Gilson South Yarra

The only reason I'm not giving this place a 1 star is because I'm sure the staff aren't all rude. Thought I’d support a local place and bought a couple of things for takeaway but the person at the counter couldn't have been more disinterested if they tried. Just not a very welcoming feel at all and everything was a chore. Then there was the female handing out food! What a gem she is! What could I say, when someone raises their voice at a customer trying to support them well maybe that individual needs a little bit more training in customer service or maybe should go back of house? Muffin was good! So I guess that's something.
The above stated is my opinion and I won’t be going back.

Great location right near botanical gardens. I enjoyed the generous blueberry pancakes. This seems like a good place for brunch as I haven't tried dinner there.

We were sat next to a really overpacked table obviously breaching density limits, and people on the table next to us were Vaping as we ate! There were so many people seated onto the table next to us to the point that we were crammed into a corner and almost couldn’t leave our table because people were sat there blocking us in. Staff just kept knowingly over seating people on the table.

We told what looked like the manager at the end as we paid, and he didn’t acknowledge us or apologise, he continued on charging the bill. Looked like he knew the people at the table as he was seating them there himself. Just totally didn’t care.

The food was actually good! But it was not worth it for such a bad experience! If the guy at the end acknowledged us in any way, I probably wouldn’t have uploaded this review.

Good food but arrogant staff. Been there a few times and staff are disinterested and talk to other people whilst serving you. They also don't wear masks when serving. Great pasta and pizza, but not worth it for the hospitality given.

The vibe, the menu and the service where lovely, I had blueberry pancakes and a smoothie, what a treat. Great cafe

Great place for all three meals of the day. Excellent Italian food.

I once had the pleasure of meeting the owner. What a champion. Welcoming, funny, smart, good looking. Kind of like Johnny Depp (21 jump street days) crossed with Val Kilmer (as Batman) crossed with Brad Cooper (Hangover 1) crossed with Justin Trudeau.

Very average experience. The venue itself looks nice but the menu is lacklustre and the service is not very good. Servers were a bit dismissive and unfriendly. Wouldn't recommend or return.

Really nice food. However, we asked for the house red wine assuming that this was going to be on the cheaper side of the wine list as it generally is. Many wines on the list were roughly $50-$60 yet we were charged $95 for a wine that was not on the menu.

We questioned this when the bill arrived but no explanation was given. Will know better next time.

Sorry to say we didn't get to eat here. Booked, seated at a table, left after sitting for 15 minutes while other people came in after us and were given water and menus. Very poor form.

The coffee is hit and miss. Often it can be very bitter and burnt. The food is also very expensive for what it is. I once had a pizza and it tasted like they’d used that tomato paste from the supermarkets. Very average.
The chop salad, though expensive, is very good.

A group of girls a few tables away were shouting so loud I couldn't converse with my friend right in from of me. My ears were in pain. Anyway that's not really on the restaurant and the food was pretty good, but then this waitress abruptly and very aggresively shouted 'YOU PAY NOW? ! ' to us because they needed the table back. (I'm sorry I didn't know we were in some kind of third world country where customer service wasn't a thing) We were there for less than 2 hours and rest of the restaurant had plenty of seats, instead of just clearing our table and shoving the eftpos machine in our face, offering just the 2 of us another seat would have been nice.

Delicious food and great staff! Love that they have been involved in the Feed the Frontline initiative during the pandemic. Thanks Gilson!

Snotty staff who expect you to essentially clear your plates and collect your coffees yourself. Our table ordered 10 poached eggs all up in a variety of dishes and all of them were hard boiled.is that not meant to be the one thing you should get right at breakfast? And finally, they refused to social distance tables.may consider calling the police. Final word: if you want corona and bad attitude from both staff and guests, then i recommend 10/10!

Had a latte coffee with three shots and a blueberry muffin. Price was ok for the area. Lots of people waiting but service time was ok. The coffee was fairly nice, I really wish the muffin was up to the same standard. It was hard and seemed stale. My friend had a cinnamon scroll which he commented also seemed stale. The taste was nice but freshness wasn't up to my expectations. Service was friendly.

A delightful Italian cafe / bistro, that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner, with lovely staff and management. We enjoyed an initial fabulous dinner a while ago, thoroughly enjoying the service and ambience, enhanced by the delightful music.

My limoncello spritz was a delightful start, and my daughter’s pizza arriving as quickly as it was thoroughly appreciated by her. For what it’s worth, as untested as her opinions are, she says it was the best pizza she’s ever had.

The professional service thoroughly enhanced the trout and caponata.

At a recent lunch, the sardines, oven baked bread and olives were wonderful before our pasta of the day and margarita.

The food, ambience, drinks, service and food (yep, twice) are professionally and casually served, and as someone who really appreciates great food and service, I trust you’ll enjoy your time here.

I can’t wait to get back after Lockdown 2.0.

Unfortunately Gilson missed the mark on just about everything. Service was sketchy at best, our waitress didn't know anything about the menu and when quizzed had to make multiple trips to ask the chef. We waited for about 45 mins for the lasagne and the chicken salad, we were the only people eating at the time and the restaurant virtually empty, except for a few patrons drinking out the front. When the food finally arrived the lasagne was a disappointment, a dry and tasteless version of the Italian classic, as for the Chicken salad presentation made it look like cabbage with chicken from a roast chook from Coles. Goodest dressing was tasty but that's about it. Best to use the eye test, the Bot was pumping but Gilson was not. I'd give this place a miss, drinks look good but hard to mess that up I'd say.

The Gilson has benefitted from new curbside seating which enhances the alfresco dining style it is now popular for. Opposite the Botanical Gardens on Domain Rd, the traffic is very light so outside noise and amenity is enhanced. Parking is difficult but you can park in Birdwood Ave and just walk over.

The restaurant is noisy and uninspiring. The simple food selection is well made and service is quite good. For a weekend breakfast or lunch The Gilson, in good weather, is exceptional.

Ordered 1 Ice coffee and 1 Ice chocolate, the coffee was gone in 3 sips as it was 90% ice in a small cup even though we had ordered a regular. The chocolate just tasted like milk and had no flavour. Definitely wouldnt eat here as if they cant even make a drink they can't make a meal.

Pretty average, especially for the price they charge. Wouldn’t recommend and will not come again.

Stunningly rude service. Took my family here for a drink and when I asked for a menu to see what was on offer, waitress was outwardly displeased. She proceeded to clear tables instead of bringing the menus and when I approached the manager there was little regard for my experience. Care factor = 0