First Look: Remo’s Brings Its $8 Tiramisu and Affordable Pasta Bowls to Richmond

“The essence of a pasta bar is an affordable, high-quality and quick place. That’s the whole idea of Remo’s,” says founder Remo Nicolini.

Last year, he opened the first Remo’s, a pasta and tiramisu bar where everything is under $20, in the former Parcs space on Little Collins Street. The concept – part of a crop of specialty tiramisu shops that opened in Melbourne – was a near-instant success and still draws queues regularly. Now Nicolini hopes to replicate that response at a new Richmond outpost.

The Remo’s CBD and Richmond menus feature Roman dishes including cacio e pepe; spaghetti amatriciana; rigatoni carbonara and a version zhooshed up with truffle paste. But there are a few regional detours. The pesto is Sicilian-style (made with pistachios instead of pine nuts) and the ragu, made by braising Wagyu in sangiovese for eight hours, is a classic from Nicolini’s native Abruzzo and a dish that he says reminds him of his childhood.

The 40-seat Swan Street newcomer also has a much larger kitchen than the CBD original, leaving space for Richmond-exclusive items. These include porcini mushroom arancini; Margherita-inspired fries tossed in cheesy tomato-and-basil seasoning; and deep-fried cheese sticks filled with tangy squacquerone (a soft, creamy Italian cheese). You can also expect stuffed pasta specials like crayfish ravioli, as well as a hearty winter ravioloni filled with Pedro Ximénez-braised beef cheek and pureed cauliflower in a light pomodoro sauce.

Dietary inclusivity is a priority for Nicolini, whose wife has coeliac disease. He established Coeliac Australia-accredited A25 Pizzeria in Melbourne more than a decade ago, to fill a gluten-free gap in the community. The restaurateur has since started and sold two other Italian venues (+39 Pizzeria and Italico Sorrento). Swaps to gluten-free pasta options carry no extra charge, but the tiramisu is perhaps the strongest showcase of his commitment. All Remo’s different tiramisu serves are gluten free, thanks in part to the savoiardi biscuits he developed in-house, using xanthan gum and four different flours.

“The hardest thing to get right for any savoiardi, whether it’s gluten-free or normal, is the density,” he says. The biscuits’ light texture means “when you have one of our little tiramisu, you’re pretty much bound to have another one.”

A crowd-favourite limoncello tiramisu sees the savoiardi soaked in two lemon-flavoured liqueurs – limoncello and a Campari-style liqueur from Naples – before the whole thing is crowned with limoncello jelly. And a Richmond-exclusive Snickers tiramisu joins a line-up of tried and tested CBD favourites including classic, Nutella and pistachio.

Drinks are simple but cover most bases. There’s crema di caffe, a whipped coffee cream drink which Nicolini likens to soft serve; an Aperol-style spritz on tap; and two house wines, a pinot grigio and a sangiovese.

Remo’s Pasta & Tiramisu
167 Swan Street, Richmond
No phone

Hours:
Mon to Sat 11.30am–8pm

remospasta.com.au