A Tavola is the Italian restaurant dreams are made of – fresh pasta hanging outside the kitchen, a warm welcome and a bowl of love served piping hot as you dine with family and friends.
The inspiration for A Tavola (meaning “to the table”) derives from head chef and owner Eugenio Maiale’s childhood. As a child Maiale would play in the backyard of his Adelaide home waiting to hear the chime of “A Tavola” when dinner was ready. On Maiale’s family kitchen table were consistently simple, honest and traditional style dishes. It was a daily ritual, almost a meditation, for his Mother to maker her own pasta – from ravioli and tortellini to tagliolini. She passed her knowledge onto Eugenio who further developed these techniques during his childhood visits to Italy. He would watch his relatives make an assortment of pastas, including parpadelle and gnocchi, rolling the pasta on big wooden tables either by hand or with broom handles.
Maiale has continued this concept of simple and elegant food with his first Sydney restaurant. The cuisine can be described as predominantly “Abruzzese” (a region north-east of the boot, next to Rome), with a heavy emphasis on dried and fresh pasta cooked to order. His dream was to create a unique Italian experience. He has done this by creating what has been described as a “euro chic” dining space which revolves around a 10metre long communal Indian marble table.
Walk past A Tavola in the afternoon and you’ll see boxes of produce and acres of different pasta shapes strewn over the long marble communal table that runs down to the open kitchen”
The rich Amber hued table becomes an extension of the kitchen during the day – used to knead the focaccia, mix and roll the fresh pasta and receive the days fresh produce. It is like writing a new symphony every day – creating seasonal fresh dishes that star on the blackboard that very same night.
The labour intensive process of making manmade pasta, such as maccheroni alla chitarra, is repaid in full by the freshness of the finished product. It is vital (and also healthier) to obtain the freshest and finest of ingredients to provide authentic flavour, freshness and a great final product. As such, A Tavola uses only the best free range eggs, caputo flour and an array of fresh ingredients to create their beautifully crafted fresh pasta.
Maiale invites diners to share in his childhood experience and most importantly understand the beauty and simplicity of good home made pasta. Customers will taste food that is prepared with attention to detail, passion and most importantly love.
Primary among Eugenio Maiale’s many talents is a sense of balance… It starts with al dente pasta, well matched to the saucing, which in turn is appropriate and in proportion. The combinations are uncrowded so every ingredient stars in an ensemble performance