Overview
There's a new club in town that you'll want to join. It's Spaghetti Club. Just landed on Swan Street, the latest venture from the MAMAS Dining Group brings Southern Italian flavours and the nostalgia of long-held family traditions to Richmond.
Co-founder Lucas Gugliandolo has poured his heart and soul into the new Italian diner, which was conceived around a faded orange recipe book belonging to his Nonno, carried from Sicily to Melbourne. Nonno's treasured notebook preserves a collection of recipes collected throughout his career, beginning in pastry kitchens in the 1950s.
"The orange book was never meant to become a restaurant. It was simply Nonno writing down what he cooked throughout his life, from pastry kitchens in Sicily through to the dinners we all grew up around. Seeing those dishes evolve into a menu in Melbourne feels incredibly emotional for our family," says Gugliandolo.
Head Chef Michael Fleming has worked closely with Gugliandolo's family to reinterpret the recipes they grew up with at their table. "It's not about replicating the dishes exactly. It's more about preserving the feeling of their generosity, simplicity and food that naturally brings people together around a table," says Fleming.
Menu highlights include a pork chop cotoletta, inspired by the family's tradition of gathering on Monday nights around cotoletta, potatoes and fresh pasta. The restaurant iteration sees a thick-cut chop finished with fried capers, parmesan and green goddess dressing. You've got to try Nonno's golden-baked lasagne, or, if you are more inclined to the flavours of the sea, sample the spaghetti vongole with bottarga and lemon. Dessert is all about the comfort of Italian classics such as tiramisu, ricotta cannoli and zeppole, finished with smoked honey.
Between 3 to 5pm on the weekend, Spaghetti Club will host Apertivo Hour, a relaxed offering of snacks and cocktails before dinner service commences. Sample a Sicilian Sour, Not Your Nonno's Negroni, or an Espresso Martini, served hot or cold alongside chai cream.
Images: Salt House.
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