Il Mercato Centrale Melbourne restaurant review 2024

After the media hype dust settled, Herald Sun food critic Kara Monssen returned to the city’s Italian mega-market to see whether it’s worth your time and money. WATCH THE VIDEO.

Time reveals all.

The first few weeks of any business can be make or break — with restaurants, cafes and bars taking a beat to iron out the kinks, fiddle and fine tune in a live environment.

Did Il Mercato Centrale Melbourne need to worry about this? Were we right to assume the behemoth Italian mega-market, which opened to incredible fanfare in September after months of social buzz and hyper media attention (guilty), would work from day one?

Undoubtedly the stakes were high: it was the first Australian, and southern hemisphere, outpost. Plus, the heaving three-level warehouse promised to feed a famished city pocket for 15-16 hours a day. Talk about ambitious.

Il Mercato Centrale Melbourne’s training wheels are off — so does it meet the hype?

Outside of the thrills and shrills of media launch week where I reported on the opening, I came back to review under the veil of food critic anonymity and pay my own way.

I wanted to see whether Il Mercato was worth your time and money, and most importantly, whether the food stacked up. I returned on a handful of occasions: one morning on a weekend, for a midweek lunch and after work, ordering from almost half of the 21 artisans.

Thankfully that opening week, ‘round-the-block’ hype queue is goneski.

I breezed through the entry on each visit. Is it busy? Sure, but like anything you pick your times. Only a handful of people were there on the Saturday morning, namely tourists, while 12.30pm Wednesday workers pack out the place so there’s no spare seat in sight. After work is a mix of both.

Simone Garusi’s risotto was excellent.

Il Mercato’s ordering system is easy to use, but not as sophisticated as promised.

Firstly, cross-artisan ordering doesn’t exist, so you can’t order a latte ($4.50) at the bakery while waiting for your warm-from-the-oven San Fransicisco sourdough loaf ($9).

One trader explains you can do this via the app, by scanning a QR code plastered on tables venue-wide. But “artisans”, or stallholders, don’t deliver orders. You’ll still need to collect from the store, making the cross-artisan ordering claim redundant.

Il Mercato is also cashless, but I enjoy the freedom to order in-person or via the app. The latter is gamechanging, as you’ll get a text when your food is ready.

Speaking of, was it good? It’s delicious, consistent and arguably affordable for the quality.

Remember, Il Mercato isn’t a second-rate food court. Most dishes are cooked to order, using top-notch ingredients, prepared by chefs or producers — so expect to pay for the privilege.

My first lunch was 100gm of New Zealand salmon ($6.19) cooked to order, from Il Pesce by George Mionas.

Within 12 minutes, I was eating slightly overcooked fish fresher and cheaper than any supermarket haul. Chips and salad extra.

La Piadina by Massimo Falcone peddles the famed Italian flatbread piadina ($15.90); the most underrated fast food of the lot.

I’m told this has since been “rotated out” of the Il Mercato artisan mix, a move planned from day one. I’ll continue to mourn how superb the flatbread was: all crumby crisp, floury soft, cradling sheets of mortadella, cheese, kale and spinach before hitting the sandwich press. Swoon.

Annapaola D’Alessio, of Malvern’s Made in Casa, knows a thing or two about gnocchi.

The execution Simone Garusi’s risotto was excellent ($18)— all swag without the clag, cooked in a full-flavoured broth brightened by saffron in both personality and colour, with a distinct firm granular chew.

Though your trip to Italy isn’t complete without a pizza, pasta and coffee pilgrimage. Annapaola D’Alessio, of Malvern’s Made in Casa, makes her pasta behind glass like a zoo animal daily — her gnocchi ($26) is so cloud-light it melts into nothingness on the palate. For this special, plush pillows are tumbled through a bitey gorgonzola sauce with radicchio and walnuts. Worth the 20 minute wait.

It’s all hits and no misses with her husband, TikTok star Valerio Violetti (also Made in Casa) Naples-style pizzas: the fiery diavola is bigger than your head, sweet red sauce slicked on a millimetre fine base with stringy mozzarella, salami and black olives in every bite.

Il Mercato Centrale Melbourne knows how to pack ‘em in.

And courtesy of the motherland, espresso is a bittersweet treat by Lavazza. Hey Il Mercato, the 90s called, they want their coffee back. In fairness, it does the job, but surely a homegrown producer could be rotated through the mix? I’m snobbish, yes, but it seems like a missed opportunity to showcase local beans at the expense of the “all Italian” theme.

Il Mercato may not be for everyone, but does a mighty impressive job feeding an untapped part of the city, covering all bases to high standard.

The dust has settled and, hey look, there sits Il Mercato, as good as it’s ever been.