Cook fairly classical Italian food. Prepare it with very good Australian produce and a smattering of essential imports from the mother country. Make the room big and bright, and keep the service tight and the wine smart enough that it becomes a home-away-from home for the Rockpool Bar & Grill power-lunch crowd. Don’t try and reinvent the wheel. Focus instead on colouring inside the lines, on making the pasta fresh and supple or gutsy and al dente as necessary, whether it’s with broccolini and chilli, pungent with anchovy, or gooey crab, garlic and parsley, Focus on keeping the gremolata crumb light and clean enough to honour superb King George whiting fillets, on selecting buttery-tender Torello veal rump to roast and serve pink and simple with creamy borlotti beans. Focus on these things and wonder why no one thought of it sooner.
