Bar Carolina

Joe Mammone (the restaurateur of Il Bacaro and Sarti), designer Chris Connell, and engineer Michael Amore collaborated on Bar Carolina. With terrazzo flooring in the front and textured floorboards in the rear, handcrafted leadlights in an azure shade, and custom-made steelwork by Amore, they converted the former Carousel Ice Cream store into a tiny slice of Venice.

If you're not in the mood for meat, pasta may be made on the premises. The tagliolino con crostacei, which consists of long flat ribbons of noodles topped with Moreton Bay bugs, porcini mushrooms, and dried chili, is a must-try. The most photogenic dish, though, is a flawless sphere of tiramisu filled with coffee, savoiardi, chocolate, and mascarpone that appears to have been projected in from the future. You may also simply relax with a bottle of fiano and a platter of aged prosciutto and stracciatella.

The orb is a show-stopper at dessert, with ladies in Camilla kaftans fawning over the white chocolate ornament that drips a tiramisù-flavored center. For some, it will be the highlight of their dining year, but for others, it will be too much trouble for something that didn't require a coffee jelly redux. But above all, Bar Carolina understands its clientele – and too much is rarely enough for them.

Location: 44 Toorak Road, South Yarra Victoria 3141

Website: www.barcarolina.com.au