Caffe Gasparo, Burwood

Spaghetti lipari $15.90
Octopus, garlic, olive oil, chilli, capers, fresh tomatoes
and a touch of pesto in a napolitana sauce


It sounded so easy at first.

Friday night. A friend's birthday to celebrate. Car pool to dinner, then watch Memoirs of a Geisha on its opening night in cinemas.

"We'll leave the restaurant up to you", my friends emailed in unison. "Whereever you choose".

The pressure.

I have no shortage of candidates on my must-eat wishlist. But finding a "nice" restaurant near a cinema with free on-street parking on a Friday night is~~okay, okay, you can stop laughing now. You're starting to blow bubbles out of your nose.


Seafood pizza $15.90
Mixed seafood with aromatic herbs, fresh basil, onion
and mozzarella cheese (request for no prawns on this order)

We ended up in Burwood, the car easily parked in Westfield Shoppingtown, and found ourselves in Caffe Gasparo, a pleasant suburban pizza-and-pasta cafe.


Fettucine Marinara $19.90
Fresh prawns, octopus, calamari and fish in a tomato, garlic and basil sauce

The pastas were good: perfectly al dente with generous smotherings of sauce and seafood. Spaghetti lipari had a pleasing subtle backburn of chilli, and the happy robustness of colour on all our mains invited eager forks to dig in without delay.


Original Belgian waffle $10.90

Desserts were a little heavy on the syrup and chocolate powder dusting, and an affogato--usually a discreet scoop of vanilla ice cream with a shot of coffee--was a clown short of a kids' birthday party, arriving in a giant gaudy plastic ice cream cone. The overall concoction was powerfully sweet but if you're ever after a coffee flavoured thickshake, this one's your dream come true.


Affogato $3.90
Scoop of coffee gelato topped with a shot of espresso


Creme brulee $9.90


Coconut pancakes $10.90
Topped with Malibu and maple syrup-infused strawberries

Everyone was happily satiated though, and we made our movie session with time to spare, collapsing replete into our seats for the start of the trailers.

Movie? Check. Free parking? Check. Slowly expanding bellies? Check.

Mission accomplished on all counts.

Caffe Gasparo
130 Burwood Road, Burwood, Sydney
Tel: +61 (02) 9744 7371