Scugnizzo, Little Bourke St

It was completely by accident that my Mum and I ended up eating a beautiful meal at the humble Scugnizzo italian restaurant on Little Bourke yesterday. We had booked in to stay at the Oaks on Collins hotel in a 'Sky Suite', which boasted amazing city views so we had intended to get some takeout and eat on our balcony soaking up the city views. The 'amazing' view however ended up being some office buildings and a dreary rainy sky. If we arched our necks around the corner of the balcony, we could see Docklands in the distance... but that was about it.

So I took out my trusty Entertainment Book and my Urbanspoon Iphone app and worked out that we were approximately 5 minutes walk away from Scugnizzo which was in the gold section of the book and had good reviews.

We were not disappointed. From the moment we walked into the ambient brick building and took in the candle-lit tables and wooden decors we felt like we had entered a little slice of Italy in Melbourne (or what I would imagine to be a little slice of Italy!) The aroma of woodfired pizza fills the restaurant and is complimented by the smiling faces of wonderful and attentive staff.

We ordered a beautiful bottle of Victorian Alpine region Merlot and shared some lovely meals.
The beautiful Ortlana pizza was exactly the way I like my pizza. Thin crispy base, minimal toppings, minimal cheese. The char-grilled vegetables and goats cheese were top quality.

The duck and potato stuffed ravioli with burnt butter and truffle sauce were like little pockets of heaven. The sauce was not too rich or over-powering, and it allowed the homemade pasta pillows to come into their own in taste.

The food was not too expensive either- pizza's were around $16, and the pasta was about $26. There was plenty of food between the two of us for this price.

Another huge positive of Scugnizzo were the staff. They were friendly, attentive without being over-bearing and really bubbly. I will definitely be going back next time I need an Italian food fix.

L xo