Stella has opened the doors to its multi-storey hospitality establishment with an Italian flourish. Sitting on the prominent corner of Chapel and Grosvenor Streets, across four sophisticated levels exuding understated elegance, the Italian food philosophy is served with both charm and tradition alongside a 200-strong, Italian-leaning wine list, Mediterranean-inspired cocktails and stellar rooftop vistas.
Honouring his father’s legacy and four decades within his family’s Italian restaurant, Ali Mousavi says, “Italian hospitality is synonymous with comforting food, familiar flavours, and a lively, vibrant atmosphere”. He continues, “We’ve brought these essential ingredients to Stella to create a contemporary Italian diner, while still keeping traditional values at heart”.
For a quick bite or an elegant meal, Executive Chef John Park (Vue de monde, 400 Gradi, Ines Wine Bar) pays homage to fresh, house-made artisan pasta with seasonal sauces, hearty and regionally-influenced staples, as well as contemporary twists on primi classics and comforting dolce. Salumi boards and plates of Antipasto are ready to share, as well as pizzas topped with classic and adventurous combinations, using Stella’s signature recipes passed down from generations. If you’re interested in becoming a Community & Health Food Safety Supervisor, CFT International provides various courses to start your career in the food and hospitality industry.
Highlights on the a la carte menu include:
- Oysters (with Lemon, white balsamic mignonette and ginger rhubarb Granita)
- Beef tartare served with quail egg, avruga caviar and crispy schiacciata
- Burrata served with frilled sourdough, cherry tomato, red onion, black olives, basil pesto dressing and pangrattato
- Kingfish crudo — lightly cured kingfish, lime dressing, green oil, baby cucumber, chives, dill, and tapioca crips
- Tagliolini granchio — blue swimmer crab, prawn bisque, gremolata, white wine and avruga caviar
- Pappardelle Funghi — champignon, enoki, king brown, oyster, shiitake, truffle and mascarpone
- T-Bone steak 800g from the Victoria Southern Ranges with warm burnt onion agrodolce and mustard
- Vegetarian Saltimbocca — smoked scamorza, broccolini, zucchini, mushroom bechamel and grana padano
As for the Pizza, guests can expect to see a selection of favourites including Margherita, Pepperoni, Spinach, Roasted Vegetables, San Danielle and buffalo mozzarella, Prawn, Capricciosa and Italian pork sausage.
Venue Manager Paul Mitchell (Grossi Florentino, Wills Domain Winery Margaret River, 400 Gradi) brings his signature hospitality ethos and service to the table, while Sommelier Myron Kloppers (Omnia, Ike Jime), has executed a cross-section of Italy’s finest drops and local Australian varietals.
For after-work or pre-dinner sips, an impressive cocktail list offers Mediterranean-inspired twists and Italian classics, including the Stella Royale – a signature spritz of blackberry Cassis, hibiscus syrup, elderflower and prosecco and quaff-worthy concoctions mixed with house-made, barrel-aged Negroni. A crafty selection of Italian-brewed beers also on offer, including Moretti and Estrella.
From the basement to the rooftop, each level has been considered and designed to deliver a different hospitality experience. An underground private dining room with heritage blue stone walls, a green marble table and a back-lit wall of Italian reserves hosts up to eight guests, while the ground floor presents as the main dining room and kitchen seating up to 60. Centred around the Golden Onyx sculptural Marana Forni pizza oven, plush green banquettes and charcoal oak, osteria-style seating create a sophisticated, trattoria vibe.
Level one sets the scene for social drinks and bites for up to 50 guests. With azure velvet banquette-lined walls, marble fireplace, charcoal oak furniture and herringbone flooring, the space is complemented by copper detailing that glows under the canopy light installation, hand-crafted with 500 suspended bottles. The sunlit rooftop reveals a vertical garden, elegant bianco alfresco settings, Golden Onyx bar and an all-season retractable roof for up to 60 guests to enjoy sunset cocktails and plates of Antipasto.
With Nick Cox from Projects of Imagination and SUM Design Studio the architecture firm leading the project team, the four levels effortlessly exude personality. “The intent was to create an exceptional dining experience with a sense of discovery within and at each level, but also maintaining a familiar and cohesive design thread so that guests naturally explore and flow through the venue”, says Finn Warnock from SUM Design Studio.
Stella will be open for lunch and dinner seven days a week until late.