La Sala

Ph: 9281 3352; 23 Foster St, Surry Hills 2010 www.lasala.com.au

Italian, $$
Open Lunch Thu-Fri noon-3pm Dinner Tue-Sat 6pm-late; Licensed; AE DC MC V EFT
Chef Ruben Martinez (29-11-08) Owner Aih Group (29-11-08)

Other published opinions

Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2009 Score: 13.5/20 "The vibe is noticeably less spirited since founding frontman Andrea Mellas and chef Darren Simpson left the building, but this warehouse restaurant still delivers some fine food in dramatic surrounds"

Gourmet Traveller 2009 Australian Restaurant Guide "Founding fathers Andrea Mellas and Darren Simpson may have left, taking some of the signature buzz with them, but La Sala remains a beautiful oasis of urban style sunk beneath a Surry Hills side street"

Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2008 Score: 14/20 "It has a sophisticated modern fit-out, a funky bar and a glamorous two-level dining room with luxurious espresso brown carpet"

Gourmet Traveller 2008 Australian Restaurant Guide "On a Surry Hills side street, a Greek restaurateur and an Irish chef (t say nothing of our favourite French waitress) have produced an Italian restaurant that Sydney diners just can't get enough of"

Sydney Morning Herald Pip Cummings, 21-2-2006 "In downtown Surry Hills the heels are high, the legs are long and the shorts are aptly named. The Look is sported at La Sala by coltish models, mixing happily with creatives in designer specs and suits, and ironic young men in slogan T-shirts."

Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide 2007 Score: 14/20 "Sydney's dining scene this year could be summed up in three words: 'Italian', 'Surry' and 'Hills'. It sounds a bit like a joke, but a smart Greek waiter - Andrea Mellas (ex-Icebergs) - and an Irish chef - Darren Simpson (ex-Aqua Luna) - have cooked up one of the city's hottest ristoranti with La Sala."

Gourmet Traveller 2007 Restaurant Guide Score: * "This is Sydney's hot new restaurant of the year. So hot it's incandescent. It's close by chic stalwart Longrain in an increasingly fashionable residential and retail purlieu. Andrea Mellas is one of the country's smoothest and most personable maitres d', and it's a knockout space - big and inviting, moody and humming like a Lamborghini straight from the showroom."

Sydney Morning Herald By Simon Thomsen, 10-1-2006 "Smartly rustic Italian classics do not drain your wallet. What's more Australian than an Irishman cooking Italian, backed up by a Greek famous for his service?"