The Pavonis’ First True Bar Opens Behind Sydney’s Best Facade

The Pavonis are on a tear. Less than a year after opening Postino Osteria in Summer Hill’s post office, and just a few months after Cibaria bolstered Manly’s dining scene, the pair have opened Vineria Luisa, their snackiest venue yet. It’s the drinks that are front of mind here, behind the curvy, heritage-listed purple-and-pink Marie-Louise Salon facade on Enmore Road. And they didn’t wait to welcome their guests.

“We actually sneakily took some walk-ins on Saturday [night’s soft launch],” Anna Pavoni tells Broadsheet. “People sort of fell through the door and were like, ‘Oh, can I get a drink?’ They were just stopping in for a drink, and literally three courses later they were still here – ordering another G&T.”

That sets the scene for Luisa. It’s on one of Sydney’s hottest stretches to drink – with Bar Planet , The Midnight Special , Famelia , Fortunate Son and The Magpie all pouring nearby, haloing the Enmore Theatre. Thanks to visiting theatregoers and a healthy local scene, the “gintoneria and vineria” will have big reach.

“You’ll see by the gin menu, it’s pretty next level. It’s the way you drink a G&T in Italy: in a goblet, with lots of garnish, lots of ice. Big proper serve.” The lengthy list includes a five-part G&T section – featuring two house Luisa spirits – available as a standard 30-mil “Aussie shot” or a 50-mil “Italian nip”. Over 50 gins follow, separated by flavour profiles, available with a classic match (Long Rays Australian tonic) or its perfect match – which could mean Strangelove’s No 8, Long Rays citrusy tonic, Tassoni’s superfine or a rhubarb and smashed mandarin tonic.

There’s a concise, playful cocktail menu, too. The umami-packed Olive You Tomato stars gin infused in turmeric olive oil and tomato cordial. There’s no by-the-glass wine list – just ask, the team might open something special. These bottles then form the night’s by-the-glass list, scrawled on the dining room’s blackboard. The tight bottle-only cellar list is a bit more spesh.

Those lucky Saturday night diners discovered just how good the food is when drinking. Suppli al telefono – golden eggs of fried cacio e pepe risotto with a core of melty cheese – stretch telephone-cord-style when split. Anchovies or chicken liver pâté ride crostini, olives arrive with hunks of Parmigiano Reggiano, and the Naples specialty spaghetti alla nerano – swirled with fried zucchini – is turned into a frittata. Culaccia prosciutto – a primo cut Alessandro thinks could be an Aussie exclusive at Pavoni venues – arrives with zingy pickled green peaches.

“The team are really into the inner west, because the inner west [people] are … more adventurous, let’s say, with what they’ll eat,” Anna says. So the kitchen team’s cooking the lesser-known Italo dishes they’ve always wanted to.

“They are not mainstream, I’d say,” says Alessandro. “The chicken giblets with the tonnarelli, the chicken liver on crostini, the baccala Romana, [where the fish] is flour-fried then cooked in sugo with onions, pine nuts, sultanas and tomatoes. We’ll see if people take it well.”

In the mix of pastas is a lasagne – but a “proper one”, says Alessandro. “You go to restaurants [in Australia] and people don’t do the lasagne, or they do it very badly. They don’t do it because it’s underrated, but if they do it it’s not good.”

Head chef Gianmarco Pardini has been with the Pavonis for 14 years – “in hospitality years that’s like 412,” laughs Anna – and he is leading the layered pasta dish. He’s from Parma, near Bologna, where bolognese is cooked for 12 hours minimum, using secondary cuts of meat with more cartilage. Luisa’s slow-cooked sauce is layered generously with house-made pasta, then it’s all toasted in the oven. “You see it in Bologna,” says Alessandro. “It’s a mainstream dish that we’re doing properly.”

Night-time services are the focus for now, and they’re testing Saturday lunch. “It’s fun, right?” says Anna, who’s chatting to us pre-service on the day before the official opening. “Different vibe, different restaurant, different concept, different street, different people.”

And the people are keen. She hops up again to let in a pair of eager drinkers, who surely stayed for three courses.

Vineria Luisa
135 Enmore Road, Enmore
(02) 9128 4559

Hours:
Tue to Fri 5pm–late
Sat midday–late

vinerialuisa.au
@vinerialuisa