Overview
You've got a new CBD restaurant to make a beeline to as soon as the office bell rings. And it's run by a lineup of Sydney hospitality legends. The duo behind Love, Tilly Devine and Dear Sainte Éloise, Matthew Swieboda and Nathanial Hatwell, have teamed up with chef Scott Williams (Bacco Osteria e Espresso, MoVida) and front-of-house star Felix Colman (Dear Sainte Éloise) to open Angel Place's new pasta joint and minimal-intervention wine bar: Ragazzi.
Just as Love, Tilly Devine champions Aussie drops and Dear Sainte Éloise focuses more on the French, Ragazzi does the same for Italian varieties — showcasing small Italian producers and Australian wineries that use Italian grapes. Though classic Australian and French wines are also up for grabs here, too.
The 38-seat wine bar features textured concrete walls, leather banquette seating and a ten-seat, wraparound brass bar. It serves up daily-changing wines by the glass, along with a whopping 300 by the bottle — so there really is a heap to choose from. To round it all out (or kick-start it all), there are also 20 different amari and aperitifs.
Alongside the natural wines is a succinct food menu that changes regularly and showcases regional Italian pasta dishes. Expect the likes of agnolotti dal plin served in a broth with white asparagus, maltagliati with cuttlefish and broad beans, and cavatelli with pipis and sausage. The sausage is made in-house using whichever meat is available on the day.
Nikki To for Buffet
This focus on no-waste and nose-to-tail eating is present throughout the menu, with Williams sourcing whole cuts of meat and breaking them down to create a range of dishes. At the moment, you'll find pork belly used in croquettes, pork cutlets served as a main and other parts of the animal turned into a pork and fennel sausage. When in season, expect sea urchin to be a regular feature on the menu, too, with Ragazzi receiving deliveries from a south Sydney diver.
While pasta is the star of the food show here, Williams also showcases the Spanish cooking techniques he learned in the kitchens of Madrid and Barcelona. So, expect to dig into Spanish-inflected bar snacks, such as Cantabrian anchovies on sourdough, on the regular. A few simple salads (such as shaved cabbage with hazelnut and pecorino) make the cut, too, along with daily-churned gelato for dessert.
Regazzi has been bustling from the start, so do yourself a favour and make a booking here.
Ragazzi is now open at Shop 3, 2–12 Angel Place, Sydney. Hours are Monday through Friday from 11am–midnight and Saturday from 3pm–midnight.
Images: Nikki To for Buffet