Assembly Restaurant and Pizza Bar

Chefs Nick Pulcher (of Bondi’s Da Orazio Pizza + Porchetta) and Antonio Buonomo produce traditional Italian pizza and pasta using produce from around Australia, including lamb from Junee, barramundi from the Northern Territory and trout from Tasmania. Buonomo is a fourth-generation, Naples-born pizza chef with 16 years’ experience operating wood-fired ovens in Italy.

Noteworthy is the Margherita, the classic Neapolitan favourite. For more punchy flavours, try the piquant Diavola, a meaty option that brings out the saltiness of the base through a spicy tomato sauce. The Quattro Formaggio (four cheeses) is done especially well, a combination of mozzarellas, gorgonzola and smoked provola. If you’re sitting in Assembly Bar and don’t want to give up your table, order at the bar and pizza can be brought from the restaurant.

All pasta is handmade; the tagliolini al nero di seppia (squid ink pasta) with sautéed spanner crab, king prawn and truss tomatoes is the must-try pasta dish here.

A selection of Italian wines features the primitivo grape, traditionally grown in the “heel” of Italy. Soft lighting accentuates the interior’s dark-brown fittings – the eatery is furnished with custom-designed, recycled Tasmanian timber tabletops and chairs. Piles of firewood are an added visual touch. There are heavy, white, Italian-marble tabletops. Around the restaurant bar, there are intricate, hand-painted tiles from Spain.