Eat’aliano by Pino

Insalata di polpo e patate; octopus and potato salad

Eat’aliano by Pino is the latest restaurant opened by Pino Russo and Alessio Alia in Melbourne. Located in Windsor, the Italian-style restaurant sources much of their produce from the nearby Prahan Markets, giving them extremely fresh and tasty ingredients to work with.

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Two Bellino’s and a Frizzante

The venue is open and welcoming, with loads of floor-to-ceiling windows letting in plenty of light and giving the room a very spacious feeling. From the moment we walked in staff were extremely hospitable, welcoming us to Eat’aliano and seating us immediately. We were offered suggestions on which drinks to start with before the meal, and decided on two bellino’s and a frizzanteThe bellino’s were a sweet and fruity little drink, made with Aperol, strawberry and prosecco, while the frizzante was lighter and more refreshing, made with Cedrata, rose shrub, Campari and also topped off with prosecco.

Calamari fritti al peperoncino e basilico; deep fried calamari

Calamari fritti al peperoncino e basilico; deep fried calamari

Mozarella di bufala; buffalo mozarella

Mozarella di bufala; buffalo mozarella

We started the meal off with some delicious entrees; insalata di polpo e patate (octopus and potato salad), calamari fritti al peperoncino e basilico (deep fried calamari) and mozarella di bufala (buffalo mozzarella). The octopus and potato salad was a clear favourite, with the flavours of the fresh octopus allowed to shine through by dressing the salad in only garlic, parsley and olive oil. The potatoes were firm but not overcooked, and devoured quickly with a little bit of extra salt added. Everyone loves a little bit of fried goodness, and the crispy squid was crunchy, salty and tossed with the perfect amount of chilli and basil to give it a little extra kick. A huge ball of buffalo mozzarella might be unappealing to some people, but to Cheese Queens like us we devoured the textured, salty ball. Pulling this apart into lots of smaller pieces allows the fresh flavours to coat our palette and sate our tastebuds until mains arrived.

The Squid Ink Gnocchi Special

The squid ink gnocchi special

The mushroom risotto special

The mushroom risotto special

Pizza tartufata

Pizza tartufata

We were served a lovely variety of food for main course; pasta, risotto and pizza. It was a traditional italian feast with a few modern twists; the gnocchi was made with squid ink to give a very chic black appearance, then served with pumpkin, cherry tomatoes and coated in a zesty rocket pesto. The risotto was ever-so-creamy and full of hand-picked wild pine mushrooms and the pizza was a standout with a wonderfully thick, chewy base and topped with mushroom cream, sausages, truffle oil, shaved parmesan and mozzarella.

Pizza. Nutella. OMG.

Pizza. Nutella. OMG.

Everyone knows that dessert is the best part of the meal, and Eat’aliano did not disappoint! The pizzas here are made in the traditional Italian way with minimal high-quality ingredients, meaning the base has to be absolutely brilliant to not let the dish down. The base on the pizza we ate for main course was beautifully doughy, chewy and with the right amount of crunch, and by putting a load of Nutella and strawberries on top for dessert they won our hearts. Though it might not look like a lot, each piece of the nutella pizza was very sweet and rich, satisfying even the sweetest of teeth, but that meant you didn’t need to eat a whole lot. One or two slices will do here; so share one between friends after the meal!

Eat’aliano is an great lunch and dinner destination for those wanting traditional Italian food with a modern twist at very affordable prices. Open seven days a week for lunch from 11:30am to 3pm and then again for dinner from 5pm, you can be sure to see us back there devouring a Nutella pizza or two!

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