Yes, Mezzanino serves "Italian-style yum cha" in Waterloo

The number four is clearly cosmically connected to Mezzanino, the new restaurant at the old Fratelli Fresh site at Waterloo. Part of the new Danks Street Produce Merchant development, it's owned by the Quatroville family, expanding from their Fourth Village Providore base in Mosman, and we visit four days after opening.

In a perfect world, you might not choose to go anywhere four days after opening – especially anywhere involving supply chains, perishable goods, and not only a full kitchen, but also a pizza oven, a gelato stand, and trolleys on wheels. And yet, through a strange alignment of the reviewing stars, here we are.

The idea behind Mezzanino is that the kitchen uses market produce downstairs to create culinary masterpieces upstairs. It sounds like a product placement dream: come up, eat something wonderful, go down and buy it. The suppliers sound promising, including the Free Range Butcher, The One That Got Away fishmonger, Sami's Souk Middle Eastern groceries, and Dank Street Cheese Affineurs.

When we arrive, the licensed cafe due to open on the ground floor (Cultured) isn't yet in evidence, but the long deli counter looks fully stocked, as do the vegie stands and cool room. So far, so good.

Upstairs at Mezzanino, the handsome Italian at the desk gives us our pick of the tables and explains the concept of piattini: small plates, made fresh, brought to the tables on waiter-wheeled trolleys. "Oh, like Italian yum cha," I say brightly, and the handsome Italian gives me a look of "only-four-days-and-already-I've-heard-this-10,000-times" pain. "We're trying not to call it that," he says, firmly.

We take a seat close to the beautiful gothic windows at one end of the large dining area. This has always been a lovely space – high-ceilinged and elegant – and it still is. It's big, though – 100 seats – and there's a slight sense that, on opening, someone was driven to some strange decorating stop-gaps: a Persian carpet hanging randomly on a wall, a few small orchids perching on a gigantic wooden urn; a large swan sculpture made entirely of cutlery. 

The piattini appear, wheeled by a waiter who seems worried the trolley might suddenly break loose and rampage through the room. He reaches our table, releases his white knuckle grip, and we choose some house-cured salmon carpaccio. It's delicious: the creamy fish offset by rough golden croutons, salty fried caper flowers, and tart, fresh chive flowers.

Another waiter appears, without a trolley but carrying a large serving platter. He reaches us and holds it out, realises it's too high to see the dishes, and bends his legs in a kind of boot-camp squat. We choose a caprese salad and an antipasto plate. The mozzarella is milky and tender, generously pulled over juicy little tomatoes; the antipasto plate includes herby fresh-baked focaccia, supple prosciutto, and crumbly, aromatic truffled pecorino.

Slowly, I begin to relax. We order spinach rigatoni from the a la carte menu (which is always available), and it's the pick of the day: fresh pasta and wood-fired eggplant with crunchy pine nuts and fresh tomato sauce. Chef Riccardo Interdonato is ex-Grossi Florentino and clearly, pasta is an open book to him.

After a day-four classic mix-up with the bill, we pay cheerfully and head back towards the stairs. En route, we pass the enormous pizza oven. Little pizzas with perfect, thinly puffed crusts are being slid onto platters. Curse the four-day mark! Nobody told me about those.

THE PICKS

Spinach rigatoni; salmon carpaccio

THE COFFEE

Numero Uno 

THE LOOK

Warehouse goes Italian gothic

THE VALUE

OK. Salmon carpaccio, $14; roasted lamb shoulder, $28; spinach rigatoni, $25

NEARBY

Yeah. Cheers. Thanks A Lot, Brenda May Gallery's farewell to Danks Street exhibition, November 26 – December 24