Nido: Cosy as a nest

A warm welcome and a simple menu of finely executed Italian classics makes Nido a place to visit again and again, writes Deborah Bogle.

Head chef Max Sharrad, right, with his kitchen staff at Nido, Hyde Park. Photo: The Advertiser/Morgan Sette

There’s something especially comforting about walking into a crowded restaurant on a cold night. Push open the door of Nido Bar / Pasta and four of your five senses immediately respond. Warm air on your face, a blast of chatter with a backing track of ’80s pop, the pleasing sight of animated diners crowding the long narrow space with its earthy tones on walls and banquette, and, most important, the waft of hearty Italian fare from the kitchen at the back.

Less than two months into its life in the space that was formerly The Pot, Nido lives up to its name: Italian for “nest”.

An upholstered banquette runs the length of the south wall, there’s a handful of tables in the front window and, in the centre, a large, high table. Clever designers have also managed to fit in a bar with seating, and more stools at the kitchen pass.

Timber wine racks and shelving against walls painted in a warm brown, the colour of grape must, perhaps, add to the cosy feel. And if you’re sitting at the pass, as SAWeekend was on its first visit, you’ll be thoroughly toasted by the wood-fired oven at one end.

Nido, Hyde Park. Photo: The Advertiser/ Morgan Sette

For 20 years, The Pot has been the crucible not just for some of the finest culinary talents this town has produced – think Jordan Theodoros (Peel Street), Adam Liston (Shobosho), Andrew Davies (Press Food and Wine, Osteria Oggi), Emma McCaskill (formerly of Magill Estate), and current chefs, husband and wife Max Sharrad and Laura Cassai – but also the launching pad for owner and founder Simon Kardachi’s hugely influential and growing restaurant empire. Partnering with chefs and selected front-of-house staff, Kardachi now leads a business of 14 restaurants/bars/takeaway outlets, with another, Joybird, soon to open its doors down the block from Nido on King William Rd, Hyde Park.

Chris Woodcock, Kardachi’s partner here and at Osteria Oggi, dispenses a warm welcome, generally embodying the cosy Nido vibe. His attention – and that of his staff – didn’t flag that night in a restaurant where every seat was taken.

Now to the tastes: on Woodcock’s advice, we started with rootello bonnato, the name a play on that Italian classic vitello tonnato, but in fact nothing like it. Finely diced raw kangaroo is lightly anointed with bonito mayonnaise for a salty unctuousness. It was perfectly paired with a fat dollop of whipped ricotta drizzled with Ligurian honey, and a puffy, oily gnocco fritto (a kind of deep-fried pasta dough). Like tomatoes and basil, ricotta and honey is a marriage made in heaven. The creamy concoction (with added crème fraiche, we learned) was one of our favourites of the meal. From our seat at the pass, we were able to quiz the kitchen staff for details on that and other dishes as they were assembled before us.

Handmade pasta is a house specialty, so we couldn’t pass on that, even though we knew it was likely we wouldn’t make it to main course. Radiatori, which takes its name from little ridges like old-fashioned radiators, perfect for sopping up a ragu of braised lamb, peppers and chilli, was rich and hearty, a meal in itself.

Black maccheroni was served with little cubes of Coorong mullet steamed in acqua pazza (crazy water) – a spicy broth poured over the pasta before serving, its robust flavour a bit too salty for my palate.

Pork Tomahawk at Nido. Photo: The Advertiser/ Morgan Sette

I had to return for lunch a few days later to savour a dish from the “fiamma” (flame) section of the menu. Having witnessed the love being lavished on a pork chop – grilled then separated from the bone before being basted and finished in the wood oven – I ordered it, and wasn’t disappointed. Served on a creamy bed of chestnut polenta and a wonderfully green sage butter sauce, it’s a dish to be eaten slowly, and savoured. Hungry diners, or a pair, could opt for a 750g Kangarilla T-bone or a Flinders lamb shoulder “scottaditto” – finger-burning rather than finger-licking.

The Nido menu is blessedly short – but for the desserts, it fits on a single page. Just three dolci are offered, and a cheese. A baba with a limoncello infused filling are as light as a cloud and a creamy, citrusy sorbet served with a green puddle of bay leaf oil a perfect palate cleanser after the robust richness that preceded it.

Yoghurt Gelato with bayleaf oil at Nido. Photo: The Advertiser / Morgan Sette

Nido is the kind of restaurant you wish would open on a street near you. Its warm welcome and a menu that will change frequently but remain classically Italian would repay many repeat visits.

Simon Wilkinson is on leave

NIDO BAR | PASTA

Shop 2/160 King William Rd, Hyde Park; 8373 2044; nidobarpasta.com.au

OWNERS Simon Kardachi, Max Sharrad, Christopher Woodcock

CHEFS Max Sharrad, Laura Cassai

FOOD Italian

ANTIPASTO $6–$19 PASTA $23-$25

MAIN $19-$88 (for two) DESSERT $8-$15

DRINKS Aperativi and classic cocktails, a pleasing prosecco by the glass, classic Italian and Australian whites and fine reds, including a $250 barolo.

OPEN LUNCH and DINNER Tue-Sun

SCORE 15.5/20