Correction (5 October 2026): an earlier version of this page listed places and details we could not stand behind. It has been rewritten from scratch: every place below was confirmed at two independent sources on 4 October 2026, and every price was copied from the page it was published on.
Which Italian restaurants in Melbourne CBD are worth booking for a proper sit-down meal? This page covers six places, all in the CBD, from a Little Bourke Street room to a Hardware Lane address, and sticks to what each one publishes about itself.
Every place was checked against two independent sources: OpenStreetMap and the venue’s own pages, with florentino.melbourne used for Grossi Florentino. Where a menu price was readable it is printed next to its dish; where it was not, we say so rather than guess.
A word on style. Neapolitan pizza (the soft, puffy-rimmed pie from Naples) and trattoria pasta are different traditions, and a venue only gets credit for one here if its own text claims it.
The quick picks
| If you’re after | Head to | Order this | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Seafood and sourdough starters | Tipo 00 | Charred peppers, pizzaiola & sourdough | $26 |
| Dinner booking on listed hours | Grossi Florentino | see below | not printed here |
| Potato focaccia to start | Ronnie’s | RONNIE’S FERMENTED POTATO FOCACCIA | $12 |
| Pizza with a vegan cheese option | Matto Napoletano Pizzeria | Focaccia (V & VG) | $18 |
| Italian on Hardware Lane | Max on Hardware | see below | not printed here |
| Pizza and ziti pasta | Scugnizzo Ristorante | Pizza Nutella | $18 |
Tipo 00 — 361 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
The name Tipo 00 borrows an Italian flour grade (00 describes very finely milled wheat), but that is a general fact about the term, not a claim the venue makes about its kitchen. Its menu prints Charred peppers, pizzaiola & sourdough at $26, and Chargrilled king prawn, nduja & pickled shallots at $16 each. Nduja is a soft, spreadable spiced pork salami from Calabria, and pizzaiola is a tomato-based sauce. OpenStreetMap tags the hours as Monday to Saturday, 11:30 to 22:00, which may be out of date.
On the menu (copied from tipo00.com.au on 4 October 2026):
- Charred peppers, pizzaiola & sourdough: $26
- Freshly shucked oyster & shallot vinegar: $6
- Chargrilled king prawn, nduja & pickled shallots: $16
Menu tells: the lines we copied are peppers with sourdough, oysters and prawns, so read the full menu before assuming pasta or pizza.
Grossi Florentino — 80 Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
The restaurant’s site, florentino.melbourne, gives its address as 80 Bourke Street, Melbourne. That site lists lunch Friday to Sunday from 12:00 and dinner Monday to Sunday from 17:30. We could not read a menu price for this place, so none is printed here, and we cannot say from our sources whether it leans towards pasta or something else.
Verdict for: a sit-down dinner plan built around the hours its own site lists, once you have checked the current menu there.
Ronnie’s — 525 Collins Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Ronnie’s gives its address as 525 Collins Street on its own site. The menu prints RONNIE’S FERMENTED POTATO FOCACCIA at $12; focaccia is the olive-oil flatbread of Liguria, here described with a potato in the name. OpenStreetMap tags Monday 17:00 to 22:00, Tuesday to Friday 12:00 to 22:00 and Saturday 17:00 to 22:00, and that tag may be out of date.
On the menu (copied from ronnies.melbourne/dining-menu on 4 October 2026):
- RONNIE’S FERMENTED POTATO FOCACCIA: $12
The classic: focaccia is the oiled Italian flatbread, and the one dish we could copy from this menu is a potato version of it.
Matto Napoletano Pizzeria — 26 Liverpool Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
The name uses Napoletano, the Italian word for Neapolitan, but we copied no dough or oven claim from the venue, so treat the style as unconfirmed. Its menu prints Margherita (V) at $31 and Rustica (V & VG) at $30. Its site also says all pizzas can be made gluten free for $5 and that vegan cheese is available for $5. For hours, its site lists lunch Monday to Friday 12pm to 2:30pm, dinner Monday to Thursday 5pm to 9pm and Friday 5pm to 10pm, Saturday 12pm to 10pm and Sunday 12pm to 9pm.
On the menu (copied from mattonapoletano.com.au/our-menu on 4 October 2026):
- Focaccia (V & VG): $18
- Burrata (V): $22
- Margherita (V): $31
- Rustica (V & VG): $30
The style: a Neapolitan pizza is traditionally a thin-centred, soft pie with a puffy rim, but this venue’s text we copied does not make that claim for itself.
Max on Hardware — 54-58 Hardware Lane, Melbourne VIC 3000
Max on Hardware’s site prints its address as 54 - 58 Hardware Lane, Melbourne. OpenStreetMap tags Monday to Thursday and Sunday 11:30 to 21:00, and Friday and Saturday 11:30 to 21:30, which may be out of date. We could not read a menu price, so none is printed for this place.
BYO / takeaway: not stated in the sources we checked, so ask the venue before planning around either.
Scugnizzo Ristorante — 558 Little Bourke Street, Melbourne VIC 3000
Scugnizzo’s menu page prints San Marzano tomato, mozzarella and basil at $27; San Marzano is a tomato variety from near Naples, and that trio is the classic margherita set. It also prints House made ziti, Genovese beef ragú at $35, and Genovese here is a slow-cooked beef and onion sauce rather than anything from Genoa. For something sweet, the menu prints Pizza Nutella at $18, and its site tags the Mousse di Cioccolato as DF, GF, Vegan.
On the menu (copied from scugnizzo.com.au/italain-menu on 4 October 2026):
- Pizza Nutella: $18
- San Marzano tomato, mozzarella and basil: $27
- House made ziti, Genovese beef ragú: $35
Verdict for: a pasta-and-pizza table going by the menu lines we copied; we found no hours, so confirm before you go.
Quick answers
Where can I get Italian for lunch in Melbourne CBD?
Grossi Florentino’s site lists lunch Friday to Sunday from 12:00. Matto Napoletano Pizzeria’s site lists lunch Monday to Friday 12pm to 2:30pm. Ronnie’s OpenStreetMap tag has Tuesday to Friday from 12:00, and Tipo 00 is tagged from 11:30 Monday to Saturday. Max on Hardware is tagged from 11:30 as well. The OpenStreetMap hours may be out of date, so check first.
Which Italian restaurants in Melbourne CBD have vegan options?
Matto Napoletano Pizzeria’s site says vegan cheese is available for $5, and its menu marks the Rustica as V & VG. Scugnizzo Ristorante’s site tags its Mousse di Cioccolato as DF, GF, Vegan. We did not find vegan options published for the other four places.
What do mains cost at Italian restaurants in Melbourne CBD?
Only some places publish prices we could read. Scugnizzo Ristorante’s menu prints House made ziti, Genovese beef ragú at $35. Matto Napoletano Pizzeria’s menu prints Margherita (V) at $31. From Ronnie’s we copied only a bread price, RONNIE’S FERMENTED POTATO FOCACCIA at $12, and we could not read a price for Grossi Florentino or Max on Hardware.
Where can I find Neapolitan-style pizza in Melbourne CBD?
Matto Napoletano Pizzeria’s name uses the Italian word for Neapolitan, but we copied no dough or oven claim from it, so we cannot confirm the style. Scugnizzo Ristorante’s menu prints Pizza Nutella at $18 and a San Marzano tomato, mozzarella and basil line at $27. Neither page lets us say more about the pizza style than that.
How we checked
We checked every place on this page against at least two independent sources on 4 October 2026: OpenStreetMap, the places’ own websites and florentino.melbourne. Every price is copied exactly as printed on the page linked under Sources, on 4 October 2026. Menus, prices and opening hours change, so check with the venue before you go. The cover photo is illustrative, from Unsplash, and does not show any place on this page.
Seen something out of date? Email [email protected] with the page link and what has changed, and we will check it again.
Sources
- Tipo 00: openstreetmap.org/4165983489, tipo00.com.au
- Grossi Florentino: openstreetmap.org/614041180, florentino.melbourne
- Ronnie’s: openstreetmap.org/13307925012, ronnies.melbourne, ronnies.melbourne/dining-menu
- Matto Napoletano Pizzeria: openstreetmap.org/11585813764, mattonapoletano.com.au, mattonapoletano.com.au/our-menu
- Max on Hardware: openstreetmap.org/12988719754, maxonhardware.com.au
- Scugnizzo Ristorante: openstreetmap.org/634777815, scugnizzo.com.au, scugnizzo.com.au/italain-menu
