Mietta's Review
The tiny room winds around the steep narrow staircase and opens out a little at the back. Upstairs the room is larger but there is no way this narrow shopfront with its white painted lining boards could be described as grand. However, the food is very special. The owner/chef, Pietro Porcu is Sardinian and his food is Italian with Spanish and Arab influences. It is arguably the best Italian food in Melbourne, deliciously refined and absolutely Italian in its apparent simplicity. But the price is not nearly so understated. And this is what makes, or for some breaks, the experience at Da Noi - food that, like the music of Mozart, looks incredibly simple, offered at high prices and in basic surroundings. This is a restaurant where you must trust the owner/chef and accept what is offered - in spite of the all-Italian wine list and the sometimes eccentric service - it can be magical.

Other published opinions
Age Dani Valent, 31-01-2010

Gourmet Traveller 2010 Australian Restaurant Guide "Filling every niche of a narrow shopfront and buzzing with the energy of devoted regulars and a genial staff. Da Noi is the perfect antidote to haute-cuisine fatigue. Pietro Porcu's vision centres on sharing the homespun flavours of his native Sardinia in a convivial atmosphere, and it shows no signs of dimming"

Age Good Food Guide 2009 Score: 14/20

Gourmet Traveller 2009 Australian Restaurant Guide "This may look like a two-storey Victorian building in a well-heeled Melbourne suburb but once inside, you'll feel a world away. That world is Sardinia. There is a menu, but most people don't bother with it, instead choosing the four-course meal of well-portioned dishes, announced as they're served by the exuberant waiters"

Age Good Food Guide 2008 Score: 15.5/20

Gourmet Traveller 2008 Australian Restaurant Guide "The existence of a small a la carte menu is mentioned with such disdain by the waiters at this narrow terrace specialising in the food of Sardinia that you wonder why they bother with it at all"

Age John Lethlean

Age Good Food Guide 2006 score 15/20

Gourmet Traveller 2006 Australian Restaurant Guide * "There's something satisfying about sitting down in this slim, art-filled upstairs-downstairs restaurant and saying, "feed me". You can order a la carte, but leave the wise decisions to the kitchen."

Herald Sun Eat Bob Hart 3/9/05 "It is the tiny Da Noi which, curiously, operates in a street and in an area that exhibit few Slow Food qualities. ... And that's the way things work here: go with the chef's menu, which I highly recommend, and you will receive dishes which, in the chef's view, address your needs, your attitude, and the state of the nation. All you have to do is choose the right wines, which is easy."

Age Good Food Guide 2005 15/20

Gourmet Traveller 2005 Restaurant Guide "True freedom, it would seem, comes when you have no choices. Da Noi offers none. There's no aa la carte ordering, just a great single daily meal of Italian-inspired food. It's a traditional place, with an open fire, art on the walls and a visible, sometimes frenetic, chef out the back"

The Foodies' Guide 2004,Allan Campion & Michelle Curtis,'It's a diner's dream:not having to sift through the menu to find the perfect meal.At this cosy restaurant,the food-Sardinian in essence-appears from the kitchen,one beautiful surprise after another.Meals like these need an exceptional wine list and Da Noi certainly doesn't disappoint.'

Herald Sun, citystyle, 8/6/04,Simon Plant, Score 16/20,'The chef's menu is not for everyone.Portions are modest and prices can startle.But if you want top produce served with knowledge and passion, Da Noi is for you.'

Age Good Food Guide 2004 15/20

Age, A2, 27/3/04

Gourmet Traveller Restaurant Guide Australia 2004, Excellent wine list,'intimate approach to cucina Sarde-a combination of unusual dishes embracing both seafood and game meats-makes the dining special...The long, narrow space is a cossetting slice of old Melbourne...when it's good, it's really good.The wines are all Italian and the prices ambitious.'

Age, Epicure, Restaurants, 13/5/03, John Lethlean, Score 14/20

Age Good Food Guide 2003 Score 16/20

The Herald Sun, 05.03.02, Stephen Downes Score: 13 out of 20"

Sunday Age, 16.04.00, Carolyn Holbrook