Piccolino Melbourne – revisited

The transformation of a 25-year-old family pizzeria, Piccolino, in Melbourne’s Eastern suburbs into an award-winning, internationally recognised contemporary dining venue by Hachem Architecture. The result is a 250m2 cathedral-like glowing beacon, which maximizes space and utilises light to transcend every expectation of a suburban pizzeria.

Led by Fady Hachem,  Hachem were engaged by Piccolino their shared vision was to create a contemporary dine-in venue, which set a brighter architectural standard for the neighbourhood as well as a superior dining environment for clientele which was clearly exceeded!

Situated in a typical suburban shopping strip, the site’s footprint scales a mere 5.5 meters wide and is nestled between adjoining businesses. The constraints seemed endless but Hachem embraced the site’s character, employing light, texture and structure to overcome the limitations of space.

The cathedral-like peaked roof was designed to lengthen the dwelling and introduce volume whilst the shear glass façade was implemented to interject natural light throughout the day and at night emanate a golden glow from the restaurants interior wooden textures and luminous timbers.

Despite this humble context, Piccolino exhibits an architectural ambition rarely encountered in even the most celebrated enclaves of Australia’s urban fabric!