Pinotta

Just what the burghers of North Fitzroy needed: a local trattoria with plenty of class but no fuss. Andy Logue (ex-The Italian) has transplanted his simple, confident, rustic Italian cooking to a narrow, terrazzo-floored neighbourhood restaurant. A few linen-topped tables are squeezed into the front room, dominated by a long wooden bar. Out back, things are more spacious with black banquette seating, a gas fireplace and fresh white walls hung with art. The handwritten seasonal menu may proffer carpaccio of thick velvety-soft beef with parmesan, capers and anchovies, topped with radicchio salad, or semolina-dusted and fried calamari. Mains could be a hunk of on-the-bone rib eye with a veal jus, presented carved with a side of shoestring fries. Logue makes the pasta, such as pliant ricotta gnocchi in a lamb-shoulder ragu or agnolotti stuffed with baby snapper. Desserts are equally classics, like the baked-to-order chocolate fondant: a firm crust and a dollop of vanilla icecream masking a runny interior.