Di Stasio Carlton

For the third Di Stasio restaurant (a name synonymous in Melbourne with fine dining, Italian style) we wanted the interiors to reflect owners Rinaldo Di Stasio and Mallory Wall — renown as two of the city’s leading art patrons. We also wanted to create a truly distinct and unconventional dining experience.

Di Stasio Carlton’s dramatic yet seamless blend of exaggerated proportions, contemporary Australian artworks and Italian architectural features — including an original 1950s terrazzo floor and, in the courtyard, a 17th-century Roman fountain — combine to create a truly unique dining experience.

“This project certainly has the DNA of Citta in it, but with more intimate spaces and a more casual feel”

Mallory Wall for Good Food Australia

Inside, a theatrical adventure unfolds in a series of three contrasting rooms inter-connected by portals lined in pressed metal that end at the threshold to an outdoor oasis. Inspired by Di Stasio’s childhood memories of Italian gardens in 1960s Melbourne, the courtyard is a treasure of surprise and delight, dotted with swan planters, antique urns and the ancient Roman fountain, which takes centre stage.