The best pasta in Melbourne includes our obnoxiously carb-loaded, sauced-up tips to the hottest pasta plates you can twirl this side of Europe.
It’s the itinerary you didn’t think you needed until now. From brekky spaghetti to $9 knockoff bowls, do what you will with this sunrise-to-sunset agenda in eating the good stuff. And to any pasta paramour that finds the stamina to make their way through the whole progressive crawl, we salute you with fervent Italian gesticulations and a fat pinot.
Breakfast
Yes, Cantina Carolina has sanctioned spaghetti at dawn. Consider this the cure for your next monolithic hangover, the reason to go to work tomorrow and the end to the smashed avo zeitgeist. Exercise no self-control when tucking into the Carbonara Tartufata — spaghetti alla chitarra with confit yolk, pancetta, pecorino, pepper and truffle. Wash it down with a potent espresso.
Lunch
Cacio e pepe translates to ‘cheese and pepper’, and Marameo (formerly the almighty Sarti) has the ridiculously simple dish down to a fine art. So minimalistic, this $15 (!!) dish fits seamlessly into the Melbourne aesthetic. Somehow, four pillars of cheese, pepper, spaghetti and more cheese mingle together to taste like God’s work. Head here for lunch in the CBD (that you won’t have to Afterpay).
Knockoffs
This one is practically a highway robbery. The crew at Good Times are slinging rotating pastas for just six bucks. That’s less than today’s Myki daily fare. For the mate that you ‘owe dinner’ or constantly find yourself in severe alcohol debt to, this is the place to repent your sins while simultaneously indulging your glutinous side. Open only three days a week, wash down your casual fare with countless $9 negronis.
Dinner
Ms Frankie doesn’t mess around with doughy wheels of pizza, but instead pays solitary homage to pasta and aperitivo. In Cremorne’s melting pot of boutique agencies, showrooms and burgeoning dining stalwarts, we embrace this pasta bar with a ‘never stop’ approach to parmesan garnishing. Gorge yourself on the spaghetti al pomodoro (can be veganised) or spaghetti al pesto siciliano with an icy Aperol spritz nursed firmly in hand.
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Off the grid
Need to just get the fuck away from it all and issue yourself a famil in the name of formaggio? Us too. The tagliatelle alla bolognese (traditional meat ragu) at 400 Gradi Yarra Valley practically says ‘there there’ when arriving at your table. You’ll find solace, sanctitude and salty serendipity in this plate while soaking up the fantastical, bucolic surrounds of Rochford Winery. *Chef’s kiss*
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Dessert
It’s not pasta (sorry), but the Nutella pizza from Figo is unrivalled in its smashability. Translating to ‘cool’ in Italian, Figo embodies a laissez-faire, but totally luxe, approach to the classics. This saccharine pizza offering is the ideal way to cap off a cheat day (or every day) and a smattering of strawberries makes it totally nutritional.
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