The first restaurant at Chadstone shopping centre's new Social Quarter dining and entertainment precinct has launched. Cinque Terre is a collaboration between restaurateur David Mackintosh (Lee Ho Fook, Ides, Pope Joan, SPQR) and Mister Bianco chef and owner Joseph Vargetto.

"It's a little taste of la dolce vita," says Mackintosh. "We're creating a relaxed Italian Riviera vibe, an escape to somewhere charming, romantic and fun."

Isn't it a bit of a stretch to summon the cliff-hugging ancient fishing villages on Italy's north-west coast at Chadstone, a sprawling retail complex in Melbourne's south-east? "It's really a beautiful restaurant," says Vargetto. "There's a separate entrance and a piazza at the front with a park."

While the outdoor area won't open until mid-January, from this week shoppers can take five with mini toasties of smoked chicken and mozzarella, or more substantial dishes. Vitello tonnato sbagliato is an upside-down version of the classic with tuna mayonnaise at the base, fresh tuna atop and poached veal to finish. Pasta dishes include corzetti, ravioli stamped with a Genovese family crest, in this case filled with crayfish and sauced with fennel aglio e olio.

It's not long since Joseph Vargetto opened his last restaurant, the ill-fated Cucina Povera in partnership with Maurice Terzini. It launched with a bang in June and was shuttered by the end of July.

"I'm endlessly optimistic about Melbourne's appetite for great Italian food," says Vargetto. "I am confident Cinque Terre will set a new precedent for restaurants in large shopping malls in Melbourne. It's pretty special."

The $71 million Social Quarter development will also be home to Cityfields from the Half Acre team, Urban Alley Brewing, Piccolina Gelateria and entertainment such as ten-pin bowling and mini-golf.

Open daily noon-9pm from December 5

The Social Quarter (below Hoyts and Lego Land), 1341 Dandenong Road, Chadstone, cinqueterrechadstone.com.au