il centro

pity the food wasn't hot.. whilst service was enthusiastic and professional we felt a little like it was assumed we were not accustomed to dining at such restaurants and explanations were perhaps a little condescending. none of us had been at ilcentrofor a few years but had been before.
my big disappointment was that my duck ravioli was just a poorly reheated obviously pre prepared dish. not good enough for dining at this level. my microwave at home could have done a better job.
my tiramisu was also disappointing, not a slab of luscious moist cake dripping with cream and liqueur from a freshly made pudding , but instead a moulded single serve tower, sort or resembling a snowman, with as much soul.
shame.

stands the test of time. my wife & i first ate at icentro22 years ago, and last year when we moved back to brisbane after 17 years away, we renewed our relationship with this superb restaurant. i booked it for our wedding anniversary and like a true friend it delivered. perfect food, wonderful wine and another wonderful memory. keep up the excellent work.

the restaurant is quite large and you have the choice to sit inside or outside. when we arrived, it was about 8pm on a thursday night, so the restaurant was rather quiet. 

now, i had been to ilcentroa fair few times prior to this, however hadn’t ventured out past the sand crab lasagne. of course, we still ordered it, but we also ordered an array of other menu items so we could see what ilcentrowas really about. in light of this, we ordered the entrée size of the sand crab lasagne, which actually ended up perfect as it is an extremely rich dish. obviously, this was amazing and it will always be one of my favourite dishes. we also ordered the lightly dusted calamari. il centro’s menu changes seasonally ever so slightly, so when we visited this dish was in fact a special - from my knowledge it is now a regular menu item? the calamari was good, nothing too special, but it was a nice dish to nibble on whilst we waited for our mains...

for the full review please check out: foodspaceaus.com/blog/dinner-il-centro

thank you!

i had high hopes but a rare night out but ilcentrodid not live up to expectations.
the table wasn’t ready when we arrived, no worries. we were told to have a seat at the bar and order a drink, we did. not that there was table service. after about ten minutes we were seated and then our drinks followed a few minutes later. the seat for two was lovely, outside but still enclosed. the weird thing is that our table was against the glass wall, and on the other side of the wall was another table but with five. one person was at the head of the table, forced to stare at our mugs the whole dinner. it was a bit awkward and i felt sorry for all involved.
anyway, after perusing the menu and waiting for some time i flagged down someone so they would take our order, the female waitress looked at me like i was crazy and said someone would be around soon. someone came round quite quickly after that, advised the specials and tried to scurry away. not so fast! we put our order in: entree of sand crab lasagne (had to try it here!) and the bruschetta of the day. mains ordered were the veal scallopini and porchetta.
entree came out in good time. the bruschetta was as described but not as expected. b said it was surprising tasty, i thought it was a bit unappetising and couldn’t finish a single piece of it. the famous lasagne was also not to my liking. the sauce that i think was meant to be the hero of the dish, tasted like a caramel. the pasta sheets and crab were really nice but i could not get overly this sweet sauce on it.
then the mains. i didn’t really have high expectations after the entree.
veal was unexciting, pretty standard but less pretty than you could get at any italian joint. the porchetta was dry, one piece was visually dry, like when a piece of meat is left out in the fridge without a cover on it. it had gone dark and crusty on one side. side was the pear, walnut salad, which was fine but uninspired.
i don’t think we had the same server twice, no one was particularly friendly or warm. so service and food was lacklustre.
this dessert fiend skipped dessert because i couldn’t face more disappointment in one night.

ilcentrowas ok. admittedly, i wasn't famished so didn't indulge in a three course meal, but what i did have didn't really impress.  i opted for the special of the night which was an ox tongue and mushroom risotto. i typically enjoy a dry risotto but will tolerate it wet. but on this occasion it was if they made it in a buttery rainforest. sadly, not brilliant, although the flavour was there.  separately, our waiter(ess) was  little abrupt which did not make me feel very welcomed. i would go back, however, hoping for more next time.

solid 4.5
this place is amazing. i recently went to ilcentrofor a working dinner. having worked all day none of us had thought to make a booking anywhere considering it was a tuesday night. luckily the great staff at ilcentromanaged to squeeze us in to their fully booked restaurant.
we decided to choose many different dishes to share which was such a great idea. we managed to try a wide range of their delicious options. the crab lasagne is to die for and i couldn’t recommend this dish anymore. a solid 4.5 for this place. they just loose out on that extra 0.5 due to beer selection. not everyone is a fan of craft beers. what happened to good old mainstream aussie selections?

otherwise all in all a great night! 👌

even though it was a somewhat rainy evening, looking out to the brisbane river and the story bridge while having dinner was pleasant.
we ordered the baby zucchini flowers, the bbq octopus, the sand crab lasagne and the sauteed spring vegetables.
the best dish was the bbq octopus. the octopus was cooked perfectly and was complemented perfectly by the beans and sauce which had just a tiny hint of heat.
the baby zucchini flowers, the sand crab lasagne and sauteed spring vegetables were all solid performers in that order.
the sauce for the baby zucchini flowers was just subtle enough to complement the delicate hero of the dish. and the sauce for the sand crab lasagne was incredibly rich, while the lasagna was quite nice.
at this price point, i would say ilcentrois reasonably competitive.

the eagle street pier dining precinct is unique in a way, a dining precinct where a large percentage of its restaurants offer fine dining-quality food but in a semi-casual setting. ilcentroplays its part as the token italian restaurant on the strip. offering an impressive selection of pan-italian dishes with creative modern australian influences, ilcentroholds a certain class to its dishes whilst still maintaining a casual dining atmosphere.

we've only ever eaten at ilcentropreviously as part of a function, so it was an absolute pleasure to dine there today to celebrate my wife's big birthday.  we arrived 12.30 to find the venue almost empty, and it was obviously a slow sunday, so lucky us.  the river view is wonderful, and the wait staff are very much up to their job.  our waiter allan looked after us very well.  some mixed plates of entrees went down a treat.  the oyster vinaigrette was near-perfect and the bbq'd octopus was superb. those who had the signature sand crab lasagne were well-pleased, but the stand-out was my daughter's beef cheeks served with truffle shaves, porcini risotto, and good amounts of pecorino. my own bistecca was great, but the sides a tad cold.  we all left well-satisfied: what more can you ask of such a venue?

ilcentrois renowned for their sand crab lasagna.  some people rave about it, but the last two times i've been there the members of my party that ordered it said it  missed the mark. in recent visits i have sampled the arancini, caprese, veal scaloppine and eye fillet - all were solidly good, but not great. my colleagues and i all agreed that for the $ there are other options that consistently outperform il centro.  still recommend you try it out for yourself.

i have been coming to this restaurant on and off for over 15 years. i have only ever had superb food and great service. it has to be one of brisbane's best restaurants. reviewers get all excited about the latest and trendiest but i would not hesitate to recommend this great restaurant. my wife and i dined last monday night for the first time in a while and enjoyed, as always, the famous sand crab lasagne and my tortellini special was generous and of the highest quality. our man on the floor, a young south american gent was extremely professional and attentive with good wine suggestions. the view of the river and story bridge are a nice back drop. if you want to treat yourself, ilcentrowill not let you down.

i've been wanting to go to ilcentrofor awhile as i heard the crab lasagna was really good... boy was it good! it was love at first bite for me with this dish, very delicious and they aren't shy with the crab. i ordered the crab and avocado salad for entree before the lasagna which was also very delicious but highlight was defs the lasagna.
would come back here for more

love ilcentrorestaurant and especially love the bar! cool spot on the river and always guarantees a wonderful night out whether a dinner date or drinks with the boys, you know it will always impress.

i took my partner to ilcentrolast night for his birthday. i've been to ilcentrobefore but not for a while but once again i was impressed by their food, wine and service. a really classy restaurant with a great menu. i can highly recommend the prawn ravioli and the seafood linguine. it was a great night out and couldn't fault the food or wine.

went to ilcentrofor the first time while visiting brisbane, and was recommended i try the sand crab lasagne - it is famous for a reason. absolutely beautiful dish and paired it with the pear and rocket salad. had a gorgeous wine italian white with it - they have a fantastic italian selection which is great to see. the service was excellent, the staff were all knowledgable and the owner zahir made rounds to every table to ensure everyone was enjoying themselves. 
i will definitely be back!!