hare capelletti, celeriac, chestnut, mustard fruits

There are many reasons we are trying out Lupo in its first week. Chef Scott Pickett, a good experience at Saint Crispin a few years ago, our love of Italian food, and getting out with our five week youngster for a (hopefully) long lunch. Not without flaws, previous experiences at Estelle, Matilda and Saint Crispin are much better than average, and the trust is there to go when things may still be settling down on the restaurant floor.

Lupo is described as “relaxed” Italian, though I thought relaxed might be a redundant word next to Italian because most Italian experiences are “free from tension and anxiety”! I’m a bit simpler in my description, because I would say Lupo is great. The relaxed part is the feeling that you are in a cute Italian restaurant, that would be as easily run by Nonna, as it would be by Scott Pickett. Here the room is almost kitsch with worn photo frames housing beautiful black and white photos of Italian landmarks and monuments. Even the toilet has its charm.

gnocco fritto, garlic, grana padano

The menu follows the classic segments of antipasti, pasta/risotti, secondi, cortoni and dolci. The dishes however have accents of the contemporary, and are anything but relaxed. The theme is flavour, much like the depth of Matilda, with recognisable Italian dishes that have a tangible difference without going overboard.

sardines, lemon olive oil, fennel pollen

Our first extended lunch with our little boy, we found great hospitality from the first call to make the booking, through to the exit from the restaurant. Earlier in the day I had a friend send me a photo of their hotel room view over the Pantheon in Rome, and now I’m looking at photos of iconic places like Pisa. I feel like I’m in Italy and my wife is half Italian to seal the vibe. When we taste the amuse of gnocco fritto with garlic and grana Padano, we have had a great start. Just that little bit of inventiveness, but so delicious we couldn’t come here without getting them again. Garlic bread will never be the same.

The Laurent-Perrier Champagne, and Italian Soave, are sliding down beautifully, and our antipasti of sardines with lemon and fennel pollen is another dish to come back for over a drink. The sardines are delicate, but the accompanying slow cooked fennel meets the brief. I move to a Nero D’avola and Catherine to a refreshing mocktail.

Brussels sprouts, farro, guanciale

The expert service was responsible for guiding me between two dishes I couldn’t choose between. While I’ll be back for the crab lasagne, the hare capelletti won my vote by a short margin. Neither choice could be wrong, but I was very pleased with the four large parcels of rabbit ragu encased in al dente pasta with the mustard fruit asserting itself in the celeriac and chestnut sauce.  Combined with the Italian red, I again transported out of Melbourne once again.

hand rolled garganelli, nettles, pine mushrooms, macadamia

Catherine’s pasta had a penne styling to it, but it was freshly rolled and longer. The hand rolled garganelli was presented with nettles, pine mushrooms and macadamias. The combination feels unique and it works. The side of Brussels sprouts is ridiculously good, with guanciale (cured pork cheek) and farro, providing that easy lift that Brussels sprouts enjoy.

tiramisu

We felt the serves had been reasonable, and went for dessert anyway! Here we had a hit and a miss. The hit is the tiramisu which has some modern flourishes, but stays true to the flavour profile. It is excellent and the wafer provides an enjoyable texture. The “oops I made a vienetta” needs some work. The name is confusing because it is more a chocolate chip semifreddo with poached quince in their own syrup and slightly salted popcorn to provide some texture. I like sweet desserts but the syrup does dominate it, and the vienetta novelty is lost.

“oops I made a vienetta”

As we finished with some espresso (Nespresso machine, unfortunately) and peppermint tea, we were presented with petit fours to finish. Classic panforte, torrone, biscotti and amaretti (that is awesome) is the perfect end to a delightful lunch.

Lupo is already an Italian magnet on Smith Street early in its life. It feels like it has the makings of an institution, but will Scott Pickett’s imagination allow it to play out in that direction? Let’s hope so.