Pasta La Vista! Eat Up At Brisbane’s Best Italian Restaurants

Masters of some of the best Italian in Brisbane, Biànca has been showered with well-deserved praise since its opening last year. A focus on honouring the classics with a nod to Aussie produce, slink into the suave James Street venue and indulge in house-made pasta and bread with Italian-sourced wines to pair. Made to share, indulge your way down the antipasti menu with mouth-watering Kingfish carpaccio, Nduja (a soft, spicy salami), and artichoke and anchovy fritti before getting to the mains. From the metallic meat slicers at the bar to the open style kitchen, there’s thought out theatre behind every step. Go on, unbutton your jeans and order the pumpkin cappellacci with burnt butter (this may just be our last meal request) or the gnocchetti sardi with spanner crab, warrigal, chilli, and vermouth. This Italian trattoria has embraced restaurant-style practices in the perfect blend of casual dining with an effervescent atmosphere, and we simply can’t get enough!

What began as an intimate wine bar has newly transformed into a full-scale restaurant with a whole lot of Italian love behind it. Rosmarino Ristorante is tucked off McLachlan Street in Fortitude Valley, bursting with character and personality aplenty. With a rustic outdoor courtyard filled with foliage, a wine cellar to be admired, and an interior of exposed brick and feature walls, this building is rich in history since 1898. Head Chef Dario Manca has transformed his obsession with bread, flavours and Italian eats into a menu bursting with à la carte picks and degustation delights. With specialties of pan rendered, seven-day aged Maremma duck breast, and black squid ink spaghetti with Cloudy Bay clams, lose yourself in this mastery of Italian cuisine.

Aperitivo is our fave way to while away the hours, and you can experience this Italian way of dining at Fortitude Valley’s La Costa Restaurant. Whether it’s a traditional spritz topped with an orange slice and Sicilian olives, a glass of Veneto Rosé, or a cocktail that packs a punch, a drink before eating is how the Italians do it – when in Rome! The latest venture from the Salt Meats Cheese group, La Costa is a tribute to coastal Italy with their seafoam-green, white décor, and European oak table tops. Celebrating the ocean first and foremost, they’ve got us looking to the sea with their ragü di Pesce and marinated seafood pizza. Followed closely by their range of local meats, cheeses and legumes, they’re well and truly paying homage to all things green, white, and red. Grab the gang and celebrate day or night, Riviera style.

Your carb-loaded dreams will come true at Ripiena, Fortitude Valley’s very own pasta laboratory. Head Chef Nicolo Campagnari began his love affair with Italian food as a boy working at his family’s tavern in Verona, before moving to Australia and opening Ripiena with his wife in 2018. The venue combines a wholesale pasta kitchen and dine-in section, where patrons can enjoy batches of freshly made pasta, prepared in-house by a team of specially trained pasta chefs. Mixing, kneading, sheeting, folding, drying, storing ­– everything you eat is authentic, keeping to tradition with provincial Italian pasta. Embrace a carb overload meal and pick up 100g of Brisbane’s best prosciutto to-go! 

Since opening its doors in 2010, this Italian dining spot has made its mark on the foodie scene as one of the finest. Located in the hub of Fortitude Valley, Tartufo transports diners to the 1920s with its décor: leather booths, tiled floors, and art-deco detailing create an alluring space where diners can enjoy exquisite Italian cuisine and old-fashioned hospitality. From an indulgent eight-course degustazione to a true Neapolitan pizza, these ingredients have either been made in-house, carefully sourced, or grown with local producers, especially for Tartufo. Psst, you can even find a few of owner Tony Percuoco’s secret recipes on their website to try at home!

For a satisfying meal with a view, Persone delivers the goods. Located in the Brisbane Quarter, this refined Italian bar and dining scene is a place to live la dolce vita. Serving up fresh, quality produce packed with flavours, choose from their a la carte or banquet menu (and don’t forget to leave room for dessert!). Sip back and enjoy the sweeping sights of the river and South Bank while sipping on some of Italy’s finest drops. One bite and you’ll see why Persone makes our list of Brisbane’s best Italian!

For authentic Italian served with flair, take yourself on a trip to Toscano, where the atmosphere is equally as delightful as the food. Located in the basement of a century-old warehouse near the City Botanic Gardens, this modern Italian cocktail bar exudes an elegant ambience with its glowing neon signage proclaiming, ‘good food, good wine, good friends, good times’, all while slinging traditional and modern cocktails across its mosaic tiled back-lit bar. Not a cocktail fan? Take your pick from their premium wine selection. Plating up Neoplitan-inspired dishes, expect entrees like potato croquettes with Scamorza cheese, cured meat, and honey mustard. For the main affair, say ciao to plates of Nonna’s meatballs or a Wagyu bresaola with rocket and shaved Parmesan panuozzo. Come hungry, leave 100% satisfied.

You could be forgiven for thinking you’d found yourself in the streets of Rome when you book a table at Mosconi. This hidden two-level wine bar and restaurant will cure those hunger and travel pangs all at once. This divine Italian eatery offers a small handful of tables placed on the footpath outside, making it a romantic place to stop for a wine and bite. With small plates of mixed olives, Pacific oysters with lime caviar, and scallops, to heartier meals like the linguini with Mooloolaba prawn, fermented chilli, zucchini, and lemon pangrattato, say ‘salute’ to a meal to remember.

Bringing beautiful fresh Italian flavours fused with Australian produce, Ciao Papi is a tidy menu of dishes to share while perched right on the riverside with an Aperol in hand. From carb-heavy hitters like rigatoni with ragu to gnocchi and herb pesto, plus sides featuring warm weather salads, fries, and steamed greens, plus pizzas, all your Italian wants and needs will be met here. But don’t rush this experience  –  the desserts must be met with a big spoon, and their list of refreshing cocktails will keep you there til after dark.

If your stance on Italian food is the bigger the better, then this riverside icon is where you need to order up! Bar Pacino is known for its menu of hearty classics and modern twists, designed for dining and sharing with the people who matter most. From duck ragu to roast lamb pizza and their Don Corleone parmigiana, every dish is paired with unbeatable views of the Brisbane River on its banks. As for drinks, Bar Pacino boasts delicious house cocktails, a curated global wine list (with Italian sips, of course), and their iconic Nutella shots. Whether you pull up a seat on their expansive outdoor balcony to soak in the open-air atmosphere or enjoy the intimate indoor tables alongside floor-to-ceiling glass windows, you’re always in for a memorable meal.