Art Of Hospitality

Flamboyantly Fellini-esque, Di Stasio Città makes dining a theatrical event.

- Michael Harden

It’s Friday night and Di Stasio Città is heaving like a party scene in a Fellini movie. Every red leather dining chair and lofty black leather barstool is occupied, except for when the occupant is doing the rounds of the room, greeting friends at other tables. People wave at and toast each other to a soundtrack of Italian pop and folk music. Floor staff – the women in inky-blue cassock dresses draped in scarlet beads, the men white-jacketed or besuited – are in constant motion, as are the video installations by Reko Rennie and Shaun Gladwell on loop behind the bar and high on two walls, their images reflecting off marble and terrazzo. Murano chandeliers hover like giant jellyfish above the bathrooms.

The food and drink are similarly ready for their close-up. One of Melbourne’s best Martinis arrives perfectly chilled on a silver tray accompanied by a coupe filled with crushed ice cradling extra olives and a side dish for the pits. Anchovy snacks – a tiny, pizza-like “tartina” topped with a smear of tomato purée, a single anchovy and a tiny basil leaf, or a crisp number with the fillet rolled in a sage leaf, then floured and fried – are served on vintage silver stands like sacramental offerings.