|
|
|
Cafe di Stasio
|
|
|
Restaurant
|
Melbourne
|
Open:
Lunch, dinner 7 days
Price:
Moderate
Score (/20):
15
Reviewed By
Sue Dyson and Roger McShane
|
Phone Number:
+61 3 9525 3999
Address:
31 Fitzroy Street
St Kilda, Victoria
Country:
Australia
Food Style:
Italian
|
This Fitzroy Street restaurant is firmly established as a Melbourne institution. In a city where Italian eateries are to be found on every corner, this place stands head and shoulders above its rivals.We have eaten here many times. The service has always been first rate and the food has varied slightly with the changes of chef - always retaining the stamp of the owner. We remember the wonderful Italian truffles that are flown into the country by the restaurant. A risotto with truffles was one of the most memorable we have tried in Australia.The restaurant also offers another attraction that you need to be aware of. It has, for a long time, offered a two course lunch with a glass of wine for $30. You can have either an entrée and main course or a main course and dessert along with one of the two glasses of wine on offer. This represents excellent value for money. On a recent trip to Melbourne we decided to re-visit Di Stasio with the intention of trying out the lunch special. We started with a very simple, yet perfect bean and tuna salad that was reminiscent of a Nicoise Salad. Green beans had been lightly cooked and teamed with anchovy-draped hard boiled egg quarters and chunks of very good canned tuna. The other entrée that we chose (there was a choice of three dishes) was a stunningly complex dish of spaghetti with calamari. The accompanying juices from the braising of the calamari were rich and deeply flavourful. Main courses consisted of crumbed, deep-fried rabbit pieces accompanied by a nice potato salad, some gherkins and Italian preserved fruits and a dish that was the height of simplicity - a fillet of whiting that had been panfried and presented with a wedge of lemon and an unnecessary sprig of parsley. Both dishes were excellent.Make sure you study the wine list here as there are always interesting Victorian and Italian examples to savour.=========================Café di Stasio has a book you might like to buy:
|
|
|