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Things aren’t all as they seem in Spice Alley. The Chippendale food court, known for its South Asian food, is quietly housing an Italian pasta bar. It’s a tough ask: Str’Eats is competing with well-established neighbours like elevated Chinese diner Holy Duck and luxe dessert bar Koi, armed only with cheap pasta on paper plates. But this hole-in-the-wall kitchen seems to be doing just fine. On a Saturday night there’s barely a seat going at its tiny alfresco patio.
Str’Eats was born during the pandemic when its big sister, nearby Olio, was in lockdown. Owner and head chef Lino Sauro wanted to set up a food cart serving authentic Italian dishes inspired by his childhood and hometown in Sicily.
Before eventually opening its doors earlier this year, Sauro had spent years working in five-star restaurants around the world, and opened a Sicilian seafood venue, Gattopardo, in Singapore in 2009.
Str’Eats’ pasta is made daily from organic semolina flour and water, with its trio of cooks working elbow-to-elbow in a kitchen barely large enough to contain them. As well as spaghetti, gnocchi, fusilli and tagliatelle, you can opt for thick-cut rigatoni or ribbon-shaped mafalde, as well as gluten-free penne.
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The concept is loosely “build-your-own”, with the choice of seven pasta types and nine different sauces. Prices start at just $10 for a simple aglio e olio, climbing to $24 for a vodka burrata topping, with some choice add-ons for $4 a pop.
The dishes are basic and sparsely garnished, meaning they all look a little similar when they arrive on matching paper plates. Those expecting anything other than no-frills street food may leave disappointed.
Served straight from the kitchen through white-shuttered windows, the granchio is the pick of the bunch. The lesser-known dish combines spicy pork 'nduja and crab meat, with the shellfish seizing the palate as the fiery Calabrian salume lends a gentle heat.
The amatriciana – named for its origins in the Amatrice municipality in central Italy – is a mix of onion, parmesan and spicy tomato sauce. Traditionally made with guanciale (cured pork jowl), this street-food version swaps in bacon for a hot and smoky affair. The puttanesca is a simple sauce of tomato, garlic and fresh chilli, with olives and capers adding a salty hit.
Sadly, there’s not much left on the menu when we arrive, though service has just started. There were fewer than half the pastas available and three of the sauces were stricken from the menu. Among them, the Wagyu bolognese with beef brisket ragu, and the seafood sauce, combining prawns, calamari, barramundi and tomato, could be well worth a try.
Saving the day, though, are two no-nonsense desserts, waiting somewhere in the fridges. The tiramisu, served from a plastic pot, is on the cakey end of the spectrum, swirling with delicious fresh mascarpone cheese and finished with a generous amount of cocoa powder. The Sicilian cannolo comes as one giant waffle, its firm, sugar-dusted pastry hugging a rich and sumptuous ricotta and pistachio filling.
Str’Eats benefits from its cosy spot on Chippendale’s bustling laneway. Sat outside watching cars squeeze past the excited crowds as they mull the rows of eateries, you’re momentarily lifted from the centre of Sydney and transported to another city entirely. The atmosphere, though a little frantic, is lightened by the friendly staff, who are happy for you to nip out and bring back a drink from another venue.
This rough-and-ready kitchen may be experiencing few teething problems, given it only opened in May. But with pasta prices undercutting an entire city, it’s certainly doing something right, and its fast-food style makes it ideal for a quick lunch or a casual dinner.
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