LOCATIONTen minutes from the CBD.
PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIAOsteria: “a traditional meeting place for family, friends and neighbours to imbibe, share a meal and enjoy each others’ company”. At Osteria de Mesa you will feel at ease to do just that. The restaurant is owned by families of seasoned hospitality industry professionals who you get to meet as you enter, courtesy of a gallery of black and white portraits entitled “
La Famiglia”. Inside the expansive eatery, Italy meets Spain – casual Italian restaurant to the left, Spanish tapas-style “Jamon Bar” to the right. Gather at the latter for a drink underneath its namesake hams and sample one of the three styles of Osteria sangria – lychee, peach or spices. If you’d prefer something with a kick, a “vanilla mule” made with vanilla bean infused vodka, fresh lime and ginger beer is the obvious choice. With your thirst quenched, you may choose to venture into the split-level dining room or the generous alfresco area, where wine barrels painted with colourful Mediterranean characters evoke images of grape crushing and vino swilling.
House-made pasta and cured meats are a feature of chef Adam Zollo’s menu. A delicatessen window of sorts, alongside his kitchen, allows diners a novel interpretation of what is on offer. Fettuccini slung over drying racks may inspire you to tuck into the Bolognese made with pork and veal meatballs in a luscious tomato sugo. The sight of strung salami may have you salivating over the “
carne" menu – a specials board of finely-sliced meats featuring local prosciutto, chorizo, sopressa and Jamon Serrano aged for 14 months. Select some as antipasti while you decide between the pan-fried veal with chive polenta, the roasted duck with a leg confit or the lamb rump with truffled parnsnip mash, for mains. Dessert presents an easier decision – the pannacotta with poached strawberries and biscotti cannot be ignored.
Roz Taylor