LOCATION
Five minutes drive west of the city, opposite Victoria Park in cosmopolitan Glebe.
DETAILS
Take a wine producer from Mudgee who is also a dab hand at growing olives and figs, a love of authentic Italian cuisine and a stylish city fringe location and you have Cucina di Lusso. With an al fresco dining area overlooking leafy Victoria Park, Cucina di Lusso is the perfect place to linger over a bottle of di Lusso wine, direct from the cellar door in Mudgee and a plate of antipasti alto borghese style.
FOOD AND BEVERAGE
Don't expect big bowls of spaghetti here; Cucina di Lusso offers diners an Italian experience that is hard to find elsewhere in Sydney. The menu at Cucina di Lusso is described as cucina alto borghese - a cooking style practiced since the renaissance by landed and merchant families. The aristocratic kitchens of the past had the staff prepare several courses, and the diners had the time to enjoy the harmony of a balanced menu along with wines selected to match the flavour, weight and texture of each dish. Cucina di Lusso offers a selection of tasting menus which feature some of the classic dishes of regional Italy in an Australian context; with all the benefits of the great range of high quality ingredients available in this country.
FUNCTIONS
Cucina di Lusso offers both corporates and families an ideal space to meet for business - whether strategy session, product launch, press or to commemorate special family events any day or evening of the week. In addition to the upstairs restaurant space, there is a dedicated function room downstairs for up to sixty people. The area is self-contained, with its own audio-visual features, bar and kitchen. Functions menus can be created from the Taste Italy menu or the - la Carte menu at short notice. With more notice the events team can work with you to put together the ideal food and drink selection for your occasion.
PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIA
There is more to this restaurant than simply stunning food and superb wines from di Lusso Estate, the Mudgee based winery from which the restaurant was born. For starters, the owner of Cucina di Lusso, Robert Fairall, doesn't want you to leave with only a sated appetite when you walk out the door after your meal (though trust me, sated you will be). Robert hopes that you leave with a sense of curiosity sparked inside you, a curiosity for 'alto borghese', the style of cuisine that the Italian aristocracy dined upon and that Cucina di Lusso recreates so well.
'Alto borghese' is best described as a style of Italian cuisine that is regional in character and uncomplicated. The ideal way to experience the menu at Cucina di Lusso is to settle in for an evening of degustation, the menu highlighting the classic dishes of regional Italy with an Australian touch, matched with di Lusso wines. Each course flows on to the next, alternating between luscious, rich courses and lighter, palate cleansing dishes. Start with some antipasti before moving on to the bagna cauda, a rich, traditional dish of anchovy and garlic cooked in butter and olive oil, served over roast peppers. A crisp salad of fennel and orange lightens the mood before moving on to a rustic dish of grilled quail with cotechino sausage, celeriac puree and grape. Dessert of Bonet, a creamy cocoa pudding, is so divine that if you're sharing, you'll ban your dining partner from taking more than their half (whilst plotting to steal more for yourself). More than just a beautiful meal, Cucina di Lusso's fine service and passion for food and wine will inspire you to return to make another journey of their menu.
Amy Looker, September 2007
DI LUSSO ESTATE
Di Lusso is a boutique vineyard and winery in Mudgee New South Wales, inspired by the wines and foods of Italy. Our red wines such as Sangiovese and Barbera are medium bodied and deliciously savoury, our white wines Pinot Grigio and Vermentino lean and crisp to suit grilled seafood, and our Vino Rosato a match for antipasti combinations. Of our dessert wines, Aleatico is aromatic and sumptuous, and Picolit light and refreshing. Di Lusso olives and figs - both grown on the Estate, are also Italian in origin. From fresh figs in summer and olive oil in autumn and other produce all year round.
From the di Lusso cellar door on the northern outskirts of Mudgee, all of our wines, olive oil and figs are available for tasting seven days a week.
Eurunderee Lane, Mudgee NSW Ph: 02 6373 3125
