Love Tilly Group, the bankable hospitality guns behind some of Sydney’s favourite wine bars like Ragazzi, La Salut and Dear Saint Eloise, has just opened its first proper restaurant in Sydney CBD. With Palazzo Salato, a slick 120-seat Italian trattoria, swinging doors open this week, the new venture from the acclaimed hospitality group is easily one of the city’s hottest restaurant openings of 2023.
Given Love Tilly Group are mostly known for cosy neighbourhood wine bars and petite pasta joints, Palazzo Salato wisely shoots for something more upscale and grandiose. It’s the hospitality group’s most ambitious project to date for sure and given how central its numerous venues have become to Sydney’s hospitality scene, it will be no surprise to see this spot booked out consistently over the coming months.
The long-standing Redoak Boutique Beer Cafe has exited the building at 201 Clarence Street in Sydney CBD, leaving a nice two-level space for Love Tilly Group to come in and shape its Roman-inspired restaurant. Framed by colourful art, Palazzo Salato plates Roman pasta staples, no doubt with the same level of detail and depth of flavour that has made the group’s beloved pasta joint, Fabbrica, such a heavy-hitter.
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On ground level, we’ve got a bar that’s only available for walk-ins next to a lavish dining room where the menu expands beyond the typical Cacio e pepe and carbonara. Various filled hand-made pastas, seafood and grilled meats run the kitchen, overseen by the group’s executive chef, Scott McComas-Williams along with ex-Ragazzi chef Alex Major and new head chef Vincenzo Romeo, who joins the team from Casoni.
Whether or not Palazzo Salato joins our list of the best Italian restaurants in Sydney remains to be seen but with interesting pasta dishes like chewy agnolotti dal plin of Luke’s Wessex saddleback pork with prune and pistachio, it seems only a matter of time.
Considering the Sydney CBD has already seen these grand old-school restaurants like The Charles and Brasserie 1930 open up, it’s looking like we’re stepping back to a vintage era of big-ticket upscale eateries that should help give the city a lot more charm than usual. It certainly helps make those client lunches more tempting, especially given the Love Tilly Group has pulled together a 500-bottle wine list that should have more than just a few standout drops.
Palazzo Salato
Address: 201 Clarence Street, Sydney NSW 2000
Contact: (02) 9044 2556
Opening Hours: Monday – Friday (12 PM – 12 AM); Saturday (3 PM – 12 AM)
