We seem to be having a problem with the name here. “Where are you going?” people keep asking, but I can’t quite remember.

“Flour and water and something,” I say. Is it that hard to remember Flour Eggs Water? For me, it is. “The new place by A Tavola at the Tramsheds,” appears to be a better answer, or at least one I can muster. “Oh, the one with the pasta hanging up in the kitchen,” replies a friend.

Luckily for Eugenio Maiale, now the owner of four venues, including the original two A Tavola (at Bondi and Darlinghurst) and Surry Hills’ Besser, the name A Tavola alone is enough to provoke recognition. “Yes, that’s somewhere I want to go,” seems to be the response.

A few weeks after opening, Tramsheds, the exciting eating space that has filled the warehouse site left derelict for 50 years after the tearing up of Sydney’s tram tracks, has found its feet. A visit of a few weeks back proved crazy: the place was packed with tourists and prams, there were queues for most restaurants and an air of madness.

Not that the crowds have disappeared. At Flour Eggs Water on an early weekday lunch, the long industrial space is thriving. It must be one of the busiest restaurants in Sydney. And why not, when the proposition is as simple and enjoyable as this?

Order from a concise list of mostly pasta (flour, eggs, water, no less) that are made in front of your eyes in the open kitchen, and enjoy the cheerful, authentic service of the young Italian waitstaff who zoom around the space like birds. It’s unpretentious and easy. No wonder crowds are pouring in.

Today’s pasta list is a slender affair taking in pappardelle with lamb, tomato, white wine and parmesan ($33), a rigatoni all’amatriciana with guanciale, pecorino and tomato ($28) and stracci with chicken livers, cavolo nero and marsala ($26). Serves are generous, so if you order, at $35, an expensive-sounding bowl of linguine nero with tender fingers of calamari, spaghetti-like strips of zucchini and bottarga, you can share it between two.

It sounds expensive, but is fair value really, especially when ink-hued pasta is al dente, the flavours are good and the seasoning is excellent. And if it could use some chilli or crunch, but who’s to quibble with these Italian chefs?

Less successful perhaps is a plate of agnolotti dal plin with eggplant, scamorza and ricotta ($29), with both the ravioli-like pasta and the eggplant paste beneath it leaning towards heavy rather than light. Next time, the silky pappardelle of our neighbours, instead. A salad of shaved red cabbage with raisins, walnut and balsamic ($15) is a generous mound of veg that has nice acidity, recommended with these rich pasta dishes, while other dishes include a large ball of burrata with citrus slices and hazelnuts ($18) and a serviceable rendition of calamari fritti ($17). A short wine list nicely complements the menu.

So Flour Eggs Water is more memorable than its name. It’s a cheerful and lively addition to this happening new food hotspot.

This review originally appeared on news.com.au.