Must-try dish: A classic carbonara

Is that the full name?

It’s “Fettuccine carbonara: Molisana with guanciale, egg yolk, ground pepper & Pecorino Romano (Lazio)” on DOC’s menu.

Where do you get it?

DOC Espresso Carlton, 326 Lygon Street, Carlton VIC 3053

Why is it a winner?

The ingredients of a carbonara are indeed simple, and it takes next to no time to make, but that doesn’t mean it’s an easy dish to perfect. In fact, when you’re only dealing with a few ingredients, there’s nowhere to hide when quality isn’t what it needs to be or technique is clearly lacking. These are most definitely not issues for the carbonara at DOC. First there’s no cream because, and you probably already know this but once again for those in the cheap seats, cream is not an ingredient in a classic Roman carbonara. Second, it features guanciale, that’s cured pork cheek to you and me, which gives it a lovely porky, fatty flavour. And thirdly, it uses egg yolk, which makes it deliciously rich and, despite the absence of cream, magically creamy. Add a generous sprinkling of Pecorino Romano to al dente fettuccine and it’s little wonder that this is the kind of pasta dish that can turn a dreary Melbourne day into a Roman holiday (well, close to!).

Anything else to know?

The DOC empire, spanning Mornington, Southbank and even Sydney, is mostly staffed by young Italians, which makes it a great place to practise your language skills. Though all you really need to know is: “Buon giorno! Una pasta carbonara per favore? Grazie!