Joedy Kyle and Dario Manca’s friendship goes back several years to a stint working together at inner-city restaurant Motorwagen. Although the duo has since left the Adelaide Street eatery (Dario is now head chef at Fortitude Valley wonder ZA ZA TA, while Joedy has recently opened his own excellent cafe Joedy’s – located right across the road from New Farm Park), the two remained close. As the dining restrictions began to ease and eateries were given the OK to let small groups of diners in for two-hour sessions, Joedy and Dario discussed collaborating on a concept that would give locals the chance to meet fellow gourmands and learn how to make specialty pasta from Dario (did we mention he ranked sixth in the 2018 Barilla World Pasta Championships?) in a relaxed, intimate atmosphere. Starting on Sunday June 7 and running until October, Joedy’s Cafe will be hosting a 20-week series of pasta-making masterclasses that will spotlight a different region of Italy each session. Every Sunday evening, ten pasta enthusiasts will congregate at Joedy’s Cafe for a two-hour class learning directly from Dario.
It should be noted, this isn’t some watch-and-take-notes class – you’ll be expected to get hands on! Ten pasta machines will be provided for each session and Dario will instruct guests on how to roll, press, plait, seal and cook that week’s specialty pasta (some elements such as pasta fillings will be pre-made). While you knead, roll and cut, Dario will take you through the history and culinary intricacies of that week’s region and corresponding dish, while Joedy will discuss the perfect wine pairing for that week’s pasta. When it comes to the vino, Joedy is curating a selection of realistically obtainable drops that you can source from most retail outlets, with each session boasting either a regional Italian wine or an organic Australian alternative – sometimes both! Each class includes an aperitif and canapes on arrival, a glass of specially selected wine, a degustation-sized portion of pasta to enjoy (cooked by Dario himself), a detailed pasta-making method sheet and the pasta you made packaged to take and finish off at home. June’s pasta-making bookings are online, with the first four events taking guests through the northern regions of Piedmont, Lombardy, Veneto and Ligura. How often do you get one-on-one tutelage from a world-class pasta chef? If you really want to master the art, head to the Joedy’s Cafe website to book. Confirmed bookings will receive a detailed run-sheet of the evening, a breakdown of what pasta will be covered and paired wines.
Joedy is kindly giving away free passes to each of his pasta masterclasses – one space is available each week! Make sure to follow the instructions on the pinned Facebook post on our page that goes live at 3:00 pm on Thursday May 28. Full terms and conditions can be found here.
