Why the classic lasagne is making a triumphant return - Food Files

by Lindy Alexander

Aug 08, 2025

Once a lockdown staple, lasagne is back on top on restaurant menus. Lindy Alexander digs into the slow-cooked dish that never loses its appeal.

It’s the ultimate comfort dish, and proof that the simple things truly can be the best. Here’s why everyone suddenly wants a slice of that most beloved of pasta dishes: lasagne.

Lasagne is one of those dishes that’s been on steady rotation in Australian kitchens for decades. It’s regularly dished up at family dinners, dropped off at friends’ houses when new babies arrive, and served in slabs at school fundraisers. For most of us, a bubbling, cheesy homemade lasagne is the ultimate comfort food. But ever since chef Massimo Bottura unveiled his now- iconic ‘Crunchy Part of the Lasagne’ dish at his three-Michelin-starred restaurant Osteria Francescana in Modena, Italy, in 1995, lasagne has been inching its way into the spotlight in restaurants. And after becoming one of the defining lockdown dishes, lasagne has returned to menus – not as a reinvention, but as a reminder of just how delicious slow-cooked ragu, silky bechamel and hand-rolled pasta sheets can be.

Nonna Angela's lasagne — Nonna Angela’s lasagne

A labour of love

Flying the lasagne flag in Sydney is Alessandro Pavoni, chef and owner of Ormeggio, a’Mare and Postino Osteria. At Vineria Luisa, Pavoni’s newest restaurant in the Inner West, the menu features the ‘best ever lasagne’. “It is a big call,” he admits. “But I really believe in doing things properly. Lasagne has been underrated for years because it’s such a hard dish to do well. The ragu alone takes 8 to 10 hours to cook.” Pavoni uses a mix of veal, beef and pork secondary cuts with plenty of connective tissue that slowly melts during cooking. “A lot of people use lean supermarket mince and they end up with a sandy, dry bolognese,” Pavoni says. “That’s not how it should be.” His process is a labour of love. “We blanch the pasta, then layer it with an abundance of bechamel and a light sprinkle of ragu, so it’s seven layers in total,” Pavoni continues. “The lasagne is gently dried in the oven, then left to rest before being portioned.

“At service, we add more bolognese on top and finish it with 24-month aged Parmigiano Reggiano.” It’s a traditional bolognese lasagne, but Pavoni is quick to stress that he’s not trying to put a new spin on the classic. “I didn’t invent anything,” he says. “I just do it properly. Simple isn’t easy. But when it’s done right, it’s beautiful. People have been ordering it and telling me they’ve never tasted anything like it before.”

Spoilt for choice

In Melbourne, the lasagne revival is also going strong. Lasagna Lab, with venues in Windsor and West Melbourne, offers a full menu dedicated to the dish, from wagyu beef bolognese with fior di latte mozzarella or roasted pumpkin with mascarpone and brown butter to a porcini mushroom with cashew bechamel and truffle paste. There’s even a lasagne pocket called the ‘Tasca’, deep-fried, wrapped in a crisp pasta shell you can hold in your hands. Other notable spots showing lasagne love include Grossi Cellar Bar, which proudly makes lasagne to Guy Grossi’s mother’s recipe; D.O.C Espresso in Carlton with its traditional Emilia-Romagna style; and Pellegrini’s old-school lasagne slab with a delectably rich ragu.

The ultimate comfort

For Pavoni, the revival of lasagne on restaurant menus brings him deeply personal satisfaction. After undergoing treatment for cancer when he was just a young chef, he spent a year living with his mother in Bologna – the birthplace of lasagne. “I know those dishes, and I have missed them being done well,” he says. “I know Australians love lasagne like the Italians do. It’s a pleasure to do something so simple but to do it properly.”

P74 Mamma Maria's lasagne napoletana — Mamma Maria’s lasagne napoletana

More lasagnes to try

Queensland

Did somebody say “100-layer lasagne”? The signature dish at Prova Pizzeria in Brisbane’s Stafford Heights makes pasta dreams come true. Or, on the Gold Coast, pick up a 1.5kg wagyu beef lasagne from Chef Frankie’s kiosk in Currumbin Waters.

South Australia

Roll up to the new Reno’s Bistro in the Adelaide CBD for the lasagne rotolo. Think lasagne, but rolled up. Or head to Adelaide Central Market icon Lucia’s for the lasagne special, only available Friday.

Tasmania

Hobart’s Da Angelo Ristorante has dished up the comfort dish for over 30 years.

New South Wales

The pasta pros at Fabbrica are slinging take- home lasagnes at their CBD, Rozelle, Coogee outlets every Wednesday in August. The beef shin lasagne is a must-order at new Sydenham pasta and wine bar Sippenham. Tuesday is $17 Lasagne Night at Redfern’s Bat & Ball Hotel.