La Tombola

I discovered this restaurant accidentally and this was the best discovery ever! Best Italian restaurant in Adelaide! We asked what was the signature dish and was told that every single dish is a signature dish! Indeed this was the case. We order four different main course dish and each was cooked to perfection. Highest praise goes to Tony and his team who treated everyone like a VIP and such warm and welcoming was the atmosphere. My parents are fussy eaters but they ate everything thoroughly. This is will be one of many visits in the future. Congratulations Tony for creating Adelaide's best kept secret! Well done!

Excellent Italian restaurant, food was great and reminded me of my grandparents home cooking! The waiters were great and although the food took a bit of time to bring out, the owner came to personally apologise (they were extra busy on the night) and offer us extra bread and drinks. He really didn’t need to, but the sentiment was appreciated nonetheless. Would go again!

Excellent Food and Service. We searched up a good/highly rated Italian restaurant on Google Maps. La Tombola in Adelaide is one of the most highly rated so confidence was high when we booked dinner for three on a Friday night. I rang the restaurant directly and Tony took my booking, very friendly and accomodating. We were greeted by the same person at the door, a great friendly welcome. We were seen to our table in the front window so we had a good view of the street scape of Unley Road and could look back into the restaurant which was packed.

The waiter soon came to explain the specials and take our drinks order. We were keen to try the oysters for entree but the waiter informed us that the large table next to us had cleared the kitchen of all oysters by ordering 6 dozen for their table. Must be good! But these things happen. Instead we settled for some Bruschetta - which was first class.

For mains we enjoyed Spaghetti Marinara which had ample free seafood. The veal pasta - a twisted egg short noodle tossed with veal strips, smoked bacon, onion, roasted capsicum and mushrooms in a creamy sauce finished with basil. And the Calamari, which was fresh calamari tossed in lemon pepper and rice flour, deep fried and served with kalamata black olives, mixed lettuce, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted capsicum and Spanish onion in a balsamic vinegar and extra virgin olive oil dressing. Really tender!

The service was A1. Tony runs the front of house really well, directing traffic etc and when we came to settle our bill, yep it was Tony.

Highly recommend this place. Booking a must.

Amazing pasta. It can get busy and a bit loud so it might be good to dine earlier if you don't like that type of setting. The service is honest and friendly. I wish I could give 6 stars.

My favourite Italian restaurant, La Tombola is fast becoming my favourite dining choice in Adelaide irrespective of cuisine type. It offers a wide variety of pasta and main dining options on the menu. All dishes are provided in large serves. This is much appreciated particularly as the pasta is amazingly delicious. This evening, I ordered the risotto with veal slices, bacon, button and truffle mushrooms (all the way from Italy!) and rocket leaves from the specials board. It was magnificent! The risotto texture was just right, the balance between arborio rice and other ingredients was just right, the sauce was sufficient to add taste without being too watery, and it tasted sensational!!! It was so sumptuous that I advised Tony to make it a regular menu item. Without exception, Tony was warm, welcoming, polite, friendly and engaging – he is always focused on looking after his patrons. In essence, Tony treats everyone like honoured guests at his own home for dinner. The rest of the team always smile and provide attentive and engaging service that come across as sincere and respectful. In my many visits, the quality and quantity of food and service have always maintained the highest levels (which is rare to praise for most restaurants). Similarly, it is very rare to find a dining gem which makes you feel like you want to dine there every week. The highest compliment possible for La Tombola!

Once again Tony and his staff made another birthday celebration perfect. Nothing is too much trouble. The food and service just keeps getting better each time we visit La Tombola.
I would recommend anyone wanting an exceptional fine dining experience to go to La Tombola

Friday 13th August 2021 I celebrated my 70th birthday with a booking for 15 people at La Tombola on Unley Rd. Tony was so good in meeting my requests.
We all loved the food. We took a birthday cake which they were happy to cut up and serve.
Highly recommend for a special night for 2 or a group. Having the tables set up in a square was brilliant as we could all see each other and share in conversations.
Thank you Tony. 😊

Great place in Unley , superb customer service, great tasting food, on the expensive side but they can back it up with the above....you won't regret it.

Absolutely amazing food and service. We had spaghetti marinara and the veal and it was so tasty, fresh and great sizing. Tony was so accommodating and we'll definitely be back!!

Great service, fantastic food. Good wine selection.
We will be returning customers for sure.
Thank you

Amazing, great Italian restaurant, beautiful food,and service was amazing.

Cannot recommend this place more highly!
The staff, the service and of course the food and wine was outstanding!
Tony is the most amazing, friendly host I have ever encountered at any restaurant... (and we dine out a lot!) His generosity and his friendly, welcoming manner is incredible!
The best place to dine no matter what the occasion and we can’t wait to return!
I’d give 10 stars if I could.

Great food and choice of real Italian dishes with a good selection of wines where you actually picked the bottle from the rack....PLUS the service was even better. Tony (I think the owner) is amazing the way his staff want to work there for him. It reflects in the atmosphere. Must go back.

One of the best Italian places that I have ever been to. We didn't make a booking beforehand and we just walked in. The staff were so polite and they arranged a table for us even it was very busy. The food was excellent. I had beef eye steak with mash potato. It was well done and I was so happy with that. Even the garlic bread was good. We ended up ordering another serve. The staff were brilliant and well organized. Thank you for having us. We will definitely dine in again

Words can not explain how brilliant the food was! What made our dinner even better was the staff. They make you feel like royalty. Adelaide's BEST Italian. We can't wait to get back next Friday...:)

I would give more stars if I could. we used to go there in the 1990's and had been a while since we had been back. Have been there a few times this year and it has been amazing each time. Tony is a legend who makes you feel so welcome, and his staff also do whatever they can to help. The food is superb , absolutely spot on. My dad can be a fussy eater but he finishes his plate each time we go there. Finding that we are starting to want to go there every couple of weeks now cause the experience is spot on. In terms of cost, well you pay for what you get. You can go someone where cheaper but you won't get the same atmosphere, treatment or level of cuisine that La Tombola gives you. Thanks Tony! // update went there 2 weeks ago after restrictions lifted. new decor. same staff and the food spot on. both my parents and i enjoyed it immensely.

We went there for lunch today and the food and service was superb. We were so looked after by Tony, such a gentleman. We both wanted marinara spaghetti and they were more than happy to change it to our liking with different style sauce. Tony said, you tell us how you would like it and we will accommodate, we cook to your liking. The marinara was delicious and the tiramisu was the best we've ever tasted. We left very happy

We had a wonderful New Year's Eve dinner at La Tombola. The service was excellent and the food was delectable. In addition to the great food and service, we were so impressed by the warmth of the owner who followed us of the restaurant to say 'Happy New Year' and make sure we enjoyed your meal. Based on last night's experience, I highly recommend La Tombola and can't wait to go back there. Thank you for reminding us how enjoyable a good restaurant experience can be.

Took a friend there for a birthday on a Saturday night..
was very impressed as soon as I walked in the door with the greeting, the seating, the explanation, the attention, the service..
food was delicious, very well priced.
I will definitely be coming back again..
Well done team La Tombola you're a credit to the restaurant 👍😁

Absolutely wonderful Christmas function here for a large group of over 25 of us. They looked after every detail. The food was so brilliant atmosphere great and the staff and owner so friendly. They went out of their way to ensure I was safe as a coeliac. The steak was to die for as was the pasta. I will be back.