Taste Confidential: Pasta restaurant Osteria Oggi opens in Pirie St in Adelaide’s CBD
FROM the team behind popular Waymouth St restaurant Press comes this new pasta venture which opens in Adelaide’s CBD on Wednesday.
OSTERIA Oggi, a celebration of all things Italian from Simon Kardachi, Andy Davies and the Press team, opens in Pirie St on Wednesday.
It’s rare for an empty restaurant, minus food and customers, to have atmosphere, but on a quick guided tour this place comes to life. There’s the extraordinary 21-metre concrete slab that runs the length of the room, merging from table to bar and back again; the main dining room, hidden from the front, that fulfils the dream of an indoor piazza; the mezzanine kitchen, raised like a stage; and, down in the cellar, a marble table where, Simon says, old women will be rolling tortellini, agnolotti and other pasta shapes every morning.
The one menu will run lunch through dinner, centred on pasta, but with antipasto to start, and maybe roasted meats to come afterwards in the traditional Italian way. On Tuesday nights a single large pot of risotto will be ready from 6pm, while limited takeaway pastas will be sold at lunch.
Pastas will include traditional ragu (albeit with bone marrow to the side) and broccoli with anchovy and chilli, as well as combinations such as smoked eel, peas and lemon, or blue swimmer crab, curry and scorched corn.
“It’s our take on what we think pasta is today,” Simon says. “All the pasta will be made in here fresh each day so we get that lovely texture.”
Osteria Oggi, 76 Pirie St, city
Pork tradition
Chef Owen Andrews will get his hands on Seppeltsfield’s 1920s Vintage Cellar for the next in the series of Unearthed events at the historic Barossa winery on Friday, September 18. Taking inspiration from the venue’s era, Owen will celebrate a Seppelt family tradition of treating guests to a feast of roast pork from pigs raised on the estate and fed grape marc.
The pork will feature in both the menu for a chef’s table and street food in a more casual lounge setting.
Tickets for the chef’s table are $195, including wine. The wine lounge has free entry. Bookings on 8568 6217 seppeltsfield.com.au
Spain gain
Highly credentialed Spanish chef Alfonso Ales is leaving Olea restaurant in the Electra Hotel after only six months but won’t be lost to Adelaide. Alfonso says he wants to concentrate on his own project, a Spanish restaurant and tapas bar somewhere in the city, which seems a better fit than Olea’s original Greek focus. Alfonso plans to settle here with his family, including a son born only last week.
“It’s time for me to move on and focus on my original plan of opening a smaller concept restaurant that feels more true to my origins and where I can express my creativity more freely within my fine dining background and my love for contemporary Spanish food,” he says.
Show stopper
Showing they’re not just out for fine dining accolades, Orana and Street ADL main men, manager Aaron Fenwick and head chef Shannon Fleming, have headed to the Royal Adelaide Show to serve up a shortened but smart menu under the Street banner with actual sit-down service in the IGA Food and wine pavilion. Burgers are arguably the best going around at Wayville this week, while the wine, beer and coffee also add a touch of class to the event.
streetadl.com
Poh’s new stall
Get ready to see even more of local food personality Poh Ling Yeow when she sets up shop at Adelaide Central Market.
The former MasterChef finalist, whose Jam Face stall is a regular go-to at the Adelaide Farmers’ Market, will use her pastry skills to share a range of treats and light meals on a daily basis.
Poh’s new stall is expected to open next month
