[content_slider]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[content_slide]
[/content_slide]
[/content_slider]
MELBOURNE | Ms Frankie is an Italian restaurant in Cremorne, just around the corner from Richmond station, that focuses on quality pasta along with a few other Italian favourites. We were recently invited to sample a few dishes and decided to take up the offer to see what it was all about.
Ms Frankie is owned by Melinda and Wani, who are of Italian and Greek heritage, and is inspired by Melinda’s childhood growing up with her mum Vincenza’s home cooked Italian food, cooking food in the family’s garage for family and friends. The interior of the restaurant might be slick and modern, but at the heart Ms Frankie is traditional. The open dining area features low lighting, high ceilings and sleek furnishings, but thankfully it’s well insulated for noise and it’s easy to have a conversation – something we worried about when we first saw the space. To one side is the bar, and further back the kitchen, then a temperature controlled room behind a large glass window, where pasta and bread is made fresh.
The menu features a selection of Calabrian and Sicilian dishes. To start its things like salumi boards, foccacia, pork belly and our favourite, Fritto Misto – perfectly fried school prawns and calamari with aioli. For mains it’s all about the pasta. There’s things like bucatini all’amatriciana with tomato, guanciale, chilli, pecorino, and a deliciously fresh spaghetti all a chitarra alla marinara with clams, mussels, prawns, and kingfish. Another highlight is the buttery and creamy tortelloni di ricotta with butter & sage sauce – make sure you get some bread to soak up every last bit of the delicious sauce!
There are a few side salads, and a handful of desserts too – ricotta cannoli, Nutella sundae and panna cotta. While not on the every day menu, if you see the pressed octopus with blood orange and fennel on the specials menu do order it. It’s a delicious dish that’s full of flavour.
For drinks it’s a selection of Italian beer, local and Italian wines, and a full shelf of spirits, aperitifs, digestifs and amaros.
Simple Italian food and drink done well using family recipes and quality ingredients. It might not be a revolutionary idea, but it’s one that’s stood the test of time for good reason.
Ms Frankie
24 Cremorne Street
Cremorne
Victoria 3121
Australia
Telephone: (03) 9428 5117
E-mail: [email protected]
Website
Open
Mon – Fri: 12:00pm to 11:00pm
Sat: 5:00pm to 11:00pm