Ormeggio at the Spit power couple Alessandro and Anna Pavoni, along with business partner Bill Drakopoulos, have revealed their transformation of the former One Penny Red site in Summer Hill. The iconic former post office was the home of Sydney favourite, One Penny Red for a decade before its 2023 closure. 

Now the heritage-listed building in Sydney’s Inner West is reborn as Postino Osteria, a classic neighbourhood osteria by the Pavonis and their team (Postino is a play on words meaning both ‘postman’ and ‘cosy little spot’ in Italian). 

The concept blurs the line between restaurant and wine bar, aiming to become a casual and affordable dining experience for the local community. A row of high-tops and the coveted bar seats are reserved for walk-ins, as is a sidewalk terrace shaded by a frangipani tree. 

Chef Alessandro Pavoni has mined inspiration from across Italy for the menu, with a focus on traditional dishes from suburban Italian osteria, such as saltimbocca alla Romana, a traditional goat ragu from Pavoni’s native Lombardy and a simple spaghetti alla nerano via Napoli: “I’ve got dishes from Sicily. I’ve got dishes from Rome. We got dishes from Milan. We got dishes from Venice,” he says.

A highlight of the fairly priced menu, the majority of which is under $50 a plate, is the spaghetti alla chitarra con pallottine – a pasta from Abruzzo featuring tiny, flavour-packed meatballs. Classic cocktails and an impressive wine cellar will also feature, with most of the wine list dedicated to Italian wines, and the rest to Australian and New Zealand interpretations of Mediterranean grape varietals.

Related story: Alessandro Pavoni and the Ormeggio team are headed to the iconic Manly Pacific Hotel

Of the decision to open in the village-suburb of Summer Hill, Alessandro Pavoni said, “A good neighbourhood osteria is something nobody should be denied. A place where you can stop for a vino on your way home from work, celebrate with friends and family when you deserve celebrating, come for dinner and know you’ll be looked after by a maitre’d who knows your favourite aperitivo and goes from there. 

“A great local osteria is a home away from home. That’s what we are looking to bring to Summer Hill with Postino Osteria.”

The Italian-born chef lived in Leichhardt when he first arrived in Australia, when he still spoke no English, and says the area still holds a special place in his heart.

The in-house team has been drawn from across the Pavoni’s already impressive stable, with Alessandro emphasising that each venture is only as good as the people who help them run it. “I’m very lucky that I have a group of geniuses on the field. They are much better than me. I have chefs. They cook a lot better than me. I have a general manager, a restaurant manager. They’re much better managers than me.”

The Pavonis and Drakopoulos are the force behind restaurant greats, Ormeggio at the Spit, Chiosco by Ormeggio, a’Mare, and now, Postino Osteria. The expansive Cibaria Manly is slated to open in time for summer.

Postino Osteria opened September 2024 at 2 Moonbie St, Summer Hill.
@postino.osteria