The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant
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The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant

The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant
4.5
Scenic RailroadsFood Tours
This location was reported permanently closed

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.


4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles5,128 reviews
Excellent
3,858
Very good
981
Average
159
Poor
57
Terrible
73

BurySt_EdmundsTrevor
Suffolk528 contributions
4.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2017 • Couples
A great 2 hour fun way to explore Melbourne by tram. Staff are very friendly and accommodating-they do so well in such a confined space. Wine flows freely. My only 'observation' would be why serve a beautiful braised ox cheek( delicious) with a filet steak on the side? I asked if the steak was served rare and the reply was Yes- but it came well done- you cannot eat a filet well done!! Overall a well organised top experience and highly recommended
Written May 16, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Thank you so much for your feedback. We're very pleased you had such an enjoyable, memorable experience with us on the tram. We're sorry to hear you felt the steak wasn't up to scratch, we'll be sure to pass on your feedback to our Head Chef. We look forward to hopefully seeing you again in the future! Georgie and the Reservations Team.
Written May 17, 2017
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

chui1
England23 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
May 2017
We thoroughly enjoyed our dinner on the Colonial Tram - what a great way to see the city and suburbs. Very good meal and wines. Staff were really good and entertained us throughout the dinner. Enjoyed chatting with other dinner guests near our table.
Written June 2, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Marita S
Ballarat, Australia83 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
We dined on the tramcar restaurant last night. Thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience food was great, the wait staff are fantastic. Antoine was fabulous, very amusing. the decor of the train is old world elegance and very comfy. Recommend you try it soon
Written June 30, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

chixor
Melbourne, Australia1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Booked a table for two on a romantic night out at $260 total for the late dinner 8.30pm departure.

The decor was beautiful and I'm no foody but I enjoyed the chicken liver pâté, kangaroo entree, beef main and sticky date pudding. The Shiraz wine was average, I think they chose it for the blandness rather than how well it matched the meal.

What made this a terrible experience was the constant noise and commotion for the full 3hrs. Other patrons seemed to see the free alcohol as an opportunity to guzzle. There was much screaming, shouting, singing off key and generally obnoxious behaviour. Apparently the $130 per head is only worth it if you chock down booze all evening.

There's nowhere to run and staff didn't bother to quiet anyone down, I assume this was standard behaviour. Carrying a conversation was difficult if not impossible. My partner and I ended the night irritable and each with headaches.

Tight quarters and free flowing booze with a tram full of obnoxious party goers is the worst combination for a romantic night out. Large groups out number two seater tables so there's a very good chance you'll experience the same. Don't take the risk. Save your $260 and go to one of Melbourne's fine restaurants.

I regret staying the full duration of the tram ride. If I wanted to take a party bus I can think of cheaper alternatives.

My advice to you if you want a romantic night out and see Melbourne, have dinner on South Bank. Then grab an ice cream and jump on the city circle tram - its also an old class tram and it's free. Trust me, you will spend half what the Tramcar Restaurant costs and probably have a much better time!

Shame on you Trip Advisor for ranking The Tramcar Restaurant no.1 in Melbourne. What an awefully expensive mistake!
Written April 5, 2013
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

LachlanC
Agios Nikolaos, Greece176 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
For a tourist visiting Melbourne, jump on trams and enjoy yourself or go to one of the many many great restaurants - but as a lifelong local I can see no reason why you would combine the two and dine on this tram. There are hundreds or thousands of better dining options in Melbourne and I think you can have more fun on a regular tram getting about town. Not recommended.
Written December 22, 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Jacqueline A
Melbourne, Australia1 contribution
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Had a booking made for Tuesday the 8th of November for 22 people, cancelled on me today (3rd of November). What was I offered in return - an apology and another date. They had availability on the later service to cater for all 22 but would not move us onto the service without charging the additional money. My suggestion - don't make a booking for a large group! They have certainly lost my patronage.
Written November 2, 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Erica D
New York City, New York49 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
I cannot believe this is the #1 rated restaurant on TripAdvisor. This is the first time TripAdvisor reviews have led me astray. I'll review the 4 major components of the Colonial Tramcar:

Food: BLAH. Nothing special. I mean, it was made in a "kitchen" the size of a small bathroom so I guess I shouldn't have expected much, but for the price I thought we would be served something less....BLAND.

Service: OK. Not bad, not great. I expected some commentary on exciting places we were passing and whatnot but there was no such thing.

Ambiance: Boring. Cramped little tramcar, traveling on old tracks around the city. It felt like we were driving on all of the unused tracks that were not being used because they were not near anything. I swear, we would go down one boring suburb street, get to the end of the track, and turn around. Not fun.

Value: NOT worth it. As mentioned, food was bland, service just OK, ambiance boring. My husband and I LITERALLY fell asleep at the table. Did I mention this takes 3 1/2 hours?! We honestly consider this the biggest waste of money on our entire 2 1/2 week Australia/New Zealand trip!

Overall, NOT recommended.
Written June 1, 2011
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

TomCruiseisNuts
Australia18 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2014 • Couples
The Tram dinner had been recommended to us, so we booked our dinner months in advance of traveling to Melbourne.. My wife, friends and I gathered with a number of people at the tram pick up point.
Two trams came and collected some of the guests, while our group stood and waited, and waited.
Eventually a very "cheery and smiling" staff member came along to tell us that our tram had "broken down", and we weren't going anywhere! She explained how these trams are pretty antiquated, so was not that unusual for breakdowns. Fine, so If this is the case, then why don't they have a backup tram or two on standby??
After booking so far ahead and flying thousands of km's to be there, it was bitterly disappointing. I saw an elderly lady with a walking aid in tears in her husbands arms, another guy asking about the $80.00 he'd paid for a babysitter he'd never get back etc.
We asked if we could perhaps get our group a seat for the following night, or even a lunch trip? No such luck. You'll get your money back (in due course) we were told, and that's it!!
For an attraction that has such a good name and obvious demand, its just not good enough!
I'm guessing the food and service on board is pretty special, don't know if I'm interested now in ever finding out.
Written February 24, 2015
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

TeeTee311967
Perth, Australia118 contributions
2.0 of 5 bubbles
21st August
Our Wedding Anniversary we flew in from Perth and had dinner booked on the Colonial Tram Car booked 4 weeks prior and we paid $240
As a regular reviewer on Trip Advisor i checked all the fabulous reviews and have had a few friends tell us how lovely the experiance was, so we booked
All day we had planned our ' eating round the fact we were having a sumptious meal and drinks package. not massive drinkers we were pacin ourselves for some indulgence!, and by having a light lunch.

AT 4.30pm YES 4.30pm a VERY young inexperianced young lady called my mobile, presuming it was to confirm my booking!

NO it was to CANCEL my booking that night as there was a problem with the Tram (which i now see on another review below)
WAS ACTUALLY FROM THE DAY BEFORE AND THEY TOOK 24 HRS TO NOTIFY US!!
Yes as you can imagine we were devestated
This was our 4th Wedding Anniversay and it was to be a great fun night out!

I was offered lunch the next day .... but we had already booked the Windsor Hotel (highly recommend High Tea) 2 months prior!
So i asked if there was a cancellation for the Friday night....
To which i had no madam our cars our booked out on Fridays and Saturdays well in advance!
YES i know that, because thats what we did!!
I explained we were from interstate and it was a special occasion and we were only in Melbourne a couple of days, also knowing that most other people on the Trams would be celebrating something or tourists too, but i may as well of been the garbage collector for all they cared!
Yes i was teary and upset and may off been a bit blunt but what short notice!
What a let down and how could the senior staff member give the job to someone with not a lot of customer service skills, such a bad refelction on your company.

Now i know i am giving a bad review here and it nothing about the quality of the food etc, but god help anyone who has the booking cancelled who maybe on a budget
and UNLIKE the review below ... we did not get given a voucher for another time and we had to wait 1 WEEK to be refunded $240 into our account!!..... thankfully we could afford to go elsewhere and pay for quality!

Your cusomer service was disgusting and it took 3 phonecalls to get a refund into my account and a 'Standard' email saying sorry

If you want to have a good reputation you need to do the right thing as well.....when things don't go right, we understand the Trams are old that's why we book them for the experiance, but we as your customers are who keeps you in business, i also work my own business, where customers are very important and if my staff had done this they would be out of work, or they would do everything to make things right.
Your priorties are all wrong guys seriously and you need a back up for when things go wrong.

For anyone who wants to spend $240 a couple on an amazing dinner, that's world class try Chin Chin, we spent $212 in the end on our fabulous dinner and purchased a great cook book and it was still cheaper than the Tram Car
The experiance and customer service we recieved is why it's one of the best places in Melbourne
for me .... Hop on the free Trams during the day and experiance food and drink in other places at night!
because you never know, if your Tram gets cancelled your special night will be cancelled at short notice and the staff don't give a damn!
Tania
Written September 14, 2014
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Dear Tania, On behalf of everyone at The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant I apologise to you and Justin for our requirement to cancel your reservation on Thursday the 21st of August, 2014. We understand how disappointed you both must have felt when you received the call to cancel your reservation, especially when you had booked your dinner several weeks prior and had planned your day around your Colonial Tramcar Restaurant experience. I can assure you that we were advised of the cancellation requirement at 3.55pm on Thursday the 21st of August. This was an unexpected situation for us to encounter and all available team members worked collectively to ensure all passengers were immediately notified of our inability to operate. The reservations consultant you spoke with made contact with you at 4.02pm and expressed her sincere apologies for providing this notice late in the day. We did try to assist in finding alternative services for you to travel aboard and it was agreed you would like to receive a refund. This refund was processed by The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant, however the time taken for this to reach your account is a result of the processes of our mutual banking systems. We received a follow up call from you on Saturday and our team responded to you in writing to ensure you were aware of the time taken in banking processes of a refund: “I spoke with you earlier today in regards to the refund you will be receiving due to the tram cancellation on Thursday the 21st of August. We apologise for any inconvenience the tram cancellation may have caused you and we can most definitely understand your disappointment. Unfortunately the tram was deemed unsafe to travel shortly before we contacted you on Thursday, due to the generator becoming loose and causing the tram to vibrate unsafely. As our staff and passenger's safety is our main priority it was decided that the service could not go ahead as a matter of safety. The process of contacting all passengers on Thursday the 21st of August was a team effort made by all members of the reservation team including reservation consultants and managers. Our team work ensured all passengers, including yourself, were notified of the sudden cancellation as quickly as possible. Unfortunately this meant that not all passengers could be contacted by the manager as all staff were needed to ensure passengers were notified as soon as possible. The details of your refund are below as requested and the refund amount of $242.00 is expected to be in your account within 2-5 working days” I would like to take this time to assure you that The Colonial Tramcar Restaurants are extensively serviced and maintained to ensure the safety of our passengers and staff. It is rare for a tram to not operate and we are sorry this has been your experience. If there is anything I can do to assist you in the future, please contact myself directly as I would dearly like to see you travelling with us and ensure your experience is nothing short of the very best. Kind regards, Ingrid Marshall Manager
Written September 15, 2014
This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

Jeffrey H
Washington DC, District of Columbia5 contributions
1.0 of 5 bubbles
My wife and are experienced travelers and were skeptical of the tramcar restaurant when the travel agent recommended it. But we did our due diligence and were quite impressed by the fact that this was ranked #1 out of more than 2600 restaurants in all of Melbourne on Tripadvisor. Given that Melbourne is known as a foodie city, we disregarded our better judgment and made a reservation for the 8:30pm seating on a Saturday night in late October.

Big mistake. This restaurant is a tourist trap, plain and simple. The food was about what you would get at a conference for 1,000 people -- heavy, buttery, bland -- and the wine was mediocre (which is unfortunate given all the amazing local wines in Victoria). The car was cramped, hot, and stuffy. And to our amazement the ride lasted for nearly 3 hours. The best feeling of the night was when we finally got out into the cool air at 11:30pm.

The waitresses and chef were very friendly and professional, but we just were not fans of the whole experience. We were most disappointed that we lost a night we could have chosen to dine at one of Melbourne's many wonderful restaurants -- and for the $250 we spent on the tramcar, we could have had a really sensational meal.

Tripadvisor FAIL for rating this the #1 restaurant in Melbourne!
Written November 17, 2012
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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The Colonial Tramcar Restaurant - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)