Melbourne is a beautiful city and I love the multiculturalism, culture and lifestyle there. It reminds me very much of Sydney but it's more relaxed and slower paced than here. Look at that amazing view from the hotel we stayed at!
As many have said, Melbourne can have four seasons in one day and we sure did experience that. It was scorching hot when we arrived on the Saturday but the weather went downhill from there. Cold and windy days that belonged more to winter than summer. Thankfully, it didn't rain.
We had a great time exploring the sights, shopping, watching the tennis and eating. We also managed to make our way to Phillip Island to see the cute little penguins but I'll save that post for another day perhaps.
After reading numerous guides, we settled on a number of options for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Though, we never ended up sticking to it due to time constraints. We were super pressed for time and even ended up eating Macca's at the airport on our way back in place of Huxtaburger. We missed out on their famous burgers which was disappointing. That will definitely be on the agenda next time around.
Arriving on a late Saturday afternoon, we made our way to our first restaurant for dinner, Tipo 00. A pasta bar serving authentic Italian cuisine located on Little Bourke Street. If the name sounds familiar, then you are correct in that it's a reference to the finely ground flour used in pasta making. The pasta here is made on premises so freshness is guaranteed. A reservation was made one week prior to departure from Sydney as we read that it does get busy and is extremely popular with locals and tourists.
It was buzzing with couples and groups when we arrived just before 6:30pm.
Tipo 00 is a fine dining restaurant offering a casual and relaxed atmosphere. The interior is modern and sleek, yet rustic at the same time.
The open kitchen makes it very interesting to watch as the chefs cook up a storm.
The menu is short but concise. This makes ordering much easier as there aren't pages and pages to look through. However, there were a number of words we couldn't understand or never heard of, and that's the great thing about dining at Italian restaurants, you get to try things you may have never eaten. There are starters, mains, salads and desserts. The waitress also mentions a number of specials for the day in which we order a few.
Complimentary focaccia bread is served with a side of ricotta cheese and drizzled with rosemary salt and olive oil. This is a welcoming start to the dinner.
The 'Porcini Croquettes ($7.50)' was an item from the specials menu. These morsels were delicious and the armoa that filled our space when it was brought out was so good. A porcini mixture rolled in a bread crumb and fried to a golden colour. It tasted equally delicious as how it looked.
The 'Polenta Fritta ($9.00)' is made from polenta and deep fried. It was steaming hot when it arrived at the table and if eaten immediately, it retains the crunch on the outside whilst being soft on the inside.
'Calamari ($13.00)' turned out to be different to what we imagined, as we're so use to the salt and pepper squid. Grilled calamari is combined with cucumber, pickled fennel and black capsicum. The calamari was cooked well and it had a nice bite. Together with the three other elements, this was amazingly fresh, light and refreshing. Have you ever seen black capsicum? We sure haven't! It actually tasted normal but we couldn't help but laugh at what it looked like. So immature we are.
We were quite adventurous with this choice. The 'Pappardelle ($26.00)' is cooked with braised rabbit, marjoram and hazelnut. You may be thinking, what is majoram? We didn't know either. After a quick Google search, Majoram is basically a herb. The pasta was cooked al dente and the creamy sauce wasn't overpowering but nicely seasoned. The rabbit meat was tender but I found it to be quite gamey.
'Tagliolini Al Nero ($24.00)' was another exceptional dish. Squid ink pasta shaped in the form of tagliolini and then made with squid and bottarga, which is a fish roe. There was a definite seafood flavour in the rich butter sauce which wasn't overwhelming, but just right on the palate.
Simple looking yet an amazing combination. The 'Riso Carnaroli ($24.00)' is a Moreton Bay bug risotto. I don't recall ever trying risotto before and this risotto just blew my mind away. Till today, I still have the thoughts of how good it was lingering in my head. The risotto tasted very much like a Spanish paella but the rice is softer and more flavoursome. They were very generous with the chunks of bugs.
Tipo 00 is hands down my favourite Italian restaurant in Melbourne. I liked how they kept to the simple and home-style cooking. The ambiance was nice, the service was efficient and the food was great. Quality ingredients are used in their cooking and you can taste the difference. Would definitely head back in the near future but hopefully dessert will be on the cards next.
Where?
361 Little Bourke St
Melbourne VIC 3000
Australia
Phone no: 03 9942 3946
Opening Hours
Monday: 11:30am - 3:00pm
Tuesday to Saturday: 11:30am - 10:00pm
Website
www.tipo00.com.au
