Australian chefs serve up a European summer antidote
Those who didn’t hop on a plane for a European summer are finding solace in Australia’s dining scene.
The mass winter exodus of Australian travellers overseas leaves the rest of us forgoing a European summer to face the frigid season alone – drudging concrete paths to our day jobs, while the fortunate half saunter through the cobblestone streets of the northern hemisphere.
Fortunately, our country’s dining scene is not confined by borders, and as the temperatures cool, restaurants are serving up on a plate some of the comforts of Mykonos and the Amalfi coast.
Executive chef Matteo Zamboni of Civico 47 tells The Weekend Australian: “Australians like the style of living you find in Europe – and food is a big part of that. When you like the lifestyle, you tend to do what the people do – or eat, in this case.”
The Brescia-born chef brings a slice of his heritage and wider Italian-inspired cooking to the inner city Sydney restaurant that replaced famed institution Lucio’s after it closed.
Serving seasonal slices from different regions of his home country, Zamboni describes his menu as both “inspired by Italy” and “ a reinterpretation of it”.
As for the space, designed to emulate the coastal allure of Portofino, Zamboni says that to capture a euro-style atmosphere he had to create “a welcoming environment – we like to see ourselves as part of a neighbourhood”.
Such an ambience is on the menu for inner-west Sydney all-day eatery The Wedge. Boasting more than a decade of service, a recent refurbish of the hole-in-the wall establishment pays homage to the founder’s Portuguese and Italian backgrounds, with a curated wine and food list to suit.
“We’re leaning back into our heritage as we roll out new dishes,” head chef Jack Fitzhenry says. “At the moment it’s about the rough-style loaded focaccia – nothing uniform or pretty, just how it should be at an authentic deli. Rough as guts and sexy.
“The result is attracting locals and wishful travellers alike who want a venue that offers the casual charm of European dining, served between well-seasoned, olive oil-drenched dishes.”
For the owners of Jim’s Greek Tavern in Melbourne, the experience of European cuisine extends past what’s sliced off a charcoal-roasted skewer.
“We basically bring Greece to Collingwood,” says Pamela Panagopoulos.
“We’ve got the mediterranean going the second you enter the doorstep – everyone’s a bloody greek in here!”
The family-owned restaurant has been operating as a dining rite of passage in Melbourne since it was launched by owners Aphrodite and Leonidas Panagopoulos in 1980, built on a philosophy that grilled octopus, charged lamb and succulent slabs of fried saganaki are best served with whitewashed walls and blue piping.
Toby Stansfield, the head chef of Lola’s, echoes the sentiment that a plane ticket is not the only way to enjoy the delicious perks of a summer getaway.
Nestled on Bondi’s coastline, Stansfield’s recent appointment to the panoramic beach-view establishment has brought with it an onslaught of freshly made pastas, a selection of snacks – and basically “something you could find anywhere in Italy, either by the beach or inland”.
“We want to give everyone the chance to go to a restaurant and not deal with the special occasion pressure,” he says.
“During the pandemic, and right after it, there was that compliance of paying a certain amount of money to even secure a booking at a restaurant. “In some respects it’s lingering, and it defeats the whole purpose of hospitality – we’re making a space where you can just show up and have seafood next to the beach.”
European style.
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