Italian stalwart Scopri to open cleverly named sibling, Bar Olo, just down the road
The Carlton restaurant team come up with their own answer to the question: “Where’s a good place to get a drink around here?”
In a city chock-full of Italian restaurants, Carlton’s Scopri remains one of the most beloved, with a following so loyal that the diner’s 14 years feel more like 40.
Soon, there’ll be even more to love, with the team set to open a 40-seat bar less than 100 metres down Nicholson Street, in an old Lebanese bakery next to Al Dente Enoteca.
“Originally, when the site came up, we thought we’d move our office there and add a bit more prep space,” owner Anthony Scutella tells Good Food. But his arm was twisted by the constant questions from diners about where to go for a great pre- or post-dinner drink nearby. “I’ve started telling the regulars [about the bar]. They can’t wait.”
As with Scopri, the bar’s inspiration is rooted in Italy’s Piedmont region. Which means there was a potential name hiding in plain sight. One of the area’s crown-jewel wines is barolo, so – after a few glasses too many – Scutella decided to call it Bar Olo. Genius.
It’ll do aperitivi from mid-afternoon, with parmigiano reggiano chunked off a wheel and a Piedmontese spritz starring barolo chinato, a digestivo “with flavours like chinotto”, Scutella says, made by infusing barolo wine with fragrant herbs and spices.
On the wine front, “we’ve been ageing a lot of barolos and barbarescos over the years, so we’ll be opening up the cellar.”
He’s particularly excited about the Giuseppe Mascarello Monprivato barolos – there are a few magnums from several different vintages. “Barolos are made to age, so they can be heavily oaked. These are really well-balanced and nuanced.” There’ll also be a focus on timorasso, an aromatic white also from Piedmont.
The kitchen will be led by chef Kirsten Sattler (ex-Pinotta, Alimentari), with a menu informed by the seasonal abundance Scutella’s wife, Alison Foley, captures on their Macedon Ranges farm.
Expect raw dishes such as beef or fish carpaccio, tramezzini – triangular Italian sandwiches with fillings such as vitello tonnato or lobster – and, of course, Scopri’s signature agnolotti del plin, perfectly pinched parcels filled with roasted rabbit, pork and veal.
Bar Olo will open mid-summer, depending on when its liquor licence is approved.
165 Nicholson Street, Carlton, scopri.com.au
Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox.
Sign up
Tomas Telegramma is a food, drinks and culture writer.