Last year when Lorraine from Not Quite Nigella was going to be in Brisbane for a very quick stopover she gave me a challenge – find a restaurant that will feed us at 9pm. Even on a Friday night that was a pretty tricky request but had Alfredo’s Pizzeria Fortitude Valley been on the scene back then, I would have been all set. They’re open until 1am every morning and 3am on Saturday and Sunday mornings.
I’m sure the target for the late night customers is more the party-goers but I think it would be great for after a movie or show when it’s too early to eat before but leave it to afterwards and you’ll probably be left hungry.
Arriving at 6pm, I found the restaurant reasonably quiet, which I expected on a Monday night but by the time I left just after 8 it was buzzing.
Of course I got straight to ordering.
I’m not much of a drinker as you know but I since quitting Diet Coke, I’ve gotten rather into lime/citrus drinks. The barman very kindly whipped me up a virgin mojito which is possibly my new favourite drink. There’s probably as much sugar as a can of soft drink but it tastes so much better.
Before the rush started I jumped up and snapped a few photos of the surrounds. Oh to have a wood-fired pizza oven in my kitchen. Those enviable blue tiles surrounding the stove are vintage and all the way from England. You know I like a good re-use, no-waste story. Actually there are a lot of features in the decor taken from the original factory that was housed in the space.
I’m always a little bit hesitant when I’m eating with someone for the first time. I don’t want them to think I’m a pig but I was in brilliant company. We both had very similar appetites and totally believed in ordering a good selection. At $12.90 for 4 big portions, the meatballs, coated in melted cheese and swimming in a rich tomato sauce.
We’d finished the meatballs but both nearly yelled at the poor waitress for trying to take the bowl away when there was still sauce to be mopped up with the crunchy garlic bread.
When I got home and told Will I had arancini is immediate response was ‘I hate arancini, they’re always dry.’ I wish he’d been here to try these ($12.90) because they were anything but. Crack through the crispy thin shell and you’ll find the most juicy, soft risotto filling. It’s almost like it oozes out of the crispiness.
This is just another reminder that I need to get my act together and make gnocchi. These pillows of soft potato ($18.90) were larger than regular gnocchi, you definitely needed a knife and fork because they were not one-bite wonders. I thought that a truffle creme sauce would be really rich but but it was surprisingly light and I found myself mopping it up with a slice of pizza when all the gnocchi had been devoured.
The Ray & Dave Davies with roast eggplant, garlic oil, rosemary & scamorza ($19.90) was a little bit disappointing. Thin slices of marinated eggplant would have been better than the big chewy chunks and it is personal preference but I love a rich tomato sauce as the base (I think this one had oil). The actual base was lovely and soft although a little thick for this thin-base lover but it would have made a perfect pizza bread with a simple pesto or garlic topping.
We also ordered a slice of the extra cheesy pizza each because really, who can say no to cheese? There was quite a tang from a blue-type cheese but it was a cheese-lovers dream. Call me classic but again I would have liked a tomato sauce. Next time I visit I’m trying out one of their meaty pizzas.
Yes you read correctly there were only two of us. I haven’t had waffles since, well I can’t actually remember the last time I had waffles. Now I want a waffle iron because wow these were good. They weren’t too doughy, just lovely and crisp and the lemon curd and limoncello gelato you would think would create lemon overload. Totally not the case.
Ok now I’m getting a little embarrassed. I’d like to say we just tasted each one but that would be a lie. We devoured every skerrick of this rich, molten chocolate cake. Look at that ooze will you? Could you resist?
Now who is this guy shoving his face full of pizza? It’s a great story…
We wanted to create a figurative personality for the design and started to think about who the pizza maker would be, what Mr Alfredo would be like, and we imagined this really cool, old Italian guy who’s a bit of a hipster.
We met Aldo Nicolosi on the street of Haberfield in Sydney, where he hangs out at a café with his friends most days – he had this really cheeky attitude and we just knew instantly that he was our Mr Alfredo.
Isn’t that a fun story? He enthusiastically agreed and flew up for their opening.
I’m looking forward to revisiting Alfredo’s and sampling a few more of their pizzas. They also get my approval because despite being in The Valley which is notoriously bad for parking, there’s a multi-story carpark across the street and they validate your ticket for you.
Alfredo’s Pizzeria is located at 39 Alfred Street, Fortitude Valley and is open midday til 1am every day and until 3am on the weekends.
If you liked this post, why not subscribe and receive updates straight to your inbox?
The post Alfredo’s Pizzeria Fortitude Valley appeared first on Claire K Creations.
