Ragazzi In Fitzroy Is Autumn’s Hottest Pop-Up

When Ragazzi opened in Sydney in 2019, it quickly became one of the hardest-to-book restaurants in town. The CBD spot – which remains one of Sydney’s most popular pasta venues – will pop up in Fitzroy from Thursday April 9 to Sunday May 3. It will take up residency in the site of Carlo Grossi, James Tait and Luke Drum’s now-closed restaurants Alta Trattoria and Cantina Moro, which recently hosted summer pop-up Pipis North.

“The beauty of this venue is it’s kind of the same size as Ragazzi,” says Scott McComas-Williams, culinary director for Love Tilly, the Sydney hospo group that includes Ragazzi, Fabbrica, Dear Sainte Eloise and Love Tilly, Devine. The team will be “pretty much replicating” the Sydney location when it comes to the moody vibe and general kitchen philosophy, though the two menus will not exactly mirror each other.

“Alex [Major] and I opened Ragazzi together six years ago, and we’re super pumped to bring back some of the OG classics.” That includes two dishes from the Ragazzi’s first six months of business: cavatelli (small pasta shells) with pork and fennel sausage and South Australian pippies, and mafaldine with mackerel and fermented chilli – something McComas-Williams and Major haven’t put on the menu since opening. Plus, the cacio e pepe and duck ragu with egg rigatoni as well as a Jerusalem artichoke ravioli with burnt honey and pecorino. “That’s actually one that we bring back every autumn, so we couldn’t do a menu without that.”

 McComas-Williams and group executive chefs Major and Damiano Balducci will be in Melbourne for the majority of the pop-up, working with two local chefs to execute. The restaurant will open Wednesdays and Thursday for dinner from 5pm, as well as Fridays to Sundays for lunch from midday and dinner from 5pm.

Tait, who suggested the pop-up to the Ragazzi team, has worked with Love Tilly Group’s head of beverage James Griffin on the more than 100-bottle-long wine list for the residency. “Ragazzi focuses on traditional, delicious, handmade wines,” says Tait, and the team will let that ethos guide the Melbourne offering, with wines predominantly from Italy and Australia. 

McComas-Williams grew up in Geelong and trained under Movida chef Frank Camorra for seven years. “I learned how to cook in Melbourne,” he says. “We’re just going home to do something fun and bring back some old-school stuff.” 

When the Ragazzi pop-up ends, the space will roll into another yet-to-be-announced residency.

Ragazzi will pop-up at 274 Brunswick Street, Fitzroy from Thursday April 9 to Sunday May 3.