A trip to any city isn’t complete without an authentic fine dining experience that brings together the location, freshest ingredients from the region and local atmosphere. Pilu is one of the places that combines all three components beautifully, adds Italian flavour and family tradition into the mix.

Location

Pilu is perched above Freshwater beach, on the Northern beaches of Sydney, not far from Manly. Don’t be fooled by a humble cottage that Pilu looks like from the first sight – it is nothing but elegant perfection mixed with beach chic once you are inside. Reservations are a ‘must’, as restaurant gets booked out weeks in advance, especially if you looking for that popular Friday – Saturday lunch spot to finish the week in style. The restaurant has magnificent views from every window, looking directly onto the surf beach, even on a gloomy day it is a wonderful view.

The Story

Giovanni Pilu began his culinary career in Italy and was always destined to cook. He was born in Sardinia and arrived in Australia in 1992, aged 20 and full of enthusiasm and passion for the unique flavours of his homeland. Cooking and eating in Australia in the 1990’s, Giovanni couldn’t find the cuisine that reminded him of home.

After operating his first Sardinian restaurant for seven years, Giovanni had the chance to take over the heritage building perched over Freshwater Beach.  Walking into this venue and looking across the beach is incredibly reminiscent of the Sardinian lifestyle.  In a bold move, Giovanni and his wife Marilyn, took the opportunity and opened Pilu at Freshwater in 2004.  This venue was slated to have a stronger focus on Sardinian cuisine with a more refined presentation.  The risk was terrifying, but recognition and celebration quicky followed with Pilu at Freshwater securing Two Hats and Best New Restaurant from the Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide Awards in its first year of operation.  Sardinian cuisine was a hit.

Food & Wine

The cuisine at Pilu at Freshwater is unique, focusing on the island of Sardinia, which sits about 200 kilometres from Italy’s mainland coastline.  Giovanni Pilu hails from the northern part of this island -as with most Italian regions, Sardinian cuisine is particular and uses ingredients traditionally not found in other Italian regions – ingredients and dishes such as bottarga, culurgiones, and carasau to name a few. Giovanni’s cooking style is refined and innovative whilst maintaining the strict traditions of his distinctive region.

Our Pilu experience started from a pre-meal cocktail and their cocktail menu is magnificent.

The best way to experience Pilu is to choose degustation menu that features all of the most popular dishes in a smaller portion.

The menu changes depending on which ingredients are in season, but looks approximately like this.

You’d start with Assagini (small bite size canapés).

Continue onto Crudo (raw fish), followed by scallops

Then try out a home-made pasta dish (fregola pasta, hand rolled, with spanner crab) – delicious!

Followed by a very elegant fish main (blue eye trevalla in our case). I am not a big fish fan but have to say that it was one of the tastiest fish dishes I tried.

And finally, before the desert, slow roasted suckling pig (mouthwatering dish – served with baby carrots).

You might’ve noticed a glass of wine next to every dish. Giovannu imports a lot of Sardinian wines from small boutique wineries, that can be found only in Pilu. For a truly authentic experience we would suggest matching your dishes with Sardinian wines. The sommelier is an expert and I would trust his suggestions for the best pairing.

Pilu at Freshwater’s wine list showcases wines from every region of Sardinia and is abundant with varietals uncommonly seen anywhere else: Cannonau, Carignano, Nuragus, and Torbato are only a sample of the wines you can learn of when dining there.

Atmosphere & Service

Chic and casual atmosphere describes Pilu best – a perfect setting for a long weekend lunch.

Sevice is excellent, warm and friendly, yet very knowledgeable. You can tell that team has a lot of training and are passionate about their job.

If you ever meet Giovanni, his passion for Sardinian cuisine and sharing it with people is infectious.  Though he is the mastermind behind the success, he never fails to tell you that it’s his team that motivates and invigorates him to continue striving for excellence.

All In All

‘A must try’ fine dining restaurant in Sydney’s North. Picturesque location, superb food and wine, friendly service make it one of our favourites for a long Sunday lunch.