A Tavola is one of the loveliest, sexiest Italian eateries I’ve encountered in a city already spoilt for choice. On a busy street, chef-owner Eugenio Maiale gives reason to pause for house-made pasta and the timeless pleasure of unfussy Italian dishes.

The complimentary focaccia is pulled from a copper pan and sliced as you sit down. It’s accompanied by a terracotta saucer filled with chilli-infused olive oil. Such small details give A Tavola (meaning “to the table”) its warmth.

The small printed menu is short – two olive spuntini (snacks), three entrees, three pasta, three salads. It’s supplemented by a daily blackboard, mostly inspired by the pasta made that morning, although it may also include impossibly tender pork fillet ($38) fanned over caramelised fennel wedges with agrodolce (sweet and sharp) braised red cabbage and a generous dollop of superb salsa verde. If you’re lucky, the blackboard might begin with calamari fritti ($19) to rival Fratelli Paradiso’s legendary Sant’Andrea version. This bowl of lightly dusted squid is crisp yet supple, salty yet sweet, with nothing more than roasted garlic aioli and a lemon slice to squeeze over the tiny rings. (source)

The chef makes three fresh pasta daily but also uses a trio of dried Italian pasta for some dishes. From our table we can see the freshly made papparadelle hanging on a wooden rod across the front of the kitchen, waiting to be cooked.

The waitress explains to me that the risotto of the day is hand made fresh daily, and takes over 25 minutes of constant stirring over heat before it is served. Serving two (even though the three of us still could not finish it) it has a rich, aromatic sauce of different slippery wild mushrooms which compliments the al dente texture of the risotto. Topped with Saltimbocca – which is a pancetta wrapped pork cooked in butter, is so tender it melts in the mouth. Highly recommended, though I was told that you have to be very lucky to see it appear on the blackboard.

I think this one is a winner – we were too full to sample the desserts, but there is definitely more opportunities to come. HIGHLY recommended!

348 Victoria St, Darlinghurst, NSW (02) 9331 7871, www.atavola.com.au Dinner Mon-Sat, lunch Fri. Licensed and BYO.