Member Review by Gary

The Mural Room at Grossi Florentino has tumbled down my list of favourites, based on our last two visits late in 2009. The Mural Room had been premier dining - but recent experience suggests that standards are declining.

On our last visit most of our food was very good - and at prices around entree $35, main $50, dessert $25 food should at least be very good. One big mistake in the kitchen led to a shocker of an experience, as what appeared on the plate included packaging, and it was shrugged off in a way that rang alarm bells for us. Where service is concerned, placing our well-marked-up wine at the other end of the room and leaving glasses empty on a regular basis really distracts (if you're not going to top them up, please leave them with us!). On our most recent visit, separate waiters on separate occasions tried to convince us to change our wine orders - not more appropriate to my taste, but both certainly more expensive.

Our previous visit saw us send back a bottle of barely cool of French champagne and an almost cold main course on an evening of lesser service than we were used to, which we thought a 'once off' poor experience; until we tried again.

When you're digging into the wallet or credit card for food and wine in Australia on 'special nights out' you expect excellence, and that is what I had come to know upstairs at Grossi Florentino over the past couple of years. Hospitality is largely about standards, and a beautiful dining room deserves better. On recent form I cannot recommend the Grossi Florentino Mural Room.

Member Review by Kate Dal Forno

I hadnt been to Florentino's for 2 years, but as I walked to my work conference at Rydges I was attracted by the gleaming (and I mean gleaming) copper at the entrance and seduced into running my eye over the menu in the glass windowed box.

The conference organisers were offering a dinner that night with wine ($100) but the lure was too great so later I made apologies and slipped around the corner to enjoy the best pasta I have eaten this year (sorry di Stasios... but I give your bowl 98/100)and to prepare my talk for the next day.

The tortellini with potato and fetta (?$23) had just the most exquisite balance of flavours and was well served by each droplet of sage sauce. I didn't want to wash the flavour away and stayed a good half hour sipping wine until I could bear to order an autumn coffee.

The service was strong, silent and Florentine... just how I like it, although I know some find it a bit stiff sometimes. The coffee too was good, strong, italian-style with a perfect crema to it. A delight.

I went home with $60 (after the tip) in my pocket and was amongst the most alert at the conference the next day (something about free wine makes folk overindulge no matter how god-awful it is) and the only one to rate my meal above a 6/10 (poor fools).

It can be expensive to dine at Grossi if you do the 3 courses and wine, but when the occasion is right then it will be worth the expenditure.