The best Italian restaurants in the Sutherland Shire all follow a formula. At a pinch, that formula includes a fixation on provenance, diverse dishes that range from the time-honoured to classics with a twist and generous hospitality. This month, we’re leaning into la dolce vita with a range of dishes that will satisfy your appetite until you can whip out the passport again.
Pino’s Vino e Cucina
Restaurateur Matteo Margiotta has a huge fan base in Alexandria who will be willing to cross the Captain Cook Bridge for his house-made egg pasta. Originally from Rome, the Cronulla offshoot of Pino’s Vino e Cucina al Mare is a nod to the nostalgia of a beachside holiday in Italy. It’s Pino’s via Puglia. The restaurateur moved to Sydney’s Sutherland Shire with his wife and young children post-pandemic and wants to give back to the community with the kind of elegant osteria he himself would like to eat at. Presiding over the pass at the coastal-chic venue named after Margiotta’s papa is his righthand man, executive chef Cristiano Patacca. Everything at Pino’s in Cronulla will be made in-house including focaccia, egg pasta, juices for cocktails and mocktails, limoncello and honey.
Must-try dishes: The signature grigliata mista seafood platter, pici cacio e pepe and lobster pasta.
Queen Margherita of Savoy
Tipo OO flour. Fresh fior di latte. San Marzano tomatoes. Fresh basil. Quality olive oil. These are some of the ingredients approved by the AVPN (Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana) where pizzaioli Lee Carroll did his training. While the restaurateur and chef has handed over the reins to his daughter Jorja, he is still very much a part of the family-run pizzeria, located on one of the main hip strips in Cronulla. While Queen Margherita of Savoy is hugely popular place for pizza in the Sutherland Shire, it also ranked as one of the top 10 pizza restaurants in Australia and NZ according to 50 Top Pizza Asia Pacific 2024. The restaurant does a roaring trade as a sit-down restaurant as well as a takeaway and is one of the best places for a cocktail in the Shire.
Must try dishes: The bottomless brunch or proper pepperoni.
Fior Gymea
Award-winning design studio Luchetti Krelle (Hurricane’s Cronulla and Blackwood Pantry) has sprinkled some of its star dust over Fior, the new Italian restaurant in Gymea. ‘Fior’ means ‘flower’ in Italian. But it’s not a nod to the Gymea lily, rather, a reference to fior di latte, one of the key ingredients used in the restaurant run by Tristan Rosier (ex-Est) and his partner in life and business, Rebecca Fanning. The restaurant, on the site of the old Caruso’s Italian, is the younger sibling to fine diner Jane and casual bistro Arthur, which are adjacent eateries in Surry Hills. Head chef Will Lawson, who comes to Fior by way of Fred’s, Ms G’s and Arthur, is known for his broad take on Italian with dishes such as the malfalde corte (short cut and curly pasta) or rigatoni with red pepper sugo.
Must-try dishes: The pappardelle with pork and fennel sausage ragu.
Giro Osteria
The Natale Group has gifted Cronulla with some of its very best restaurants. There’s Alphabet St (Thai), Johnny Hu (Chinese) and Giro Osteria. And all three are up there with the very best restaurants in the Sutherland Shire. ‘In Giro’ is an Italian expression that means ‘around’ or ‘about’ and that’s exactly what the passing parade is doing beside this well-placed Cronulla venue with a water view. Giro Osteria was one of the first restaurants to reinvigorate Cronulla’s food scene. The head chef is Georgia-born Paata Khutsishvili who has been at the helm for about a decade and is a steady hand known for noteworthy offerings such as the pasta alla vodka, rigatoni and chilli and the arancini of pork belly with smoked chilli. Check the chalkboard for the weekly specials which rotate with the seasons.
Must-try dishes: Linguine king prawns with garlic and chilli, polenta chips and tiramisu.
Levain Sourdough Pizza
Levain Sourdough Pizzeria is the realisation of owner and local Ben Gilbert’s vision to make beautiful artisan pizza that heroes local ingredients. The pizzas at Levain are created with a signature sourdough base that is easier to digest and designed to promote good health. “We’re all about the ingredient-led menu where everything, including the wheat, is sourced from NSW,” says Ben. While the drawcard dish here is of course the artisanal pizza, there are also freshly baked sourdough sandwiches, antipasti, dips and desserts designed to round out the menu. Ben has brought chefs Matteo Giordani and Jarred Shaw onboard to help make his dream a reality. The restaurants was one of the first to open at Bay Central in Woolooware in early 2024.
Must-try dishes: The Hot Bells pizza with hot salami, nduja drizzled with honey followed by vanilla pannacotta.
Folk by Albi
The good folk behind Albi’s Taverna have upped sticks and moved to Folk Lounge & Dining, located within Tradies Gymea. Chef Albi Cuni first found his love of cooking in Italy at the age of 13 when he left school to train as a chef at a leading hospitality school. After learning the roots of Italian and French cuisine, Albi completed his apprenticeship in a Michelin one-starred restaurant in Italy. Luckily for Shire diners, Albi has taken that training and applied it to Folk where the focus is on the warm, generous Italian-style hospitality that has helped the chef and restaurateur gain his loyal, local following. Expect a palette of moss and peat greens and velvet banquette seating in the sophisticated new space which opens from breakfast through to lunch and dinner. In addition to the full roster of Italian classics, expect elevated club grub that ranges from beef burgers to schnitties and roasts.
Must-try dishes: A saucy bowl of Nonna’s Meatballs followed by lasange with rocket salad and lemon semifreddo.
Carla Grossetti is an award-winning local journalist. Follow her food and travel adventures at @food.travel.stories on Instagram. To read more of Carla’s stories, visit www.carlagrossetti.com
Sutherland Shire Council acknowledges the Dharawal-speaking people who are the Traditional Custodians of the Land.
