Ronnie Di Stasio's guide to Lygon Street, Carlton

The Melbourne-Italian restaurateur has been in love with Lygon Street for 50 years. In the midst of a renaissance, these are the places he holds dear.

Rinaldo "Ronnie" Di Stasio has been a frequent visitor to Carlton since he was 17, winding his way through Lygon Street and its offshoots, spending nights at Genevieve's Cafe, the Weathercock Wine Bar or La Mama Theatre, eating at vegetarian restaurant Shakahari or pizzeria Toto's.

It says a lot about the suburb abutting the CBD's north that many of these businesses are still going.

The 67-year-old restaurateur is now among them. He opened Di Stasio Carlton, a shrine of Italian culture with a skew towards pizza, last November.

"I've always loved Carlton, and all of a sudden you blink and 40 years later you're actually here. I don't know what you'd call that."

Fate is perhaps the most Italian way to describe Di Stasio returning to do business in the place where he visited his first restaurant aged 12 (La Cacciatora), discovered the ritual of coffee (at L'Alba, then University Cafe) and first brushed up against the worlds of academia and the arts at Jimmy Watson's through the fog of cigar smoke.

There's a lot more to Carlton than the raffia Chianti bottle... the representation of Italy in Australia is not just Lygon Street, pizzas and Ferraris.

Di Stasio Carlton is, in fact, his second foray into the suburb. In 1987 he and ex-business partner Piero Gesualdi took over the University Hotel. That venture was short-lived, but his love affair with Melbourne's Little Italy has endured.

Much has changed over the years, and not always for the better. The suburb that's long been regarded as an epicentre of Italian culture (after an earlier phase as Melbourne's Jewish heartland) has gone from bohemian to hip to underworld to confused in 60-odd years.

Di Stasio, though, believes in Carlton. And his knack for seeing what others don't quite get is undeniable, starting with Rosati on then-overlooked Flinders Lane in the '80s.

He croons about the milieu of academics and artists, wealthy and countercultural, Italians and others that made Carlton so appealing over many decades.

"I feel the air of renaissance in Carlton," he says over lunch at his Faraday Street restaurant.

His choice to open in the suburb – albeit slightly off Broadway – was driven by the architecture of the building, located next to King & Godfree, and especially its secluded courtyard, which feels shipped from Italy.

"There's a lot more to Carlton than the raffia Chianti bottle...

"The representation of Italy in Australia is not just Lygon Street, pizzas and Ferraris."

The next generation of Italian delicatessens, gelaterias and restaurants are proof, combining slick design with artisan values. See the revamped King & Godfree, Pidapipo Gelato and, of course, Di Stasio's own restaurant, which serves some of the most carefully prepared pizza on the strip, without a checked tablecloth in sight.

Coffee, though, isn't going anywhere. "You can have coffee at home if you want, but you don't see anyone," laughs Di Stasio. "Nobody needs another coffee, but the coffee's a bridge. Coffee's seductive." So coffee is where we start.

The Di Stasio tour

Socialising is everything at D.O.C Espresso (previously Carlton Espresso), where a stand-up espresso bar is complemented by tables. Di Stasio describes this Italo-Australian cafe as "the only piazza in Australia" and relishes the Italian words that tumble out of the mouths of waiters and customers.

"If you're feeling lonely, go there," he advises. (Psst: the best seats for seeing and being seen are out the front.)

By the afternoon, it's all about spritzes or a glass of wine before you move on to dinner nearby.

"Walking distance is what I like about Carlton. You're in a real little Italian village."

A short stroll away is one of the bakeries that set the standard for today's sourdough bakeries in Melbourne.

Baker D. Chirico still has wow factor when you walk into its warm glow a decade on. The counter is a terraced arrangement of treats, from plump bomboloni to wobbly quiche, with loaves of bread stowed in the eye-catching wooden shelves that stretch like ribbons across the walls and ceiling.

Looks aside, "it's just like the village baker everywhere in Italy," says Di Stasio. "Whatever the season is, they'll do something special." It could be glossy hot cross buns, dense panforte or domes of panettone. "Bread is life," he says.

Across the road in a pair of ochre-coloured terraces is Shakahari, the vegetarian restaurant that attracts eaters seeking quinoa croquettes and laksa with fried tempeh.

"We could all do with a bit more vegetarian food," says Di Stasio, who loves the suburb for more than just its Italian heartbeat.

The restaurant first opened in another building on Lygon Street 50 years ago, and he's been going there for 35 years, usually solo. He applauds the atmosphere created by manager Manjula O'Dwyer.

"The minute you go there, you feel like you're in a temple. You can leave your ego outside and let them look after you. If I don't go there one week, I miss it."

Next door is La Mama Theatre, a fixture of Carlton since the suburb's bohemian 1960s. Recovered from a 2018 fire and months of shutdowns, the theatre, known for its cutting-edge productions, now stands tall with a new look. "Thank god we've got it there," says Di Stasio. "Carlton would not be the same without it."

When the twinkle of chrome hits your eye at the corner of Faraday and Lygon streets, you'll know you're near Coffee Machine Technologies. Its windows are full of serious hardware and retro-style lever espresso machines. But when you walk in, the first thing you see is the handsome black-and-white espresso bar, just like the stand-up bars found all over Italy.

"It's architecture that is not expected here. It shows a little bit more faith in the lift-off of Carlton. It's a breath of fresh air," says Di Stasio.

The shop, from husband-and-wife team John and Connie Colangeli, is a coffee aficionado's heaven, with machines, grinders and milk steamers from entry level to semi-commercial models. "I love seeing husband and wife working together."

A short walk away is University of Melbourne, a vast oasis that feels too good to be true in this urban pocket. Di Stasio likes to stroll with his dogs, Lola and Lia Bella, through the university grounds, taking in the lawns and landscaped gardens flanking architectural gems from all eras, like the craggy stone-fronted Elisabeth Murdoch building and the contemporary steel and glass of the new Melbourne School of Design.

"I don't know if the mainstream are aware of it, but it's open to the public," he says.

But, right now, D.O.C Delicatessen beckons. "It smells like Italy when you go in there," says Di Stasio, who won't go anywhere else for salumi or DOP Italian cheese. "This is a genuine alimentari."

It's hard to know where to start. Floor-to-ceiling shelves are lined with dozens of vinegars and olive oils, endless pasta shapes, rows of pickled vegetables. The fridges beckon with pestos, ragus, minestrone and lasagne for two, prepared with the painstaking care and time you don't have.

Di Stasio's hot tip is to get a panini made up, a la minute, just like in Italy. It might be filled with nothing more than freshly sliced mortadella and butter, or you can level up with salami, Sardinian pecorino and cime di rapa.

One of the last remaining fresh produce shops on Lygon Street is Donati's Fine Meats. This butcher shop is a go-to for pork and veal, in particular, but it offers much more, including the famed classical music that provides a dramatic soundtrack to your shopping.

Corned girello beef, deep-red oxtail, pink veal chops and many kinds of sausages fill the cabinets – but they don't stay full for long.

"In my opinion, it's the best macelleria in Australia," says Di Stasio, who buys the meat for his Carlton restaurant at Donati's.

"You feel as though it's all been done with good hands, not hot hands, not angry hands. If a chef or butcher or anyone has angry hands, the spirit comes through in whatever they're making."

Aside from the quality of the produce, Di Stasio loves that it's a family-run business from patriarch Leo, wife Vivienne and son Marcello, who is both an architect and a butcher. "That's an unusual combination in Australia but not so much in Italy. You'll find the kids do their degrees and then go back to the family business. What a beautiful set-up."

Simple, likeable and casual, Tiamo is known in many quarters of Melbourne, if not by name, then by its perennially bustling streetside tables on a prime stretch of Lygon Street.

"I have a tremendous amount of respect for Tiamo," says Di Stasio.

Owner Francesco Cacopardo and manager Giulio Damante epitomise the feeling of warmth that's at the heart of Di Stasio's idea of hospitality.

"They know everyone that's coming there. And if they don't know you, they make you feel more welcome. That's important. There are people who live on their own around here. That's their kitchen table, that's their dining room."

His go-to order is tortellini in brodo and a salad, but you'll find other comfort foods such as spaghetti with Aussie-style bolognese, veal parmigiana, pesto-flecked penne and an array of pizzas.

"Try and do consistency for that long. It's very easy to open a restaurant for five months, but try doing it for 40 years like them."

Di Stasio also adores fellow stalwart Abla's. "This is postcode Middle Eastern. The feelgood factor is 10 out of 10 after you leave there. They're not pretending to be anything; they know who they are," he says.

The same humble Elgin Street terrace has fed Melburnians for 43 years, much of it under the watchful eye of Abla Amad, now in her mid-80s.

The Abla's banquet is legendary for its generosity. Go hungry or risk regretting having to pass over the platters of kibbeh, smoky skewers of lamb or the legendary rice flecked with golden almonds.

Chinese food on Lygon Street? Embraced by one of Melbourne's godfathers of Italian cuisine? Yes, you read right. Lagoon Dining is another stone in the road towards Carlton's rebirth, in Di Stasio's opinion.

"It's sort of a new wave: fresh, delicious food, run by the owners, not a corporation. The food matches the owners matches the service."

Led by three young names, all connected to famed chef Teage​ Ezard, Lagoon plays with an exciting mix of influences drawn from across East Asia, whether it's curried fish fried rice, addictively smoky char siu pork or Taiwanese-style fried chicken.

"Every time I leave, I think I can't wait to go there again. There's a lot more to discover there."

Carlton Wine Room has gone through many pairs of hands, but right now Travis Howe (pictured, right) and Andrew Joy steer the ship with Conor Pomroy in the kitchen, painting a warm and inviting scene that you want to be part of. Close enough to the action but with enough distance from Lygon Street to feel like Eden in comparison, it's always busy for a reason.

"I look at the Carlton Wine Room and I think that's beautiful," says Di Stasio. "I love the boys, I love the food, I love the friendliness. It feels like it's always been here."

Although not Italian, this pan-European wine bar is the embodiment of Italian hospitality. "Bedside manner is the term," he says.

Ending the day with a passeggiata (evening stroll) and a gelato is a Carlton ritual. And for Di Stasio, there's only one place to go: Pidapipo.

"I know there are other gelaterias in Melbourne but I think this is the best. The queue in front of it every night tells you."

Opened by Lisa Valmorbida, part of the clan that has owned King & Godfree for nearly 70 years, Pidapipo has gone from strength to strength. But it all began nine years ago in Carlton (naturally).

"Lisa's a real little entrepreneur, and, again, not angry hands."

"She's a chip off the old block of her nonno, Carlo. Carlton wouldn't have been Carlton without Carlo."

In fact, Pidapipo is named after a game the Valmorbida children played with their grandfather, a detail that pulls at Di Stasio's heartstrings. "Maybe I'm a little too emotional."

His usual order is the super-Italian combo of chocolate with lemon sorbet.

Carlton today, with its many eras represented by the patchwork of shops, restaurants and cafes that sit side by side, in some ways reflects Di Stasio's idea of Italianality: a blend of old and new world, art, history, food, design and society.

But its next chapter will no doubt have added flair with his presence.

Directory

• Di Stasio Carlton, 224 Faraday Street, Carlton, distasio.com.au
• D.O.C Espresso, 326 Lygon Street, Carlton, docgroup.net
• Baker D. Chirico, 178 Faraday Street, Carlton, bakerdchirico.com.au
• Shakahari, 201-203 Faraday Street, Carlton, shakaharivegetarian.com.au
• La Mama, 205 Faraday Street, Carlton, lamama.com.au
• Coffee Machine Technologies, 285 Lygon Street, Carlton, coffeemachinetechnologies.com.au
• D.O.C Delicatessen, 330 Lygon Street, Carlton, docgroup.net
• Donati's Fine Meats, 402 Lygon Street, Carlton
• Tiamo, 303 Lygon Street, Carlton, tiamo.com.au
• Abla's, 109 Elgin Street, Carlton, ablas.com.au
• Lagoon Dining, 263 Lygon Street, Carlton, lagoondining.com
• Carlton Wine Room, 172-174 Faraday Street, Carlton, thecarltonwineroom.com.au
• Pidapipo, 299 Lygon Street, Carlton, pidapipo.com