A new pasta bar from one of Sydney’s most enduring hospitality figures has quietly opened in Potts Point—and it’s giving up white tablecloths for a more laid-back, drop-in-style setting.
Paola Toppi, best known for shaping Sydney institutions like Machiavelli and Bar M, is behind Pasta Shop, a 35-seat diner tucked into the former Sonora site on the corner of Bayswater Road and Ward Avenue. The venue marks a shift in tone for Toppi, who is leaning into a more casual, accessible approach after decades at the city’s fine-dining helm.
Instead of formal service, the space invites drop-in dining and uses walnut timber tables, terracotta accents and an open, energetic layout that spills into a leafy courtyard.
A takeaway window facing the street keeps things moving and offers a glimpse into the kitchen as chefs turn out plates of pasta at pace.
40 years of pasta, reworked for now
The menu centres on a tight edit of 11 pasta dishes, including recipes Toppi has been refining for more than 40 years. Among them is her signature spaghetti Machiavelli, alongside crowd-pleasers like rigatoni alla vodka, gnocchi gorgonzola and a classic lasagne.
Moreover, they price everything under $30—a deliberate response to rising dining costs. “Pasta was never meant to be exclusive,” Toppi says. “In Italy, it’s something people eat every day—it should feel easy and accessible.”
That ethos extends beyond the dining room. Pasta Shop offers takeaway and delivery across Sydney’s Eastern Suburbs, with Toppi even developing custom packaging designed to keep pasta at the right texture in transit—a small but telling detail for a venue built on decades of know-how.
Here, you’ll find traditional polpette in sugo, house-made focaccia, simple salads and classic Italian desserts like tiramisu and cannoli.
Slinging prize-winning cocktails
Drinks lean Italian, with a rotating wine list and Sardinian beer, alongside ready-to-pour cocktails from award-winning bar Maybe Sammy—including bottled negronis and margaritas.
It’s a notable collaboration that brings together two very different corners of Sydney’s dining scene, with old-school Italian cooking and one of the world’s most celebrated cocktail bars, which has featured on The World’s 50 Best Bars list.
However, Pasta Shop keeps things intentionally low-key, with no bookings and just walk-ins. It’s a format that feels designed for spontaneity, whether you’re stopping in for a quick bowl of pasta or settling in with a negroni and a few shared plates.
Pasta Shop is now open at 37 Bayswater Road, Potts Point, open Wednesday to Sunday for dinner and Thursday to Sunday for lunch.
