Innocent Bystander
It’s a cellar door, a café, restaurant, bar and your home away from home, so relax and enjoy.
We think our wines are best enjoyed with good company and great food, so we crafted our menu with sharing in mind. Created from fresh local Yarra Valley ingredients and inspired by classic dishes we love, our food matches our wines – delicious!
The whole range of Innocent Bystander wines are served fresh from temperature-controlled, 100% recyclable kegs. It’s the same wine as in the bottles, just served by the glass or carafe.
Experiences
Flight Club
A$24.00 per personMultiple dates available
The first rule of Flight Club, is talk about Flight Club! Sit back in our Cellar Door Lounge and enjoy a flight of 3 of our wines, matched with local produce from some of our friends here in the Yarra Valley. We've paired our wines with cheese from Stone & Crow and Yarra Valley Dairy because who doesn't love wine and cheese? For those with a sweeter tooth, we've teamed up with Melbourne Cocoa to create a delectable selection of handmade Innocent Bystander wine infused chocolates. Once you add the flight of wines that inspired them you have a truly decadent experience.
Popular dishes
Pizza Special
Ask a bystander (wearing an apron) about the current pizza special
31 reviews
Paella del Mar
Market fish, octopus, mussels, clams, calamari, zucchini, lobster bisque, peas
24 reviews
Paella con Carne
Chorizo, chicken, sofrito, green beans
1 reviews
We were advised as to the unavailability of ingredients for pizzas, and were told we could not request any variations. This was reiterated as though it were a prerogative of 'fine dining' to be inflexible when it would have been so easy to be accommodating! Not impressed. The place is not what it once was.
It was a recommended by a friend to try. It didn’t disappoint. The food was great. Nice flavours with nice touches. The service was outstanding. The staff was friendly and very helpful. Would definitely be a regular to visit in the future. Thank you to all the staff.
Very friendly and efficient service. Food delicious.
Nice restaurant, good vibe, good service, nice food, overall would recommend.
So content. IB is the first place I opt for when in the mood for a top-quality meal at a reasonable price.
We had a lovely evening, food was delicious, as was the wine. Staff were all really friendly and accommodating and prompt!
Looking forward to another meal there one day
It was absolutely AMAZING! The food was so delicious. The drinks were incredible. The staff were absolutely amazing and passionate. They all made the time to make you feel welcomed to Innocent Bystander!
The vibe is amazing.. would deffs come back because of the vibe and atmosphere. Love it! Great job!!
Amazing food. Fantastic wine. Great for dietary requirements and really professional and friendly service.
Hi Kate, Thanks for checking out IB! We love all round great reviews like this and are pleased to hear you had a wonderful experience with us. Come back and visit soon. Cheers, IB
This is a good option for everyday dining with friends or family. Nice range of food and plenty of vegetarian and gluten free options and tasty with it. It is fairly easy to get a reservation as the place is large, but the ambience is still quite warm and cosy.
Hi Richard, Thank you for coming to visit us at Innocent Bystander. We have a great range of vegetarian and gluten free options, we are always happy to cater for any dietary requirements. Bookings are essential to make sure you do not miss out on a space, especially on weekends and holiday periods, as we do fill out very quickly, despite the size of the venue. We hope to see you again soon. Cheers, IB
The food and wine is excellent and the staff lovely.
Highly recommend!
Hi Steph, Thank you for the great 5 star review! We tend to agree with you there...No Bias! We hope to see you back again soon. Cheers, Team IB
Great food-really loved both of the pizzas we tried and also the pumpkin salad. Went down well with the Moscato. Will definitely come back.
Hi there, Thanks leaving us a fantastic five star review. The roast pumpkin salad is delicious, especially with a glass of wine! We hope to see you dining with us again soon. Cheers, IB
Amazing food and the atmosphere was great. Will go again when I'm the area
Hi Melissa, Thank you for the great review! Its starting to get cold here in the Yarra Valley and we can finally have our fire going again, perfect for a cosy night with wine or two. We look forward to seeing you again soon. Cheers, IB
Great table service! All the waiters were attentive and were knowledgeable about all the food items on the menu. Ambience was fantastic! We were recommended this place by a family member and will definitely refer friends and family to Innocent Bystander.
The food and wine were wonderful, and our host Tegan was absolutely amazing and very generous.
Hi Sarah, Thank you for coming to Innocent Bystander! Tegan is a superstar in our team and we are glad you were happy with her service, we will be sure to let her know. See you around soon. Cheers, IB
Such a great night. The service was excellent. Friendly and helpful. Very efficient. We asked to be moved and the staff were really great to assist. Food was delicious and the wine was perfect.
Hi Kelli, Thank you for leaving us a great five star review after your experience with us. Its great to hear you had an overall great time with us, from service to food and wine. We hope to have you back with us again soon. Cheers, IB
Was seated by the window on a hot day and as the blinds did not go the whole way down, my friends and I were incredibly uncomfortable by the heat. We requested to be moved twice but was denied even after mentioning that one friend was about to pass out by the heat. It was a very disappointing experience especially as there were plenty seats available (we were told were booked). Another table seated by the windows left after 10 minutes due to the heat.
Hi Genevieve, Thank you for providing feedback. We apologise that your group didn't enjoy your time with us. Unfortunately this the way the blinds are designed, if they were to touch the floor they would be in the way of the tables. Tables are often empty as they have been reserved. We are looking into solutions regarding the afternoon sun being quite warm for these tables and for the time being we are avoiding sitting guest at these tables. We hope to see you soon. Cheers, IB
Pizza's are the standout every time, cos lettuce salad went perfectly with it.
Average service and food. Paella meat and seafood both not fresh at all. Chewy and tough.
Hi there, Thanks for coming to IB and providing us some feedback. We often get great reviews about our paella and our service. We apologise that we did not meet our usual high standards. We hope to see you again soon. Cheers, IB
Excellent!
Hi, Thanks for the great review! Cheers, IB
I’d like to complement teagan (?) our waitress. She was friendly helpful and complied with all our requests with a great smile and efficiency. Thanks to her we had a great night.
Hi Gayle, Thank you for coming back to Innocent Bystander. We are thrilled to hear you had a wonderful night and were very happy with Tegan's service, we will pass on the compliment to her. See you again soon. Cheers IB
Nice place. Focaccia bread was amazing. Enjoyed meat and cheese board.
Hi David, Thank you for coming to Innocent Bystander. We are pleased to hear you enjoyed the wood fired garlic focaccia, meat and cheese share boards. See you again soon. Cheers, IB
I’d heard this place recommended by so many people I knew so I went in with high expectations, and absolutely loved it all! The food, wine and general atmosphere was amazing. I will definitely be back!
Hi Ellie, Thank you for coming to Innocent Bystander. Phew! We am glad we lived up to your expectations and didn't fall, short. We hope to see you around soon. Cheers, IB
The metre long platter was a great choice. Combined with a couple of pizzas and the beautiful chardonnay there was certainly enough for the 4 of us. Everything was fresh and tasty.
We left full and satisfied without feeling bloated.
Wait staff were very friendly and attentive and the service was fast without feeling rushed.
We will definitely be back!!
Hi Sharon, Thanks for writing a great five star review. Our chefs selection is a one metre long share platter with a decision array of local produce, with pizza and wine...perfect! We hope to see you soon. Cheers, IB
Delish pizzas - light crisp base with generous and innovative toppings
Hi Helen, Thank you for complimenting our pizzas! Using the fresh local ingredients certainly pays off. Cheers, IB
We had a great casual dinner here after having eaten a fancy, filling lunch. Felt like we could order as little or as much as each diner wanted.
Pizzas and some sides were all delicious. Wine drinkers enjoyed their chosen tipple.
Service was friendly and attentive.
Hi Kate, Thank you for a great review. We offer a casual approach to wine and dine! It's great to hear it was a fantastic experience. See you again soon. Cheers, IB
Maybe you could do with a bar flower arrangement from Midnight :)
Hi there, thank you for the suggestion. We will be sure to bring this up with the powers at be! Cheers, Team IB
Great food and service, live band could have played a few more ambient songs with less bass but the kids loved it.
Hi Mark, Thanks for giving us a five star review! We had Malcura join us to celebrate our fourth birthday at IBHQ, it was a fantastic afternoon of wine and music. Cheers, Team IB
We came to celebrate 4 great years of IB. Loved the circus performers! They were so friendly and entertaining, not to mention amazingly talented. Had a great meal and a fantastic time.
Hi Jack, Thank you for leaving us with a great 5 star review! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our birthday celebrations and the performers as much as we did. We would love you to come back next year and celebrate again. Cheers, IB
Food, wine & service were outstanding. I highly recommend this place & look forward to returning sometime in the near future.
Hi Chrisso, Thanks for stopping by Innocent Bystander and leaving us a wonderful review. We hope to see you around in the future, let us know if we can assist you in making a booking. Cheers, IB
The food was excellent as always as was the service. We were lucky to have Declan talk us through the wines with his great knowlege, humour and passion for the brand. I cannot recommend Innocent Bystander enough it's a very special destination.
Hi, Thank you for coming to IB and highlighting your experience with us! It sounds like you had a wonderful time and were able to taste a variety of our range. We will see you again soon. Cheers, IB
While staying at the RACV Club we looked fora change of scene. Your recent guest recommened Innocent Bystander, hence our booking. WEW were not disappo8inted, thank you
Hi Geoff, Thanks for coming to IBHQ, a good recommendation if we do say so... We hope to have you back again soon. Cheers, IB
This place never disappoints. The friendly staff, the food and wines were always on ponint. Our go to place in the Yarra Valley Area. Our daughters just love the mostly meat and cheese platter. The pinot gris jelly on the cheese platter plus the blue cheese, fruit crackers and pear together were sublime combinations. Definitely coming back again. Maybe will try the pizza next time.
Hi Maria, We are pleased to hear that you and your family love coming to visit us. The mostly meat platter is perfect for sharing over a glass of wine. We highlight local meats and cheeses, and make the pinot gris jelly in house. You will have to try our pizzas next time for sure. Our special at the moment is a smoked ham and jalapeno salsa! See you again soon! Cheers, IB
Greeted by lovely staff, our table was ideal for us. Waitress knew her job, but spoke a little fast for us to get all that the kitchen had to offer. Apart from that the visit was perfect, pleasant and all was tasty and arstheticly presented.
See you again!
Hi Elisabeth, Thank you for the excellent review. We are pleased to hear that you had a great time with us. We will see you again soon. Cheers, IB
Excellent venue and the food was fabulous! Thank you!
Hi Maria, Thanks for the great review. See you around soon. Cheers, IB
Was lovely and great food. They don’t have a change table or accommodate for prams into the bathrooms.
Hi Jocelin, We do have a change table. There is a separate bathroom that is larger and has plenty of space for prams. Please ask our friendly staff next time you are visiting and we can show point you in the right direction. Our apologies you were unable to find it. Cheers, IB
Lovely meal in a nice setting. Had the large chef's special sharing platter. Chicken liver pate is life changing!
Hi Jeroen, Thanks you for leaving us a great review. Our chefs selection platter is definitely perfect for sharing. We get lots of great feedback about the pate and also sell it so you can it home with you. Cheers, Innocent Bystander
We were able to make a last-minute booking and sit outside in really lovely weather. The gluten-free pizza was great, as were the fries. Service is always caring and attentive.
Hi Anneliese, Thanks for the five star review. We are pleased you were able to squeeze into our Garden Of Innocence, its lovely in the sunshine with a glass of rose and some of our woodfired pizzas! We hope to see you out there again soon. Cheers, IB
Waitress needs a few lessons in dealing with customers. Lack of training I suspect the problem.Disappointing declining of drink service to one of our party pretty well stuffed the night. His only fault being outgoing and gregarious. Given we only actually had one drink anyway, one would wonder. Paella overcooked to the max, rest great.
Hi Chris, Thank you for bringing your negative experience to our attention. We will be sure to check in with the team and follow up this situation. Please feel free to contact us directly should you wish to discuss further. See you again soon. Cheers, IB
Amazing pizzas there, we loved the cider and the staff were very friendly and helpful. Already looking forward to going back next time we're in town
Hi there, Thanks for stopping by Innocent Bystander while you were in town. All our pizzas are cooked to perfection in our fantastic woodfired pizza oven. Our Innocent Bystander cider is the perfect balance between sweet and dry, made from %100 Yarra Valley Pink Lady apples...Superb! See you again soon. Cheers, Team IB
Booked well in advance but was given the only crappy table in the place by a big black wall and no natural light despite 2 tables being empty by the window. Asked to be moved but was told no and the waitress lied to me saying I could have requested a window at time of booking. I checked the booking system right there and then and the only options were either table or bar stool seating. Totally ruined the not inexpensive meal by being given this terrible table.
Hi there, Thank you for providing us some insight into your experience with us. We apologise that the table allocated to your group was unfavourable. We do our best to make sure all our guests are seated with their preference to make their experience enjoyable. Please feel free to give us a call if you wish to reserve a specific space and we will do our best to honour your requests. We hope to see you again soon. Cheers, IB Cheers, IB
FAQs
Innocent Bystander offers takeaway which you can order by calling the restaurant at (03) 5999 9222.
Innocent Bystander is rated 4.5 stars by 436 OpenTable diners.
Yes, you can generally book this restaurant by choosing the date, time and party size on OpenTable. Due to local restrictions, this restaurant may not be accepting reservations at the moment.