Take a seat at Wickham's newest restaurant and you might recognise a familiar face in the kitchen.
Chef David Griffin, of Bao Brothers fame, is co-founder of La Stazione alongside the owners of Napoli Centrale and Popolo Gelateria.
The Throsby Street location previously housed Italy's Pantry, which opened in 2022.
"The transition occurred as a result of the team behind Italy's Pantry focusing on Napoli Centrale and introducing me to the space, given my love for hospitality, and we threw around some ideas and wanted to bring something fun and different to Newcastle," Griffin said.
"I'm co-founder of the restaurant but also involved in overseeing the menu and direction of the business model, plus I still get on the tools a bit which I enjoy."
Griffin describes the new menu, which launched just last week, as "Italian-ish".
"The new menu isn't traditional Italian but has a heavy focus on high-quality Italian ingredients with no boundaries," he explained.
"We like to say it's a celebration of Italian-Australian food culture and its rich history.
"The menu is simple, casual and approachable - we want La Stazione to be somewhere you would come for a midweek pasta and vino, a celebratory dinner to share with friends, or ordering your favourite items to take home."
I ask him to name his favourite dishes on La Stazione's new menu.
"You can't go past the mafaldine ragu, which is a combination of wagyu brisket and pork shoulder which we finish with a zingy parsley and almond sauce to give it a little freshness," he replied.
"Also our pumpkin and ricotta lasagna is super delicious and a nice alternative to the traditional version - it's finished with a burnt butter, sage and toasted walnuts.
"For pizzas it's a toss-up between the double pepperoni with hot honey and fried shallots and the margarita, which gets finished with buffalo mozzarella.
"We made a few pizzas to test for some up-and-coming marketing ideas and the pizza ragu with smoked mozzarella and Sichuan crisp was a knock-out."
As for the cocktail offering, the Spritz Amalfitano with limoncello and sweet vermouth is proving popular.
La Stazione is also, Griffin says, "bringing pizza squares to Newcastle" as well as "Grandma Pie" from New York.
"Pizza squares are inspired by Roman pizza [pizza al taglio] where the dough is slow-fermented for 48 hours and cooked in a sheet pan which gives it a thinner, crispy base," he said.
"The pizzas are then topped and dressed with extra fresh ingredients prior to being served."
If you feel like a drink and a snack rather than a sit-down meal, you are welcome at La Stazione.
"We have a funky little snacks menu, chalkboards throughout the venue with rotating specials, and a variety of seating both indoors and alfresco with some high tables which are great for a vino," Griffin said.
"The vibe at the restaurant is fun, colourful and a little retro; we want to become a neighbourhood favourite.
"Also, if all goes well and permits are approved, we are looking to bring the kitchen to the front of the restaurant where it will feel a part of the overall dining experience."
The team also hopes to launch a monthly "pizza and producer" series by the end of March, which will "combine the release of a pizza with a local ingredient, individual or product".
