gypsy tapas house

get the banquet at your peril!!!. read this before going - maybe you can scam the scammers?!!

this was my 2nd trip to gypsy tapas house - the first time was with my partner which was a nice evening with average service, nice but small tapas plates for $9 each, but the ambience with a live band made up for it.
this time decided to bring a group along and were rather disappointed and felt cheated by the restaurant management. when dealing with gypsies, should have expected as much...

we were pressured into buying the banquet for $45 per head with no mention of the time limit of the banquet (2hrs), only that it’s “all you can eat” and that the plates “just keep coming”. thefoodwas slow to come, but when it did it was basic but passable. the live band and ambiance was again quite nice. thefoodstopped rather abruptly, and there was a definite change in the attitude of the various wait-staff. it was like there was an awkwardness that once they had brought out some food, they expected us to say “o.k we’re done” and leave after half an hour of receiving our meals. we enquired about the provision of extrafoodas we were still hungry, and the waiter assured us he’d check with management. another 15mins and the waiter came back and said we can order more (from a very limited menu), but stopped us short, saying we can always order more later. thefoodcame out again in about 15 mins and the waiter literally threw a plate in front of us, the rudeness of which was a source of both shock and amusement at the time. we were told that our “time was up” and whether would we like to order some more drinks (we had already had 2-3 glasses of exorbitantly-priced watered-down sangria each).

this cessation of service was not unexpected given the abrupt change in tone of the wait staff once they had served the usual run of bland meagre offerings. i had been warned by a couple of people that they give slow service to make you want to leave so they can maximise profits. we weren’t aware of the time limit, and the little swifty at the end where they said we “can order more later” knowing full well that they would conjure up a previously undiscussed "time limit", coupled with the really unpleasant attitude from the wait staff and management turned us all off the slippery gypsies. it felt like we were dealing with a bunch of carnival-folk with the obviousness at which we were scammed. it was all rather humorous in the end. we won’t be going back, however.

hidden gem. i love the fact that this place is tucked away from the main strip on south terrace. it has a very alternative vibe, with a live jazz band in the corner and little tables tucked around lemon trees.

my boyfriend and i had the tapas banquet and were very pleased with the variety chosen for us. thefoodwas tasty and kept coming out till we had to stop for fear of bursting our jeans!

a great little place to meet up with friends for a delicious meal.

this place has a great vibe- it has quirky furniture, you can sit outside, there is live music, friendly staff but i don't think theirfoodis that great. it's simple tapas for reasonable price but their turkish bread with hommus or broccomole was quite plain and bread quite dry. fried ravioli was ok but a little bit burnt, their chicken was probably the best dish. i think overall it's a good spot for cheap tapas.

average experience. if you were looking for fine dinning, then this may be a let down for you. thefoodlooks ok for $8.00 per dish but it depends on what you order. $8.00 for two meatballs however was a let down compared to ikea's swedish meatballs. on the other hand some of the other dishes were ok. what i dont get was each plate comes with turkish bread, i want the food, not the bread. it is surprisingly popular, and not really a place if you want to sweet talk as you wont hear your partner. no eftpos is also a downer as is cash only and the atm on sight charges $2.50 per withdraw.

still not impessed. ok so i convinced my partner to give this place another go as our first experience wasn't good. and i have to admit that whilst it was slightly improved, it won't be making a comeback appearance on my list of places to eat. i can't fault the service as they were friendly and prompt and i do appreciate the set price of all the tapas but my review on thefoodalone was that it was pretty average. came out fairly quick which some might argue is a good thing but it makes me wander how freshly it was prepared. no one likes to wait too long forfoodbut this place seemed a bit too quick, like a take out! thefoodwas better than our first experience but only marginally. there was no great "oomph" in the dishes and to me came accross as a little ordinary in flavour. seems though there are a few reviewers who might disagree as a majority seemed to like the place but i'm on that band wagon, sorry....


-----06 dec, 2009-----

not great. didn't really like thefoodhere. it wasn't completely terrible but wasn't all that tasty either. the meatballs were dry and the eggplant kasunda was far too salty and unedible. they were fully booked from 8.30pm onwards so we felt a bit rushed and a bit like being pushed out. thefoodcame out too quick which had me thinking it had been sitting on the bench rather than it being freshly cooked. the only thing i did like was the fact that all tapas were at a set price but i wouldn't go eat there again. eating out is meant to be a taste sensation for my taste buds and gypsy just didn't rock my boat.

amazingfoodand ambiance.
we here to celebrate my birthday with my family and friends. such a great experience !
the choice is great, prices are fair.
i am usually quite picky with the food, but i had no complaints at all and everything we ordered meet or even exceeded expectations.

great service and lovely atmosphere.
bravo, will definitely come back and recommend to friends.

amazingfoodevery time i visit. always innovating and improving the menu. some of my favourites have been replaced on the menu which is a little disappointing, but the menu is always stacked with great options. owner's are very friendly and helpful too. definitely recommend!

my sister and i popped in for dinner on friday night. the staff were friendly and polite. it had a vibrant atmosphere and there was a live band playing. thefoodwas great. the stand outs of the night were the vegetarian gallets and the basil lemoncello cocktail (i think that was the name).

been there twice, thefoodis amazing, love the tapas style, very rustic and cosy.sat outside the second and was engulfed with smoke from bond fire which were meant to keep us warm, eyes were burning which kinda ruined the experience a bit. also have live music on some nights.

one of my favourite tapas places in perth. been here 3 times now with my partner and my sister, everyone loved it. each time we ordered the chef's selection which is about 10 dishes. every single plate of delicious tapas was devoured. the cocktails are complimented by a tranquil outdoor dining area, often with local musicians playing. the husband and wife team (could be wrong) are friendly and are proud of thefoodthey present. which is deserved. make sure you tick this freo treasure off your list.

oh gosh! this is of freo finest hidden gem! from the ambiences to the customer service andfoodjus amazing. would be back to visit. its jus grt to have tapas and listen to the live band outdoors. with a sangria in hand

love this place! service is fantastic, very friendly.foodis always amazing, great offering which changes regularly. the menu on zomato isn't current. lots of gf options, yummy cocktails, groovy music. tucked away in a little corner of freo, i've tried solo meals, dates & groups...always a winner!

what a great little spot with outside live music, if you can book a table outside for more of the fremantle vibe. just some words of advice don't look at the menu and decide, we did this and we're very surprised when we found out that the menu isn't the same. i understand that most restaurants change their menus but a note of warning once booking the reservation would have been nice like most do. i enjoyed thefoodanyhow and tried a lot of new things. be prepared to be waiting a while for drinks, we waiting 18 minutes for one and the other four guest were missed, however they did apologise.

really loved the atmosphere,foodand service. will definitely be back again!! walked away full and satisfied. great live music and impressed with the selection of cocktails and food.

unfortunately i'm a bit disappointed with gypsy tapas when i started coming here over two years ago thefoodwas amazing. the last three times the past year it hasn't been that great and value for money when you get the chefs special isn't great, your portion sizes have changed and when you bring a lot of bread out and a salad dish you really need to back it up with some amazing food. no pasta dishes, fish seemed like from a frozen box, they only thing i can say was good was the meat off the bone. disappointed after bringing first timers here and hoping it's actually going to be like it use to be but i don't think i'll be coming back for while. may i add i brought 12 people here for my bday last january to get one little plate between 4 people, paying $45 each and getting that was a disgrace....sorry but you need to make your portions bigger. pity because the atmosphere is nice with a bad and sitting outside.