Melbourne's 1800 Lasagne delivers a dine-in bar in Thornbury

Joey Kellock started delivering lasagne to homes long before it was pandemic-cool.

As an events producer in the music and arts industries, making lasagne was his long-term side hustle but one he always wanted to take full-time.

When COVID-19 hit, he was ideally placed with his business model of delivering high-quality lasagne to people's doors from a vintage maroon van.

Melburnians have been so enjoying Kellock's vegetarian or carne lasagne (made with pork and beef mince plus pork and fennel sausages from Donati's), he is now finishing renovations on his first bricks-and-mortar premises, which he will open in Thornbury as soon as people are allowed to it's right to have people dine in.

The High Street space has history as an old-school pizza shop. Kellock has added a curved bar with an American oak top but says the brick-arched facade, terrazzo floors and courtyard are well suited to what will either be "a bar with lasagne, or the other way around – customers will decide what has greater sway".

The menu will remain simple: two styles of lasagne, maybe a slow-cooked osso buco in winter, cannoli, chianti and Averna cocktails and spinning records.

The space will be open for pick-up lasagne in as little as two weeks, but Kellock says he will play it by ear regarding dine-in: "I want the experience to be fun."

The as-yet-unnamed bar will open at 653 High Street, Thornbury in late September. Details: 1800lasagne.com.au.