Images: Imma Trattoria
Imma is finally ready to open its doors after almost a year of preparations, and this newest restaurant from the family behind Mercato is asking diners to do something a little unusual.
The intimate 35-seat trattoria at 88 O’Connell will centre around a five-course feed-me menu, with guests encouraged to skip the menu and simply let the experience unfold.
“We recommend just going through it, not seeing the menu and just letting the food come out … and we found a lot of guests love that,” said Marketing Manager Jianna Caporaso.
In Italy, restaurants take many different forms, but Jianna said the trattoria model reflects the kind of experience the family wants to create. It is the kind of place where dishes can be passed down the table, diners might strike up a conversation with the people sitting beside them and the experience feels less formal than a traditional restaurant.
After a series of trial shifts and dinners, the family behind Imma are more ready than ever to share what they have been cooking up from October 1.
Imma marks a deliberate change of pace from the bustling Mercato next door.
While Mercato is loud, energetic and defined by its expansive industrial-style space and high ceilings, Imma has been designed as its more intimate counterpart. The atmosphere is warm, relaxed and centred around the kind of unhurried hospitality the family associates with dining in Italy.
“If you go to Italy and experience a meal, the hospitality really shines, that’s exactly what we’re trying to emulate.”
“It’s got your white tablecloths but it’s definitely not fine dining … We want you to feel at home.”
The restaurant takes its name from Jianna’s father and owner, John Caporaso’s mother, Imma, who founded Mercato with husband Mario in 1972. But Jianna says diners shouldn’t expect the restaurant to simply recreate traditional nonna-style cooking.
Instead, the menu has increasingly evolved around produce, drawing on Mercato’s longstanding relationships with farmers, butchers and suppliers, with ingredients at their best helping shape what comes out of the kitchen.
“We’ve veered towards the food and the produce, and Mercarto’s philosophy about using things in its prime.”
That philosophy also keeps Imma closely connected to Mercato. The two venues may offer very different experiences, but Jianna says they are designed to feed off one another. Inside, photographs and wine bottles line the walls and the atmosphere has deliberately been kept soft and relaxed rather than overly formal.
“It’s not too classy, but it’s classic,” Jianna said.
Imma Trattoria
When: Open Thursdays and Fridays from 5:30pm
Where: 88 O’Connell St, North Adelaide SA 5006
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