Monday, March 16, 2009

SPICE magazine: Autumn 2009


Restaurant Reviews: To Pasta Muster


Fresh pasta is a bit of a fixation with me. After spending two years of my misspent youth running an Italian restaurant in Melbourne, I found it tough going reverting back to the packet stuff. Happily, good quality fresh pasta is not as elusive as it used to be, and with places such as The Re Store and Golden Ravioli selling it by the acre to the public, people are getting a little more persnickety about the freshness of their fettucine. Which leads us, naturally enough, to Italian restaurants. Who makes their own? Who is still buying San Remo? I had to know.

Siena's

Perth institution and ultimate child-friendly Italian eatery. In a family session at the Leederville branch, our small child joined the mayhem in the playground while we read the menu. Straight to pasta (bypassing the entrees, which were originally what the pasta dish was meant to be before it started getting served by the ton, but there you go) with a classic spaghetti marinara ($20.50). It was good, with half the ocean on top of a pile of al dente spaghetti straining at the confines of the plate. Still-in-their-shell mussels were small and tasty. The baby octopus and rings of calamari weren’t too rubbery, and there was just enough tomato sauce to cover the bottom of the plate. The spaghetti wasn't homemade but nor does it profess to be (although the gnocchi and lasagna are). Siena’s pushes great Italian fare in vast quantities at reasonable prices, and that’s exactly what you get. The service is great too.

Siena’s of Leederville, 115 Oxford Street, Leederville. Tel: (08) 9444 8844.



Maretti Caffe Cucina

I had wanted to get to Maretti Caffe Cucina in Mosman Park since forever, after learning that the owner, Matteo Maretti, wakes before the crows each morning to make his own pasta and desserts. That’s dedication. We arrived at the restaurant amid the usual Continental kerfuffle, eventually got weeded out from the departing pack and shown to our seats. I was desperate to try the spaghetti ai crostaci ($30) and if I’m ever offered a last meal I think this might be it. The spaghetti had bite and held its shape beautifully – clear signs of good homemade pasta. Generous chunks of lobster and shredded crab were tossed through it and enhanced by a fantastically light tomato sauce. It’s so rare these days to find a light pasta dish that is refreshing and doesn’t leave you wishing you had worn your elasticised pants. The hand-made desserts, which seem to be all made with mountains of cream, also rate a mention. The crème brulee and caramel mousse were both absolute sensations.

Maretti Caffe Cucina, 120 Wellington Street, Mosman Park. Tel (08) 9286 1899.



Catalano's Cafe

Catalano’s Café in Victoria Park is a perennial fave and is perennially bursting at the seams. I know already that not all of its pasta is made in-house, but I also know that the gnocchi, cannelloni and ravioli are the exceptions. I also have it on good authority that the recipe for their lasagna ($18) spans three generations of the Catalano family, so this is what I went with. In keeping with their other dishes, the portion is enormous. Oh, my giddy aunt. Around five inches thick, it is top notch, with enough cheese to make a fondue and a good, chunky tomato sugo. I was straight back in my old Italian neighbour’s kitchen, chowing down on her original recipe and getting sauce stains all over my face. Great stuff.

Catalano’s Cafe, 266 Albany Hwy, Victoria Park. Tel (08) 9362 1121



Viva

Viva is a big, friendly trattoria-style eatery in Applecross. It attracts large and lively crowds. The service is good. And yet it's a place that left me mightily confused. When we visited, the claim of home made pasta is plastered everywhere, from menu to walls, so my appetite was well whetted and expectations raised. I opted for the calabrese with homemade fettucine ($22) and, while the serving was gargantuan, there was absolutely no bite, flavour or texture to the pasta itself. Even so, the osso bucco with risotto was a winner, as were the chili mussels and the stuffed mushrooms. I might try the goat next time.

Viva Restaurant, 24 Kearns Crescent, Applecross. Tel (08) 9364 8688