Bar Lucio

At Bar Lucio, the marble bar is piled high with Italian treats like sfogliatelle, code d’aragosta, and Nutella-filled mini bomboloni. The fridge is loaded with panini and focaccia and tramezzini (sandwiches). The blue and white tiles are offset by dark herringbone floors and rattan bistro chairs. No, this is not a hole-in-the-wall bar in the back streets of Naples – it’s a corner block on Lenthall Street, in the very un-Italian suburb of Kensington.

Owner and master pizzaiolo Lucio De Falco is well known for making some of Sydney’s best pizza. His award-winning Darlinghurst eatery, Lucio’s Pizzeria, is an institution, with a second venue in nearby Zetland. It’s at the Zetland address that he personally bakes the bread and focaccia he sells at Bar Lucio.

The menu here is large considering the venue’s small size. There’s parigina, a popular Neapolitan-style pizza topped with ham, tomato and cheese, and covered in puff pastry. A woodfired panino – pizza dough cut and stuffed with rocket, tomato, mozzarella and prosciutto – has proven popular among locals. Then there’s the tramezzino – a sandwich designed to eat when you’re not really hungry – made on soft white bread with the crusts cut off, usually filled with prosciutto or tuna.

To drink, order the caffe del nonno, or “grandpa’s coffee”. Often served as a dessert, the creamy, cold drink was dreamt up by caffeine-loving Neapolitans so they could continue drinking coffee during the hot summer months.