Wood fired oven
Full Disclosure Dear Reader: the owners of La Casa are lovely people and I count them as friends of mine. Writing about friend’s businesses is always delicate as they are friends of course but as you want to support a friend you want to come along, pay for your share and help contribute to their business. So when Buxom Wench suggested a dinner with her family and Mr NQN and I at La Casa I jumped at it. I had eaten enough free pizza at their opening to start up a food tab so it felt right that we come and pay for our meal and also see what this new Italian family style restaurant was all about.
Business has been roaring since they opened a few months ago. They’re booked out every night apparently which means that Carm and her brother Tony are now truly married to the business. It’s a family business with Carm and Tony, Carm’s husband, their sister and father working there-her father refuses to let her hire a cleaner so he does the cleaning!
Buxom Wench and her husband Silver Fox and her two sons The Clones have visited here before and I had heard amazing things about the ribs. Granted ribs aren’t a typical Sicilian dish but Carm says that she wanted to do something different. The rest of the menu is split into starters, pasta, meat mains, grill items, pizzas and sides and salads.
Garlic pizza $9
While we’re deciding (and it is a task as we’re torn and I’m starving), we nibble on a hot fresh, garlic pizza-nice and light and a good start!
Meatballs: Polpette della Mamma $14
The famous meatballs are really begging to be tried. The menu reads “Our Mamma’s original style meatballs” and Carm explains that originally they were just using her recipe but she just wasn’t happy with them so now as a result she comes in and makes them herself every second day. The meatballs are soft and purely comforting with a nice thick but not overly strong tomato sauce and a wedge of wood fired white bread.
Papardelle with pancetta, swiss brown mushrooms in a creamy white wine sauce $19
Clone 1 had particularly enjoyed this pasta. Even this pasta had lactose intolerant Buxom Wench popping her Lactaid tablets so that she could enjoy her moments of bliss with this creamy white wine and garlic pasta. The pieces of pancetta are juicy with just the right amount of fat, the slices of swiss brown and hand made papardelle which as Clone 1 had pointed out actually looks and tastes hand made are comforting. I abandon the diet ship and go for third servings.
Don Ciccio pizza $18
Silver Fox and I were in agreement with what we like on pizzas. We both like salamis and pepperonis and so the Don Ciccio pizza was ordered. It has a topping of tomato, mozzarella, hot Sicilian salami, capsicum and olives. The pizzas here are made Napolitan style with a thin crust, soft centre and thick edge.
Napoletana pizza $17
This is Clone 2′s entree all to himself as he liked it so much the last time he came here. It has a tomato, mozzarella, anchovy, olive and oregano topping.
Rabbit: Coniglio in Agrodolce $23
The rabbit is slow cooked pieces on the bone in a tomato and balsamic sauce with pine nuts, capers, raisins and sage. It was a dish we enjoyed at the opening and if anyone doesn’t like rabbit this is a great introduction dish as the sauce counteracts any gamey flavour that some people don’t like about rabbit.
400gm Rib Eye Riverina grass fed Marble score 2+ $35
Is it wrong to want to order a steak just to try the sauce that goes with it? Carm had gone through the menu with us and let us know what was particularly Sicilian. The Salmoriglio sauce which is made up of extra virgin olive oil, lemon, parsley, oregano and garlic is a typical condiment that Sicilians serve with their steak. We also ask to try the Chianti wine jus. The steak is juicy and tender without a scratch of gristle (and I love grass fed beef for the flavour but find that sometimes it has gristle) but the magic really happens with the Salmoriglio sauce which bursts with flavour and freshness. I can see that cream sauces might overwhelm a steak like this and I almost want to carry a flask of this with me to take for my next steak. It is served with a wilted mound of cima de rapa (otherwise known as broccoli rabe or raab) which is a mild tasting green with a soft texture once cooked and mashed potato. Carm’s father sometimes provides the supply of cima de rapa from his backyard.
Full rack of pork ribs cooked in La Casa’s sauce served with chunky fries $34
Again, I know ribs aren’t a typical Sicilian thing but I have a bit of a thing for them you see. And when Carm tells me that the head chef worked at Daniel’s Steakhouse all of the pieces of the meat puzzle fall into place and you understand why the meat is so, so good. And it’s worth noting that you can also buy a half serve of ribs but as it’s $28 you may as well order the whole lot and take some home with you. I usually test all ribs against the ones from South. These are very similar, with a touch less sauce and they are softly gorgeous and rich and brushed in a home made barbecue sauce. Divine.
And because Buxom Wench is so clever she has brought out a measuring tape and measured them at 12 inches by 6 inches full of rib goodness. When Harry Met Sally noises are emanating from our mouths but we don’t care. We stop Smiley Carm’s husband and ask for the secret of these ribs. It’s a triple cooking process: steam oven, oven and then charcoal! Damn, I probably won’t make these at home so it looks like I’ll just have to come here for my rib fix…
Beef short ribs cooked in La Casa sauce served with chunky fries $32
There’s a moment of panic as we enjoy our pork ribs and realise that to our utter horror, that we only have a few ribs left so an order of the beef short ribs are ordered post haste. We thought that this might be the same sauce as what was on the pork ribs as they were both called “La Casa sauce” but when this is set down our eyes widen it is apparent that these are different.
Oh yeah baby…
It’s an enormous serve and could easily feed two. I cut it apart and it looks…well like pure food porn such is the way that it falls apart so readily. “That’s Food Penthouse” Silver Fox says. The ribs are coated in a very rich tomato sauce cooked down with herbs and the meat is rich and gelatinous in texture and…rib sticking as they’re incredibly rich.
Orange and Fennel salad $8
This salad was refreshing and a good partner to the richness of the dishes. Called ‘Nsalata Portualla, portualla is how they say orange in Sicily and at home Carm eats this salad with chilli in it.
Cannoli Siciliani $8
I made a decision while eating the ribs. I would give up my dessert stomach space for the ribs so I didn’t get to try these. But the two Clones did and they gave these the thumbs up.
Tre Gelati $8
We finish off with a trio of gelato in hazelnut, vanilla and chocolate. I tried small tastes of this with my favourite being the hazelnut and chocolate. The gelato is from Carm’s Sicilian friend Alfred from Pure Gelato.
Lemon Sorbet $8
There is also a Nutella pizza if you want to give a sweet pizza a whirl. I had no stomach space for it sadly!
Full disclosure Dear Reader, I absolutely loved this meal.
And I have something rather exciting to share! Delicious magazine (yes the Delicious magazine), named Not Quite Nigella one of the top 10 blog and websites in their Top 100 list! I am delighted to be amongst such esteemed company-the other Australian blog being Matthew Evans’s SBS Food Blog. Can you tell how excited I am? Squeeaaal! And this is also appropriate as La Casa also got a mention in the magazine too as an exciting new restaurant opening with a specific points for the ribs.
So tell me Dear Reader, what magazine or newspaper have you always wanted to be in or have you been in?
Delicious magazine (click to enlarge)
La Casa Ristorante
271 Lyons Road, Russell Lea, NSW (between Five Dock & Drummoyne)
Tel: +61 (02) 9712 3882
Open Tuesday–Sunday, from 5pm
BYO and Licensed
http://www.lacasaristorante.com.au/
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63 Comments | Add your own
Oh my , what a deliciously wonderful day this was!
Am i hungry??? i sure am now , the steak is sooo good so is evrything , but then dont u always pick the best:-)
*Squeeaal*! Not just on the same list as Matt Evans blog, but above it, no less!! Well done, you! Great review too, thanks, we went to La Casa when it first opened, and just loved it!
Wow, you had a real feast there…
! I especially like the creamy Parpadelle – I have a soft spot for noodles 
.
Looks like a solid place to get a feed. It seems like these high end pizza joints are popping up everywhere!
WOW! What a great post! I loved all your images, they made me feel like I was sitting right beside you, (albeit with none of the culinary benefits
.)
I am pleased to know that you are human and do have to think of your waist line! With all the delicious food you sample I was beginning to wonder
Lastly, I am thrilled for you! Top 10 food blogs and websites “Delicious Magazine”!!! Yeh!!! But of course you are, you are the queen of food and blogging
We love this sort of italian restaurant…unpretentious with great food. Look forward to visiting…the beef ribs look amazing. And no, it is never wrong to order steak for any reason!
In terms of magazines…we love Australian Gourmet Traveller…so that would be the one for us.
That meals looks delicious! How many of you ate all that – dare I ask??
Yes, I saw the Delicious mention – I was so excited for you!!! I want to be there next year!!!
Congrats on the magazine mention!!! It is very well deserved
The restaurant sounds delicious Lorraine! I’ll be dreaming of ribs all day now.
Congrats on your ranking, that is fantastic!
Congrats! What a big year you’ve had! Hope it continues to be awesome!
Nice post and great place with very good italian food! those pizza make me wanna go for lunch at this early hour
Dario
I cant wait to go to LaCasa. I have heard so many great things about the restaurant. Gorgeous food and owned by such a nice person. Carm is fantastic and looking forward to meeting her in person.
Congrats Lorraine- saw it in the Delicious Mag on the weekend. Those ribs do look magnificent- next time I’m in Sydney, I must stop by.
Those ribs look amazing. I’m due for a meal if ribs.
You always make me crave things at inappropriate times! Garlic Pizza at 9.30 am this time
Congratulations on making the Delicious list!!!
I would love to be in any Australian foodie magazine. I think Gourmet Traveler would be another good one for you though.
I’m a massive fan of ribs – they are too delicious! And if these are as good as the ones at South I’ll be heading there shortly!
Mmm…nothing like a home style Italian dinner to get the hunger pains starting!. I have been dying to try this place, since it’s in my local area. They are always so busy, especially in an area with so many Italian eateries! Those beef short ribs –ooh baby indeed! Can’t wait to visit Carm and Tony soon!
What a great review – thanks for sharing with us Lorraine! I keep on hearing about Carm’s delicious meatballs, so I’ll need to plan an evening there with Jean…
And congrats for Delicious, it’s like there’s not a week without fabulous news in NQN-land. You so deserve it, lady
Did those ribs come from a dinosaur? They look huge, and oh so tasty..
So great to wake up to this blog today,Mamma & Papa are so so proud – thank you Lorraine & a HUGE congrats to you on your Delicious Magazine mention,very well deserved.Big hugs from all of us at the La Casa team, Carm x
Great review Lorraine. I love Carm, her family & La Casa. I can’t wait to go again & try some other dishes.
Congrats on the Delicious list
I drive past this place daily, morning and afternoon. I always say I have to go there. Now seeing your post I will definitely go there. I am sadden by the lack of good pizza in the area and truly need a pizza revival!
That is an alltogether lovely meal, Lorraine! The garlic pizza does indeed look like the perfect way to start…I bet it would be wonderful with a side of marinara sauce! And that pasta…oh my…I could go for a bowl of that right now!
Oh, we ate pizza last night but now I want more after reading about La Casa! Everything looks delicious , I love cima di rape so that would be the first thing I’d order, followed closely by the Sicilian Cannoli, then everything else lol
Congratulations on your continuing success, well done Lorraine. I would love to be in the older version of Vogue Entertaining & Travel, as I don’t like the new version anymore. It’s too full of advertisements and only a small portion is dedicated to food
The Clones, such a great name. Gorgeous food you had here, especially the rabbit. The pizza base looks very good. Congrats on the mag mention!
I’ll have the meatballs please – just look at that sauce! I am not in and have no ambition to be in any publication. My blog is for me and anyone who enjoys reading it – I don’t give a toss about corporate-ville wanting to ride on my coat-tails.
We chose Carmel’s ristorante for our 25th wedding anniversary and was not disappointed. The food was delicious.
I ordered the Coniglio in Agrodolce & was one of the best rabbit dishes I have tried. My mother used to make this in sort of a fricassee style sauce but never minded that gamey taste.
Ignatius – my husband had the veal and loved that too. As he is not the adventurous type to try different foods he was deciding between steak & veal. Both would have been great anyway.
We both ordered different desserts with Ignatius ordering the three types of gelatis & myself the Cannoli Siciliani.Que rico! (Yum!)
The wine selection has been well thought out too. I ordered a bottle of red which you cannot but anywhere in Australian bottle shops, sadly it’s exclusive to La Casa Ristorante.
Everything at this restaurant was splendid I will definitely go back and was glad to try a different place to dine in other than the lower North Shore.
Congratulations with the feature in the top 10 blogs!
This post is making me extremely hungry. I’ve recommended it (along with your post link) to a friend for a birthday dinner, hopefully she picks it.
Mmmhhhh, you make me feel like pizza!
PS
missed the bit about the best blogs (too busy thinking about pizza!), congratulations, you rock!
Isn’t it great when you’re absolutely starving/famished, and you get fabulous food!? It just is so satisfying
I can’t wait to dine here. Having sampled some at a recent social media event at La Casa, I am desperate to get back and have the full experience.
Did you try the Tiramisu Lorraine? Divine!
Thanks for sharing this, and such beautiful photos too.
Best,
Tony
CONGRATS on making the list, TRUE!
VERY well deserved! KUDOS! too!
Thank you for writing this blog today,
Bet the size of the ribs would challenge any American dish portion…lol…ok?
Congratulations, Lorraine! I’m even more impressed with Delicious’ taste seeing as that was an international list, and they made sure to put you on it!
You definitely deserve it. Just like I wish I deserved that creamy pasta…
Love a homey Italian meal!
Whoa @ the ribs!
its 1pm and have not eaten at all because i am at home sick and nauseas. after reading this blog im feeling hungry.i think i am getting better.have been to la casa once but cant wait to come again.carmen and tony please open up a la casa #2 restuarant in the south.there are no decent pizzerias around here.
That restaurant looks great, every dish look so yummy.
Congrats on making it into the top 100 blogs too, well done
This restaurant is a very short walk from home but so far we haven’t been in for dinner. I notice it’s doing really well which is good for a local place. Will try v.soon. I also understand they do gluten free which is a plus for me
LOVE YOU POST!! I feel like I am there with you!! I have had th honour and pleasure to eat at La Casa a few times and couldn’t agreem more!! Great everything, food, quality, service & that something special that Carm, Tony, Smiley & the team have; La Casa Cosa!! x
I love, love, love these places – this sorta menu would be what I’d choose from for my last meal for sure.
Oh, congrats on Delicious too… you so deserve
I have no idea why that garlic pizza is stuck in my head. All the food looks delish!
Everything looks so hearty and delicious! Those ribs do look like they give South’s a run for their money.
Wow wow wow wow! An author, a t.v spot, now in Delicious, what is left to conquer?
And I’d pop some Lactaid tablets for that sauce too.
Those meatballs look divine and it pleases me to see them served as the star of the dish and not enveloped by pasta.
Congratulations on making delicious- what a well deserved honour that is. Up there with David Lebovitz! Wow. You’ve arrived.
Oh what a feast! And I can’t believe you gave up your dessert stomach! =D
These pizzas look heavenly especially the garlic one, to me a pizza has to start with a great base and the one’s here are the real deal!
This looks absolutely delicious and I agree that while ribs isn’t Italian, it should be welcome on any menu! I love good Italian food and sadly don’t get enough of it
Those cannoli’s look amazing!
Wow,it all looked delicious.I love the ribs as well,& the short ribs seemed amazing.
I’d love to be in Gourmet traveller or Vogue Entertaining.
You are right up there with Orangette and David Leibovitz, young lady… how cool is that??? Congrats, Lorraine! Your friends must have been over the moon with the review… it certainly made me want to visit to dive into those ribs and get a glass of that steak sauce. It’s nice to give back to friends and even better when you can give a well-deserved stellar review… worth much more than the price of a dinner or 3!
I love the look of the meatballs (and love that the nonna makes them herself) and that rabbit as well. Congratulations on the delicious mention – well deserved!
Congratulations Lorraine, that’s awesome!
And those ribs… Could you beam some over to the UK for me please? 
The restaurant looks great – very Italian. I have just appeared in The Sunday Mail – haven’t seen it yet. I’m not sure I want to be there. Congratulations on your Delicious mention – I will buy it.
Congratulations on the magazine! I was in a beauty mag years ago as a ‘foot model’ in a pedicure story LOL
That full rack of ribs looks amazing. I love ribs! And the orange & fennel salad looks so fresh
You know what? Because I’ve written for major newspapers and magazines, and actually been in a few (helping friends and colleagues out), it’s not a big deal for me. I realise that today’s news/feature is tomorrow’s rubbish. But I DO get nervous on TV and radio and public speaking, ridiculous really. The kids were most impressed when I was on Sunrise, and still talk about it, but I’m not in a hurry to go back.
All that food looks divine. Congrats on the blog listing. You are definitely in my top 5 blogs!
I think that the word diet would go right out the door at this place! Everything sounds so perfect, especially with this cold weather now!! And congrats on getting a mention in the mag
Finally got a chance to visit La Casa last night and there was no disappointment. Tony and Carms said they will look after the primi course and out shot the polpette meatballs…its all about tomato sauce for Italians and I demolished multiple slices of garlic bread with the sauce alone.A mighty start. Then came the Cozze..I love mussels and the zuppa is what makes them and this was a perfect mix between taste of ocean and chilli resonance….all powers to this dish and Ill be back for this one alone…..
Then out snuck the calamari…in the lightest dusting of batter, it was cooked to perfection, and being a greek I have done plenty of calamari in my time. I was let in on the secret to the light batter but if I tell you here they will have to kill me , its a famiglia thing over that way by the Adriatic. Main course was the quail done with capers and orange and sage and raisins… moist, tasty and required use of both hands with retirement of knife and fork. No room for desert although there was room for a cleansing Limoncello.
This was a wednesday night and the place was absolutely going off. Packed to the rafters with happy people dining , laughing and having a good time. Seemed to be ladies night as there were no fewer than 6 tables of girls hooking in to the goodwill and wonderful service that Carms, Tony, Smiley and the team share from the moment that you arrive.
What makes this place special…the food speaks for itself, but what spoke to me about LA CASA is the genuine homely attention you receive. Carms , Tony and Smiley are out at the tables not just serving but engaging with you and your evening. It makes you feel like you are over at their place and they are cooking for you. Its the real deal, from the heart passion and excitement about genuinely serving you while you are over at their place. Theres no ” is everything all right’ lines without feeling. They are living and breathing each dish that floats from the kitchen to your taste buds.
Real Italian food, real family service,really uplifting place to go.. The way food should be enjoyed and shared…I gotta get my dad for there for the mussels…He’s gonna love it…double serve of the zuppa on the side please.. Congrats on hitting the ground running Costa xxx
Congrats Lorraine!!
This restaurant looks exactly the type that I would fall in love with!! look at all those lovely dishes!! .. and CONGRATS on the mention!!
I’m not normally much of a ribs girl but these ones look great. And the cannoli – mmmm!!!
You really shouldn’t be surprised at your success, i’m sure none of your readers are
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