Mamasita owner Joss Jenner-Leuthart planted an Italian flag in South Yarra with Julietta, a romantic 35-seat wine bar with vintage touches such as upholstered corduroy bar stools and glass vases.
Inside Julietta’s tiny kitchen, the extruder squeezes out lesser-known pasta forms including flat fazzoletti (“handkerchiefs”) and radiatori, shaped like car radiators. Elsewhere on the menu there’s focaccia, rotating cold-cuts and burrata. But the main event is hulking meatballs of Wagyu and house sausage, sauced with buffalo ricotta and sugo.
The space has classic character, but the drinks have more of a contemporary bent. Alongside legacy wines from the motherland, there are decidedly new-school options from Australian vintners. A long list of amaros and five original takes on the Negroni keep the locals committed to Julietta for the long term.
Dining and Cooking