Pasta & Cuore is both a fully licensed Italian restaurant and a working pastificio, making fresh pasta by hand at its Mount Eden home. Some tables look directly onto the pasta-making area, while shared seating and a courtyard provide different ways to settle in. The kitchen adjusts its offering with the seasons, favours local and organic produce where practical, and uses free-range meat and eggs. Selected Italian ingredients are imported when a suitable local equivalent is unavailable, preserving the character of the recipes without disconnecting them from New Zealand produce.
Antipasti set a straightforward, generous tone. Beetroot carpaccio gains richness from gorgonzola and crunch from hazelnuts; tomato bruschetta keeps garlic, olive oil and sourdough at the forefront. Italian cheese and charcuterie boards are accompanied by house breads, jam or honey, and the kitchen also bakes focaccia for dipping into extra virgin olive oil and balsamic. These plates work as an introduction to the restaurant’s pantry, but they can just as easily form the beginning of a shared meal before the handmade pasta takes centre stage.
The pasta section ranges from delicate filled shapes to robust ragù. Tortellini can arrive in chicken broth or with cream and Parmigiano, while ricotta tortelloni are finished with butter and sage. Balanzoni folds prosciutto, mortadella, spinach and ricotta into green pasta with truffle sauce. Tagliatelle carries classic Bolognese or prosciutto and lemon; pappardelle is matched with slow-cooked lamb. Spaghetti Amatriciana brings guanciale, chilli, tomato and pecorino, and potato gnocchi appears with combinations such as taleggio and leek or spicy chicken, mushroom and ragù.
Diners wanting something beyond pasta can turn to pork cotoletta, tomato-braised meatballs or vegetable caponata. Dessert remains firmly Italian, including tiramisu from Nonna Elsa’s recipe, dark chocolate and amaretto pudding, jam crostata, panna cotta and affogato with gelato and cantucci. The pastificio continues after the meal: fresh spaghetti, tagliatelle, pappardelle, gnocchi and filled pasta can be bought to cook at home, with sauces available as well. Pasta workshops deepen that hands-on connection, making the restaurant as much about the craft behind the shapes as the finished plate.
Address: 409 Mount Eden Road, Mount Eden, Auckland 1024, New Zealand
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