The Minds Behind LP's And Porteno Are Teaming Up to Open a Newtown Pizza Joint

As it turns out, Luke Powell of LP's Quality Meats had a long-held dream of opening his own pizzeria. Mates Joseph Valore and Elvis Abrahanowicz over at Porteño had similar fancies. It just took a recent trip to the USA to seal the deal, and now Sydney's set to welcome the group's first joint venture, Bella Brutta, in September.

Taking over a King Street shopfront that's been home to many a former pizza joint, the crew's finally bringing its ideas to life — it'll be a laidback 50-seater, with a sunny courtyard and a pizza oven that's just arrived from Italy.

With this aspiring bunch of pizzaiolos at the helm, the menu ideas are already coming thick and fast, and while nothing's been set in stone, it promises to be far from traditional. "Everyone's bringing their idea to the table," muses Powell. "It's going to be a bit of a mash-up. Until we get in there, we can't really say what it'll be."

The same goes for the booze offering, which continues to morph as yet more ideas are thrown around. That said, with these hospitality stalwarts in charge, it's probably safe to expect an expert curation that doesn't take itself too seriously.

"I think it's going to be a huge amount of fun, and that's the main thing," says Powell.

Bella Brutta is set to open at 135 King Street, Newtown this September. We'll keep you updated on an exact opening date — but, until then, you can keep up to date via its Instagram.