As much as we love to get out and all over the place, our reach is sometimes limited and unexpected gems appear in our inbox like manna from heaven. Larry's Prosciutteria in Irymple in Victoria's far north west is one of those.
It's a huge space, in an old co-op shed on Fifteenth Street, where at one end you can buy a piece of farm machinery, at the other a finely crafted coffee. The name is an ode to Larry, father of Cosi. With his wife Miranda, they do much more than honour the name - they honour his Calabrian heritage. A suite of Italian produce, unlike you'd expect to find dominates one part of the enormous footprint. A gorgeous polished silver coaster van acts as the panninaria - where scrumptious Italian sandwiches are produced, filled with all manner of delicious Italian ingredients which are also available in the deli - think mortadella, prosciutto or bresaola.
There are battery operated vespa's for the kids to entertain themselves, as parents imbibe great coffee, taste Italian biscotti or devour plates of salumi and cheese. Every thought and idea seems to continue to evolve the place, and each visit sees another pallet of produce artfully displayed - whether its pasta flour, artichoke paste or Italian nut butters.
This is the kind of place you would expect to find in our major capital cities. It's an industrial pop-up on the grandest of scales, beautifully fitted out serving real Italian coffee, and every kind of produce to keep the most demanding of Nonna's happy.
We suggest you keep abreast of their Instagram page for updates of new produce, or simply to be visually tantalised by their slice of Italy in Irymple. You can visit and engage in a game of bocce on the fake turf, while scoffing some cannoli and coffee, grab a gift of handcrafted jewellery or, as we started with, buy yourself a piece of farm machinery!
Larry's Prosciutteria is at 2160 Fifteenth Street in Irymple.
7am-10am Breakfast Panini 10am-5pm Paninis & Platters