IGNI for Sunday lunch yesterday. From start to finish the food, service and experience altogether was amazing. The food was a great representation of less focus on flourishes, but more on creating absolutely killer dishes based on strong technique and great quality ingredients. The dining room was beautiful. Sunfilled with floor to roof windows, with a simple layout that's considered, but sleek. Service was second to none. Jo made my aunty and myself feel special, and it was one of the most memorable meals she's had for a while. Couldn't stop talking about. Would recommend to anyone visiting in Geelong to book in. Honestly first in class

Dined here and had the set menu comprising of the following dishes: - Small bite size snacks which includes crispy chicken skin with cod roe cream, saltbush vinegar crisps, oyster leaf, burnt citrus glazed radish, dried beetroot with macadamia cream, financier with duck fat topped with duck liver pate, and venison and murray cod jerky. A good mix of different flavours and textures to open up the palette, very tasty starters - Fresh spanner crab sitting on a rye crumpet brushed with honey butter, toasted with a soft and moist centre. Probably the favourite dish from the menu - Pipis and greens; nice aroma from the roasting, pipis were soft with some contrasting textures from the greens, cooked in pig fat for some flavour. Didn't felt greasy or heavy which was good - Cured red snapper and blood orange fruit wrapped with red coral lettuce; fish was lean and meaty with a burst of citrus from the fruit. Can taste the natural sweetness from the snapper but lacking some seasoning - Murray cod wrapped with cabbage savoy, grilled with woodfire; fish was tender and the cabbage added juiciness to the bite. There was some earthy herb flavour from the emu bush, chicken broth was gelatinous with a subtle savouriness - Brioche with honey glaze; bread was soft and sweet, nice and toasty outside. Paired well with the cultured butter and a bit of salt - Dry aged duck breast; meat was tender and the skin was slightly crisp, kumquat glaze added a subtle sweet citrus note. The side of Italian sausage was packed with flavour, not enough to pair with the duck - Smoked cauliflower puree and cheddar cheese veloute with grapes and topped with vine leaf; smooth and creamy, sweet with a mild cheese flavour - Artichoke tart; roasted artichoke with caramel as the filling, topped with preserved artichoke ice cream; sweet with a nutty note, tart was soft and crumbled nicely - Petit four; blood orange jelly and rhubarb tart Overall a pleasant dining experience; food was tasty but portion size was quite small for most dishes, especially the last two courses. Service was great; staffs were friendly and knowledgeable when explaining the dishes and the food was served in a timely manner.

Fine dining can be a hit and miss. Thankfully our experience at Restaurant Igni today far exceeded my expectations from the moment we walked in to the moment we left. The warmth and professionalism of the entire team made the four hour lunch just fly by. As for the food, I really love that they source sustainably and use leftovers/discards to make rich stocks for the savoury dishes, in their plethora of fermentations to make non-alcoholic beverages, and in desserts eg today's tart shell. I enjoyed every single one of the 17 different things served to us matched with both alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. However, dining experiences are not just about the food. It is the entire package of service, food, ambience, price and most importantly how one feels walking away. And for me, I walked away wanting to go back again. Thanks to the best crew ever.

Igni had been on my list to try for some time now so I was very excited to go. The menu is $200 for 6 courses with an option to match wines for $90. The dining room is warm and intimate with plenty of natural lighting. The service was good - waitress was friendly and had sufficient knowledge over the food. The wine matching was well priced and some interesting wines on offer. It paired well with the food and certainly something I would recommend. I’m afraid to say, however, that igni did not live up to my expectations food wise. At that price point, the food needs to be outstanding. Certainly when the serving sizes are also so small and prices so high. I’ve been to many fine dining degustations in Melbourne and value for money wise I would say this is probably one of the most disappointing. Don’t get me wrong - the food is good. - Tomato in broth was excellent. Bursting with flavour and tomatoes in season - milk bun was stunning. But blue eye was lost in it. - Quail was cooked perfectly with a delicious sauce - Cheese course was outstanding - Home made bread was a highlight The snacks were ok. Mostly underwhelming except for the chicken skin. The Murray cod was cooked well but the dish was not well balanced. Ice cream on the dessert was again not balanced flavour wise I had the additional dish on offer - calamari and potato noodles. Interesting concept but texture and mouth feel were not good. You won’t leave feeling full, or even satisfied. We went down the road for some tacos afterwards. At this price point I’m afraid to say Igni did not deliver

Edited Our IGNI date night was back in 2019 now we had it booked for ages but is still vivid in my mind and I just added some photos I found on my phone. From the moment we entered the restaurant it felt comfortable. It was a friendly and cool vibe, we sat at the bar and it was comfy. The staff made us feel so special. Every course came with a story, where it was sourced and how it was cooked. We only went the 5 course but even John who is a big eater was satisfied. We experienced some new tastes and love every minute. I liked it that much took My daughter who is a chef for lunch the next day we sat at the kitchen which was a whole new experience. All the staff made sure it was a new menu for us so I didn’t have any of the same foods again. The night and lunch were incredible a fabulous experience I still tell people about Loved it