While Matteo Margiotta’s first restaurant – Alexandria’s Pino’s Vino e Cucina – is designed to feel like his parents’ home in Rome, the second Pino’s takes us straight to the Puglian seaside.
The Cronulla space has at different times been a library, a Methodist church and restaurant 1908. It has now been transformed, emerging as Pino’s Vino e Cucina al Mare, a breezy dining room reminiscent of those Margiotta and his wife visited on a recent family holiday to Italy.
“One of my biggest dreams was replicating a restaurant in Italy that’s right by the beach,” Margiotta tells Broadsheet. “[That holiday] was an amazing experience. I tried to translate the emotion of that [into this venue].”
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SIGN UPA five-minute walk from Cronulla Beach, the old library fit the chef’s bill perfectly: nostalgic, by the sea, close to his in-laws. “My wife’s family is from the Shire. Growing up I [was] never [geographically] close to my grandparents or my cousins or my uncle, and I didn’t like it. But I didn’t have much of a choice. Now I have a choice to give something I never had to my kids.”
Puglian tiles and terracotta wall sconces dress up the lofty, white-washed space. There are olive trees and an assortment of Italian ceramics lining the walls, and ivy envelopes the exterior. “We looked for the best restaurant in the Shire – I said back then, the only venue I’d take over is that one because it speaks for itself.”
Pino 2.0’s menu is coastal, as the Alexandria version is Roman. Exec chef Cristiano Patacca is on board, captaining both a very busy pasta machine and a fresh menu just for the area. There’s a rich pici cacio e pepe with a cloud of cheesy foam on top, and Pino’s trademark silky serve of vodka sauce and spanner crab riding maccheroncini.
At its heart though, Pino’s al Mare is a celebration of the sea. “I wanted a seafood platter,” Margiotta says. “A real seafood platter that you can find in Italy.”
The real question is whether you’ll go for the raw or grilled option. In the latter, just-grilled scallops and octopus join a bed of Moreton Bay bugs and Alaskan king crabs, served with an array of condiments ready for the table – just as Margiotta likes it. “It’s all about community, sharing a meal together.”
If you can’t commit to a whole platter, there’s a standout raw bar menu. Sydney rock oysters, yellowfin-topped toast and plump ama-ebi prawns, with caviar, buttermilk, dill oil and green apple. The grilled king prawns are a star, with the sweet meat spiced up with house-made Italian XO salumi. “It’s a twist on my favourite Chinese XO sauce, [using] the leftover ends of the prosciutto and salami. We use just Italian ingredients: semi-dried tomatoes, balsamic vinegar.”
The tiramisu is popular in Alexandria, but the dessert Margiotta insists is “the biggest dessert in Italy” is the crème caramel. Pino al Mare’s is Patacca’s mother’s recipe, complete with fresh blackberries on the side.
With more space in the dining room, there was only one thing to do: bring more wine. Find 263 bottles, with 33 by the glass. South African wines pay tribute to the birthplace of Margiotta’s wife, while his own heritage is celebrated with a robust selection of Italian drops. Aussie varietals are a nod to the couple’s new home together here. Plus, there’s a private wine cellar you can dine in.
Pino’s Vino e Cucina al Mare is a seaside dream for the Italian chef, and a dreamy addition to the Shire’s Italian scene, which has recently welcomed Fior (from the talented Jane and Arthur team) and Bobby’s, just back from the sand.
Pino’s Vino e Cucina al Mare
15 Surf Road, Cronulla
0402 381 592
Hours:
Tue to Thu 5.30pm–11pm
Fri & Sat 12.30pm–1am
Sun midday–11pm
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