Umberto Espresso Bar

Italian restaurant · Thornbury

Umberto Espresso Bar

Italian restaurant · Thornbury

917 High St, Thornbury VIC 3071, Australia

Highlights

Classic Italian comfort food served in a charming, family-run espresso bar with a cozy terrace, perfect for a laid-back meal.

917 High St, Thornbury VIC 3071, Australia Get directions

umberto.com.au

@umbertoespressobar

$$ · Menu

Reserve

@onthegrid

"One of our favourite eateries in the north. With father-son owners Umberto and Marco you’ll be welcomed into what is their quaint, family-owned espresso bar, serving up a menu that is honest and simple with traditional Italian dishes with a ripping wine list to match. You'll see people lingering outside as there is always a vibrant atmosphere and the smell of fresh espresso in the air. This expresso bar is good to venture to at any time of the day or night. Photography - Peter Tarasiuk" - Sherwood Gutterz

On the Grid : Umberto

View Postcard for Umberto Espresso Bar

@onthegrid

"Umberto, Northcote Thornbury by Sherwood Gutterz. One of our favourite eateries in the north. With father-son owners Umberto and Marco you’ll be welcomed into what is their quaint, family-owned espresso bar, serving up a menu that is honest and simple with traditional Italian dishes with a ripping wine list to match.You'll see people lingering outside as there is always a vibrant atmosphere and the smell of fresh espresso in the air. This expresso bar is good to venture to at any time of the day or night.Photography - Peter Tarasiuk"

Melbourne

View Postcard for Umberto Espresso Bar

Max

Google

Great selection of Italian dishes , wines and deserts.. reasonably priced and quality is very good. Had meatball panini and tiramisu, both of which were excellent. Portions are decent and taste/flavours are authentic. Has different specials so things do change a bit. Plenty of indoor, outdoor and courtyard seating.. service is great with attentive staff.. will go again.

Dale Sulman

Google

Very disappointed with the food quality plus did not receive the right order! Was looking forward to a nice dinner, can cook better myself. This place has gone downhill since it has relocated. The pasta dish I usually order tasted like cardboard (the pasta type was not substituted as noted); dry and undercooked. Prices have also increased. Cannot see myself ordering from Umbertos again.

The Gollys

Google

Absolutely loved it here. Great menu great service great food. The salad and broccoli sides were so Yummo. The marinara is a small portion but delicious. The bruschetta was interesting. Highly recommend and we would definitely return. Fairly priced

Carlie

Google

Dined at Umberto's last night and sadly disappointed. Although the service was good, our meals were a massive let down. $220 we spent in total for what I would say was the worst Italian I’ve had in Melbourne and the biggest waste of money I’ve spent on a meal out. The pasta was horrendous. Flavourless and had the texture of wallpaper glue. The cutlets were overpriced and under seasoned, to top this off, we received the incorrect salad. All in all we were utterly disappointed with the food and sadly won’t be returning. Don’t waste your money here.

George Harper

Google

I was pretty excited to head to Umberto as I had heard good things. I also never order pasta out as it's usually bang average - but I ordered my $38 pasta alla marinara with full confidence/excitement due to the reports I had received. Oh what a disappointment. I swear this dish had been sitting in the bowl ready to go all day (or maybe more that a day?!) and zapped in the microwave just before it headed to me. It was like a solid block of spaghetti and devoid of flavour. I'm not in the hospitality industry and am not privy to the processes that go on behind the scene - but it feels like there has been some serious corner cutting going on here... I understand there has been expansion with this restaurant - but I hope they haven't lost sight of the core fundamentals and maybe I was there on an off night...

Anthony Luvisetto

Google

Enjoyed our work end of year lunch, with a good array of very tasty entrees which we shared. I had a veal snitzel for mains with a pear and rocket side salad, and it was lovely. With seats filled, it was full of a vibrant atmosphere.

Emma D

Google

The service was lovely and everyone was very efficient and kind, but we had a bad experience with the food. Our pasta was very under cooked and was lacking flavour, the drinks were nice, but both myself and my family woke up with very sore stomachs and were cramping through the night. We all did not have a fun experience with the bath room this morning. For this reason we won’t be returning. The staff however once again were very accommodating and thorough.

Peter Dimcevski

Google

Food was mostly delicious, although the portion we received for the lasagna was laughably small and the garlic bread lacked any real flavour. That being said, the second main I ordered, (as I was still starving after the child size lasagna), was the carbonara, which was up there with one of the best carbonaras I’ve ever tasted and the portion size was great. I can see how this place can be amazing, but like any place, it isn’t perfect and also may have been an off day for the kitchen. Spent $71.00 to leave feeling full (with no drinks or dessert consumed), which is a bit too much. However, I would definitely come back for that carbonara and to try some new dishes, just not for that cute lil lasagna

Kobie D.

Yelp

Umberto's is a lovely bar/resturant down High street Thornbury, an area that is quite becoming a quirky strip of places to dine. We enjoyed a sensational meal of Calimari, seafood pasta and a salad to share. This place has a great area outside to eat and wonderful staff who were awesome enough to cater for us just past the time the kitchen closed. I would recommend this place as a venue to start off your night if you are going out in Thornbury/Northcote or just for a quick meal. The prices are very reasonable and it has a very intimate feel.

Phoebe S.

Yelp

Went for a late brunch/early lunch and managed to snag a seat in their gorgeous little courtyard. Be sure to head straight to the back on a sunny day! Avocado on toast with ricotta was deliciously simple and the coffee was lovely. We ended up staying for a couple of hours longer and sampled the drinks menu - the espresso martini is a notable highlight!

sam m.

Yelp

We went for dinner at Umberto last night and it totally kicked arse. We'd tried to get in there before, on the recommendation of a friend, but it was full and we were told to book ahead. Months later and we managed to get a table on the night (though it was the last one) and man was it worth the wait. Umberto do coffee and cakes and cafe type stuff during the day and full-blown Italian meals by night. The menu consists of pasta classics and basic entrees and sides. The bruscetta comes in three kinds and the meatball starter is insanely good. We all had pastas for mains and the spaghetti marinara special killed it for freshness and held generous serves of scallops, prawns and mussels. I had the carbonara (it was a cold night) and it was all creamy deliciousness. The service here was the winner. We had a pretty fussy person with us and the staff responded to all requests with good grace and a smile. I'll be back there for sure.

Sam A.

Yelp

The best out of best simple home cooked Italian Food .Highly recommend. Well balanced menu with excellent customer service . Cosy , tasty, smart.

Tanya F.

Yelp

Went here on a busy Thursday might. Small cafe, bespoke and limited menu and they turn the tables over every 2 hours. Food was great and staff attentive and friendly. The panna cotta is to die for and my Italian companion said it was better the An she had ever tasted. Praise indeed. Would recommend without hesitation - but do book ahead!

Rosie A.

Yelp

Dropped in for a coffee and was delighted with the whole experience. The coffee was perfect, it was delivered with a small biscotti on the house - mmm delicious. The atmosphere is cozy, sat at the window bench, chatted with the owners who are extremely nice. Will definitely return to try the food menu.

Tina M.

Yelp

This place is different from most espresso bars because it doesn't matter what day or what time u go the owner is always there, sometimes his dad is also there helping out. The food is like home cooking, real Italian food, I come from an Italian background, so I recognise the jars of homemade eggplant and olives, the homemade sausages, THIS is when u know u r getting a real Italian meal! The owner Marco invites u into his home and kitchen not his business. Do yourself a favour, visit him.