By
Trevor Pepys reviews Pasta Pronto
Walking eastward along Gympie Terrace the other evening, following a convivial sundowner at the Yottie, Trev was struck with the sudden urge to veer right and demand a table unannounced at Eclipse.
But Eclipse, not unusually, was full. The missus, dawdling as is her habit, was back up the street, peering into Pasta Pronto.
“Plenty of tables in here,” she cried. Done.
We were lucky though. The place filled quickly behind us, as you might expect of a brand that’s been around in Noosa for nearly 30 years. Not that the PP of today much resembles the funky-basic pasta pleasure pit we grew to love at the Junction from back in the mid ‘90s, although the current version has retained a couple of signature dishes from the past, more of that in a minute.
Founder Sue Scarlett did a great job with Pronto from the start, with an easy-going ambience and good pizza and pasta, but the place really hit its straps when “pasta mastah” Johnny Osmaston moved over the hill from Going Pasta at Noosa Wharf in Quamby Place and joined forces with Sue, the pair creating a healthy wholesale pasta division on the side.
In more recent times it’s become part of Carlos Vanselow’s local restaurant empire, which includes Maisie’s and Grind to either side, and seems to have survived quite well following the Covid closures of his two Santorini restaurants.
How would such corporatisation have impacted on Pronto’s home-style claims? Trev was about to find out. And it certainly looks the part, with cosy table settings and some one’s family portraits adorning the walls.
Trev ordered a bottle of the Little Angel Pinot Gris ($34) off the quite adequate and fairly-priced list, but he also noted that Pasta Pronto offers BYO for a very reasonable $3 per person corkage. A plate of garlic bread ($12) filled the hole while we sipped and perused the menu.
Since we’d been snacking at sundowners, we tried to keep dinner light, the missus opting for the Spaghetti Pesto Rosso with bacon ($29) while Trev remembered early days’ Pronto doing a splendid Octopus Risotto ($28) so he decided to throw caution to the wind and attempt to relive former glories.
The servings were alarmingly enormous and half the spaghetti went home in a doggie bag, which Trev thoroughly enjoyed on toast for lunch the next day. Featuring blended sun-dried tomatoes, capsicum, garlic, rosemary, roasted almonds and olive oil, the dish on the night was enjoyable without really exciting. But the octopus risotto, cooked in red wine, onion, garlic, fresh herbs, sweet and smoked paprika, finished with parmesan and a splash of cream, was a star turn. Delicious.
The verdict: Trev’s got his head back in the previous century, of course, but despite those golden fresh pasta memories, the modern Pasta Pronto impresses with its ambience, service, sensible wine list and, above all, honest Italian tucker. If you want the big Italian night out, go to Locale, but if you’re after a relaxed and easy-on-the-wallet pizza and pasta feed you’ll enjoy, give the new/old PP a go.
Pasta Pronto, 251 Gympie Terrace, Noosaville. Phone 5448 0522.