Paddington home of Lucio’s restaurant on the market
The Paddington building housing the famous Italian restaurant, Lucios, has hit the market.
But Lucio Galletto’s many customers — some of whom have been coming since he opened up in the beautiful Federation building at 47 Windsor St 36 years ago — can breathe a sigh of relief.
“It’s just the building that’s being sold — not the business,” says Oliver Lavers of Ray White TRG (The Rubinstein Group).
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The restaurant at 47 Windsor St, Paddington is full of light.
Restaurateur Lucio Galletto. Picture: John Appleyard
Described as a once-in-a-lifetime offering in a prized building that houses a world-renowned Sydney institution since 1983, the property is zoned R2 residential with “boundless potential”.
Galletto will lease the building back from the new owner for a year, with the option of another two years.
The price guide is $3.5 million.
The charm of the landmark corner building almost matches that of the host. The restaurant and rooms above (currently used as an office, cool room and for storage) have high ceilings and are full of light.
Traditional style.
Full of art.
The restaurant is full of art. Says Galletto: “Food and art for me is like the air that I breathe.
“The combination of great food, great service and great art on the walls is, in my view, one of the best dining experiences you can imagine.”
Galletto OAM — he was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia in the Queen’s Birthday Honours of 2008 for service to the community as a restaurateur and author, and to the support of arts organisations — was born into a family of farmers and restaurateurs in northwest Italy.
What a classic.
Street presence.
“I grew up in the family restaurant in Italy where we had an art gallery, so it has always been in my blood,” he said.
The restaurant focuses on Northern Italian cuisine and is known for its exceptional seafood and daily house-made pastas.
Leo Schofield described Lucio’s truffle gnocchi as “one of the best pasta dishes ever” in the Wentworth Courier in 2018.
An attractive facade.
The Paddington building originally housed the Hungry Horse Art Gallery and Restaurant, which was also famous for quality food and modern art.
Galletto’s first job in Sydney was in 1977 at Natalino’s Restaurant in Kings Cross, where he soon became the manager. Lucios Italian Restaurant first opened in Balmain in 1981 but he moved to Paddington two years later.
