Just like mamma made: Sydney chefs share their favourite Italian eateries

ITALIANS love a lively debate and it’s hard to go past food as their topic of choice. So we asked those in the know to share their favourite Italian eateries

Pizza from Al Taglio Pizzeria, Surry Hills. A favourite of chef Matteo Zamboni, from Jonah's at Whale Beach.

ITALIANS love a lively debate and it’s hard to go past food as their topic of choice.

Who does the best pizza in Sydney? Where can you get the most authentic pasta? Who has the greatest gelato?

Everyone has their favourites, so we asked those in the know, the chefs, cooks and personalities who will be doing their thing at the Italian Wine + Food Festival on Sunday, where they go and what they order.

Cremino and pistachio gelato from Riva Reno Gelato

MATTEO ZAMBONI

(Head chef at Jonah’s, Whale Beach)

AL TAGLIO PIZZERIA

102-104 Albion St, Surry Hills

“I think it’s the best pizza place in Sydney.” It’s also Luca Ciano’s favourite, who says “Pizzaiolo Enrico Sgarbossa uses a 24-48hr rise, which makes the dough very light and easy
to digest, and he uses different wheat grains to complete the opera. It’s pizza on a new level.”

RIVA RENO GELATO

280 Crown St, Surry Hills

“It has the best gelato in Sydney, with flavours that you would only find in Italian gelatarias, such as cremino, a white chocolate and hazelnut ganache with layers of gianduia just like the famous gianduiotti from Turin, and the pistachio is to die for.”

North Willoughby restaurant Via Alta’s dish of busiate marinara (seafood pasta), a favourite of Silvia Colloca.

SILVIA COLLOCA
(Food writer and TV presenter)

VIA ALTA
197 High St, North Willoughby

“I love the informal trattoria vibe of this place and the seasonality of the menu. The seafood pasta is the stuff of dreams.”

FLOUR EGGS WATER
355 Crown St, Surry Hills

“Their gnocchi are always a favourite with my children and I love that they serve risotto at set times, which ensures it’s done the proper way, as opposed to pre-cooked and reheated to order.”

An antipasto platter from Bar Machiavelli.

ALDO ORTADO
(Ex-MasterChef contestant)

BAR MACHIAVELLI

10 Neild Ave, Rushcutters Bay

“The affettati misti — a selection of cured meats, cheese and Ligurian olives — is the most authentic, and best, antipasto platter in Sydney.”

LA BUFALA

19-33 Kent Rd, Mascot

“They make the best capricciosa pizza in Sydney, plus I love their zucchini flowers, which they do stuffed with ricotta, scamorza and parmesan.”

Consultant chef Luca Ciano’s favourite dish — black handkerchief pasta with cuttlefish, mussels, prawns and chilli — at Lucio’s. Picture: Kai Leishman

LUCA CIANO

(Chef consultant)

LUCIO’S

47 Windsor St, Paddington

“It’s like going home for me. It’s the exact representation of what good traditional, regional food should look and taste like. My favourite dish is fazzoletti neri ai frutti di mare — black handkerchief pasta with cuttlefish, mussel, prawns and chilli.”

Giovanni Pilu’s iconic roasted suckling pig with trimmings at Pilu at Freshwater.

LUIGI ESPOSITO
(Chef at Via Napoli)

PILU AT FRESHWATER

Moore Rd, Freshwater

“The chef, Giovanni Pilu, was born in Sardinia, where suckling pig is one of the main dishes. The way he cooks it — oven-roasted and slow-cooked — makes it crispy and it gives the meat a unique taste.”

STUART TOON
(Head chef at Rocker, Bondi)

SAGRA

62 Stanley St, Darlinghurst

“My all-time favourite go-to Italian in Sydney. I’d recommend the regional dinners, I will always remember the Sardinian fregola, with a rich broth and diamond shell clams.”

10 WILLIAM ST

10 William St, Paddington

“Not only great Italian food but it’s got the wines to match. I would never go without ordering the pretzel with whipped bottarga.”

More: Italian Wine + Food Festival, Australian Technology Park, Bays 10-14,
2 Locomotive St, Eveleigh; Sunday, 10am-6.30pm, from $25, italianwinefoodfestival.com.au

Originally published as Just like mamma made: Sydney chefs share their favourite Italian eateries