Grana

Melbourne has pretty good credentials when it comes to non-DOC Italian cheese. Businesses like Alba Cheese Factory and That's Amore churn out the good stuff for the city’s pizzerias and osterias.

But apparently, it wasn't enough for Andreas Papadakis, Alberto Fava and Luke Skidmore, the trio behind in-demand CBD restaurants Tipo 00 and Osteria Ilaria. So they opened Grana – a one-stop shop for pre-dinner snacks – right next to their Lygon Street pizzeria Figlia.

The deli is headed by Osteria Ilaria’s pastry chef Lucy Whitlow, who makes cheese fresh to be slapped on pizzas, tucked into takeaway sandwiches or just taken home.

Grana is a deli in the traditional sense. From its wall of custom-built fridges, you can shop left-of-centre cheese (including mandarin-peel-wrapped ricotta and cacao coated-cheese), minimal intervention vinos as well as wheels of nutmeg.

Beyond the fridges, find fancy tinned fish, truffle paste, pasta and other pantry staples. There’s also filter coffee by Ona, bread from Ovens Street Bakery and a tight but terrific selection of cured meats, including a sausage range from Salumi Australia, best enjoyed sliced up alongside a bottle of rosé on a sunny day.