Two new quality providores have recently opened in Hobart – the huge, mainly Italian Bottega Rotolo at 141 Bathurst Street and the small, all-Tasmanian A Common Ground tucked under the stairs in the Salamanca Arts Centre.
Owned by Silvan Taurian and Tina Stephens, Hobart’s Bottega Rotolo, like others in Sydney and Brisbane, is a spinoff of the original opened in the Adelaide Central Market 19 years ago. Most of the food items on offer are sourced directly from Italy and there’s a small range of Italian wines selected especially by Rosalie Rotolo-Hassan of Bottega Rotolo Imports in Adelaide who also brings in the incredible range of Italian and French cheeses. Fifty were on offer a few weeks ago, all beautifully conditioned in the large atmosphere-controlled cheese room.
Behind the stylishly appointed showroom, there’s a fully-equipped kitchen and Taurian and Stephens have a programme of Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday morning cooking classes running through to the end of August.
You can drop in for an excellent coffee anytime, they serve light lunches during the week, there’s a pop-up bar for after-work wines and cheeses on Fridays and wine tastings from 1.00pm to 3.00pm on Saturdays.
Open Monday to Friday 9.30am to 6.00pm, Saturday to 4.00pm.
Phone: 6234 9978
A Common Ground is another kettle of – well, not fish, but of almost everything else you could possibly imagine or hope for that is Tasmanian. Owned by Nick Haddow and Matthew Evans, the concept grew out of their Rare Foods stall – formerly at the Salamanca Market, now at the Sunday Farmers Market – and their series of A Common Ground food events held around the state.
The quite extraordinary range of produce, running from walnut oil to mustards, sensational salami, Callington Mill flour and chocolates, is made for them by specialty, small-batch producers around the state, many so small and specialized that this is the first time their product has been available to the public.
As Evans says, “Everything we’ve selected to stock meets our taste, production and provenance criteria and has a story behind it.” Then, of course, there’s different olives and olive oils, breads, charcuterie, our best cheeses, Perigord Truffles of Tasmania’s fresh truffles and, shortly, Tasmanian wines, beers, ciders and liqueurs, including John Cole’s delicious Apple Brandy from Wilmot Hills.
Open Monday to Saturday 10.00am to 4.00pm.
Phone: 0428 606 332
