Four great Melbourne Italian restaurants
MELBOURNE loves its famed Italian eateries. Here are four of the city’s gems including a stalwart that’s well and truly back on the menu.
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MELBOURNE loves its famed Italian eateries. Here are four of the city’s gems.
Osteria La Passione
It’s been five years (five! how time flies) since Carmine Costantini opened his little degustation-only Italian trattoria on Bridge Rd to applause and plaudits.
To mark the milestone, Carmine is now offering an a la carte selection of his signature dishes – housemade cured meats with gnocco fritto; caramelised quail with lentils; chianina beef with cannellini beans – along with new dishes, all the better to enjoy his warm-hearted hospitality more often.
486 Bridge Rd, Richmond
Abbondante
It’s the quietly cool Italian that could.
With Hershy Ash looking after the front and Dino Esposito in the kitchen, Abbondante is a low-key, fun and funky Italian that’s settled comfortably into its new(ish) High St home.
Turning out an ever-changing menu of simple and elegant pasta made from good things from the market, Abbondante is as unaffectedly stylish as Windsor gets.
268 High St, Windsor
Florentino Grill
It’s out with the tablecloths, in with the Asado grill, but one thing that remains ever-the-same at the new-look Florentino Grill is the inimitable Grossi brand of hospitality that’s generous and welcoming to all.
There’s excellent steak getting a good charring on that grill, while the pasta – including the not-to-be-missed testaroli - remains some of the best in the city.
Washed down with an equally classy Italian drop, and the Grill has once again become a go-to gem.
80 Bourke St, Melbourne
L’Artagiano
With its range of stuzzichini – golden fried filled pasta cubes; mozzarella bread skewers - fresh egg pasta and Napolitano-style pizza, L’Artigiano (meaning the artisan) – is bringing authentic, and impressive, Italian-style cucina to the northern suburbs.
Thanks to chef Aaron Read (ex Sosta Cucina, Scorpi, Yak Bar) there’s serious style and class to those plates. Make a date.
77 Upper Heidelberg Rd, Ivanhoe
Originally published as Four great Melbourne Italian restaurants
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