The verdict on Chapel Street's splashy new Italian Stella

It's my job to think about food, but I've been doing overtime on Stella's crab tagliolini ($43). Since I ate it at this smart, new, four-level Italian restaurant, my mind has been a-shimmer with sublime recollections. An intense reduction of prawn bisque and blue swimmer crab is tickled with chilli, garlic oil and a little cream, then tumbled with thin pasta ribbons.

Gremolata – chopped parsley, garlic, lemon zest – is scattered atop for zesty freshness but, really, we're talking heady indulgence from first happily twirled forkful to last wistfully mopping strand. I've thought of this glorious flavour parade at the tram stop, walking the dog, even – I do apologise, it's not good manners – at other restaurants.

Stella opened in September, splashy and ambitious, the fulfilment of a long-held dream by owner Ali Mousavi. The property developer and first-time restaurateur grew up in the northern Iranian city of Rasht where, for 35 years, his father ran Italian restaurants. Rasht is a sophisticated metropolis on the Caspian Sea, colloquially known as Iran's gateway to Europe, and one of just 50 cities in the world designated a UNESCO City of Gastronomy. (Australia has two: Bendigo and Launceston.)

Each of Stella's four spaces has its own identity, though the same food and drink menu is offered throughout.

The ground-level trattoria looks towards a handsome, domed pizza oven: this room feels like the most natural place for a comprehensive run at the menu, all the way from oysters ($60 a dozen) to kingfish crudo ($29), then on to pasta ($37-$75), pizza ($26-$36) and steak ($59-$135). 

Down below, an eight-seat table is ensconced in a bluestone-walled cellar: consider it for secluded dinners or intimate corporate gatherings.

Upstairs, the lounge-y bistro commands cocktails, calamari ($31) and salumi boards ($41).

Keep climbing and the rooftop calls for bubbles and arancini ($17),followed by more bubbles and pizza. Melbourne's CBD is well-served for rooftop hangouts, the suburbs less so. Stella's perch feels chic and fun, with a retractable roof, a dedicated bar and views to nearby apartment towers.

Any nook is good for a crack at the spaghetti with caviar ($75), an aspirational dish that turns peasant pasta into carbs for kings. This "why not?" approach to luxe will go down well with the monied Melbournites Mousavi is aiming to muster here.

Another element that might please is the light, crisp, almost biscuit-y pizza base. Chef John Park (formerly of Meatball & Wine Bar and Ines Wine Bar) wouldn't tell me the secret to the dough, but did let slip that it's the same recipe that fuelled the Mousavis' Italian restaurants in Iran. I suspect yoghurt has something to do with it.

Pizza traditionalists might blanch at the method, others at paying $36 for a San Daniele with prosciutto, fresh buffalo mozzarella and rocket. Me? I relished every delicious bite.

Stella is in the same boat as most other restaurants in Australia in that it's desperately recruiting and training, and the core team will be glad of adept hands on deck for the busy summer now upon us. The higher the price point, the more diners expect polished service, making the task here particularly urgent. 

Meanwhile, there really is some glorious food. To make one generous entree, yesterday's sourdough is cubed, charred and mixed with tomato, red onion and olives. Burrata – the fresh mozzarella that spills into curdy floods when cut open – is placed on top and drizzled with pesto dressing. You know those tasty, tomato-y juices puddling in the bowl when you finish a salad? This dish ($31) has that relaxed summer feeling to it while still being poised and expertly balanced.

I have a master's in eating tiramisu. The version at Stella is very fine, soused with kahlua and amaretto, lolling on the plate under an extra dollop of cream and crowned with chocolate crumble ($21). It's not like Nonna's, and it doesn't quite have the cumulus lift of my Melbourne control tiramisu at Grossi Cellar Bar, but it's still excellent. 

If I can ever banish the tagliolini from my dreams, I'll have some nice reveries about this dessert.

Vibe: Upscale pizza and pasta with rooftop lounging

Go-to dish: Crab tagliolini ($43)

Drinks: Exemplary wines from around the world with a good selection by the glass

Cost: About $200 for two, excluding drinks

This review was originally published in Good Weekend magazine