Iceberg’s restauranter Maurice Terzini and ACME’s Mitch Orr team up to bring a taste of southern Italy to Bondi beach.
It’s not often an owner will close the doors of a successful restaurant. But, that’s exactly what restauranter Maurice Terzini decided to do earlier this year. After 5 years, Terzini has shut up shop at Da Orazio Pizza + Porchetta with a new venture about to replace this beloved Bondi eatery.
In collaboration with ACME’s Mitch Orr, the team has just launched their latest project, CicciaBella. Located in the old Da Orazio site, this new Italian Osteria hopes to shake up Bondi’s dining scene once again. In a nutshell, diners can expect the taste of the southern Italian coast with a menu fuelled by a wood-fire oven and a modern culinary approach. CicciaBella is poised to become a restaurant for the people and families of Bondi. In fact, the venue takes its name from the traditional toy every Italian kid will remember from their childhood, the ciccobello.
The focus of this menu is choice. Whether you’re looking to snack your way through plates of antipasti or want a more substantial affair, you’ll find something to tick every box at CicciaBella. Mitch Orr’s flair for pasta is front-and-centre here, along with an offering anchored in light and fresh flavours that feel at home in this beachside setting.
Here, you’ll find a well-stock antipasti menu, crafted around the CicciaBella garlic pizza fritta (intended to wipe plates of antipasto clean). Expect bone marrow with gremolata, blistered cherry tomatoes and smoky eggplant (all coming straight from the venue’s wood-fired oven). As for pasta, each plate is seasonally-focused with the launch menu serving up fresh spring-inspired flavours, including strozzapreti with zucchini flowers plus pangrattato or maltagliati with braised rabbit and pistachio. With all pasta made in-house using a Bellata Gold semolina, you’ll want to order in copious quantities.
As for mains, dine your way through wood-fired flathead with seaweed butter and lemon as well as an extensive selection of pizza options. Each takes inspiration from the pizza fritta of Maurice’s childhood summers, and are smaller in size than your typical pie.
When it comes to drinks, Sommelier James Hird has curated a refined selection of wines that focus on drinkability. Think light, fresh and food-driven drops with plenty of organic, biodynamic and sustainability produced bottles on the menu. Plus, Scout Sydney’s Matt Whitely has crafted a complimentary drinks program to keep with the food menu’s seasonal offering.
To set the mood, the venue’s bespoke playlist comes courtesy of Carly Roberts from PICNIC Touring and Events, a mix of disco, dub, post-punk, and Balearic gems to keep spirits high all night long. As for the interiors, architects Herbert & Mason have crafted the fit-out to feel considered and intimate, with banquette seating alongside the bar and “chef’s table” spots at the pass to comfortably accommodate groups of all sizes.
CicciaBella is open now at 75-79 Hall Street, Bondi Beach, open Monday to Friday from 6 pm and weekends from midday to midnight. To book your spot, click here.
If you’re looking to satisfy your Italian cravings, check out our guide to 15 Pizza Places You Must Try If You Live In Sydney.