o meet a demand for faster, lighter lunchtime options, Ladro has developed a new Pranzo Espresso menu for lunch, quick!

Launched initially in Prahran, with plans to have it running over in Fitzroy by the end of the month with footpath trading hours at both sites “for summer brunching and negroni sipping as well,” say owner Ingrid Langtry.

The new menu sees less dough flipping and more light lunching options. “People wanted faster, cheaper, less carbo options,” she says of lunch seekers in the south.

The new fast lunch menu includes Pane (Italian sandwiches with a choice of ciabatta or piadina) and a large selection of salads. Our pick is the grilled Hopkins River beef pane with radicchio, horseradish cream and aged balsamic. There are also a few hot dishes including ravioli of spring peas, polenta bianco and a cottoletta with coleslaw. Sweets include bomboloni, fresh fruit and ice cream, and all can be packed out to take away. Or you can just have a Pranzo Espresso out on the Greville strip and wash is down with a quick glass of rosé, like Sophia Loren would.

ladro.com.au