Pellegrini's Espresso Bar

Pellegrini's Espresso Bar is a historic Italian-style café located at 66 Bourke Street in Melbourne's central theatre district. Established in 1954 by Italian migrant brothers Leo and Vildo Pellegrini, the venue became one of the earliest central Melbourne cafés to use an authentic Italian espresso machine. Its arrival helped introduce and normalize espresso-based coffee in the city's centre during the formative period of Melbourne's postwar coffee culture. The brothers had previously worked at Florentino's, an Italian restaurant also located on Bourke Street. Pellegrini's began as a small venue and was expanded in 1958. Its distinctive curved neon Espresso Bar sign, originally directing customers toward a rear section on Crossley Street, remains one of its most recognizable visual features. The interior has retained much of its mid-century character, including mirrored walls, red vinyl stools, a long marble counter, and a compact counter-service layout. The atmosphere and operating style have changed relatively little over the decades. In its early years, the café served as an important meeting place for Melbourne's Italian migrant community. Its clientele later broadened to include theatre-goers, taxi drivers, writers, intellectuals, local workers, and visitors. Although Italian-Australian cafés in Carlton's Lygon Street were also adopting espresso technology, Pellegrini's was notable for bringing the style into the city centre and for maintaining a direct connection between coffee, casual Italian food, and Melbourne's social life. The Pellegrini brothers sold the café in 1974 to fellow Italian migrants Nino Pangrazio and Sisto Malaspina. The original owners remained for approximately three months to help transfer the business and its methods. Under Pangrazio and Malaspina, Pellegrini's preserved its traditional identity while becoming even more deeply associated with Melbourne's cultural heritage. Its menu came to be identified with Italian comfort food such as spaghetti bolognese, lasagne, ravioli, and minestrone, as well as a non-alcoholic watermelon granita drink. Coffee continued to be made in the classic Italian manner using the imported espresso equipment associated with the bar since its founding. Sisto Malaspina, who became a widely recognized public face of the café, was killed in the November 2018 Melbourne stabbing attack. His death produced a major public memorial response, including flowers, tribute books, a large funeral gathering, and an offer of a state funeral from Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews. In 2020, a memorial table bearing Malaspina's portrait and the words 'Sisto of Pellegrini's' was installed outside the café. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, Malaspina's wife, Vicki, and son, David, bought out Nino Pangrazio's share. David subsequently took on management responsibilities while continuing the traditions associated with both the Pellegrini brothers and his father. In 2014, the National Trust of Australia listed Pellegrini's, recognizing its architectural, social, and cultural significance. In September 2024, Rocco Eliche, a long-serving employee who had worked at the café for 50 years, retired. A documentary titled Pellegrini's: A Melbourne Legacy, directed by Frank Lotito, was released in 2025 and explored the café's history, its place in Melbourne's coffee culture, and Sisto Malaspina's legacy. Pellegrini's remains an operating café at its original Bourke Street address. It is known for walk-in counter seating, traditional Italian coffee, pasta and other simple meals, and an atmosphere rooted in its 1950s setting. The venue does not take bookings and continues to function as both a working café and a prominent piece of Melbourne's living cultural heritage.

Pellegrini's Espresso Bar was founded in 1954 on Bourke Street in Melbourne by brothers Leo and Vildo Pellegrini, Italian migrants who had worked at Florentino's, an Italian restaurant nearby. The brothers opened the venue during a period when espresso culture was beginning to influence Australian urban life. Pellegrini's was among the first cafés in central Melbourne to install and use an authentic Italian espresso machine, giving the city centre an early example of the coffee-bar model that was also developing in Italian-Australian districts such as Carlton's Lygon Street. The original café was small, but it expanded in 1958. Its surviving curved neon sign, which once directed customers toward a rear area on Crossley Street, became a defining part of the venue's identity. The interior retained mirrored walls, red vinyl stools, a marble counter, and a compact service arrangement associated with 1950s espresso bars. These details helped make Pellegrini's more than a food outlet: it became a recognizable setting in Melbourne's social and theatrical districts. Initially, the café was particularly important to Melbourne's Italian migrant community. Over time, its clientele widened to include local workers, theatre-goers, taxi drivers, intellectuals, and tourists. This transition reflected both the assimilation of Italian coffee culture into Melbourne's mainstream and Pellegrini's ability to preserve its original character while becoming a broader civic institution. In 1974, Leo and Vildo Pellegrini sold the business to Nino Pangrazio and Sisto Malaspina, two fellow Italian migrants. The outgoing owners remained for three months to assist with the handover. The new owners maintained the café's established approach rather than substantially modernizing it. Under their stewardship, Pellegrini's became strongly associated with traditional Italian meals, including spaghetti bolognese, lasagne, ravioli, and minestrone. A non-alcoholic watermelon granita drink also became part of its remembered offering. Coffee continued to be prepared in the established Italian style on the imported machine linked to the bar's long history. The café's heritage value was formally recognized when it was listed by the National Trust of Australia in 2014. Its significance derived from the combination of intact postwar interiors, early espresso-bar history, Italian migrant heritage, and continuing operation at its original address. In November 2018, Sisto Malaspina was killed in the Melbourne stabbing attack. Malaspina had become closely identified with Pellegrini's and was widely regarded as a welcoming figure in Melbourne public life. His death prompted an exceptional public response, including floral tributes, memorial books, large crowds, and a funeral attended by many mourners. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews described him as a Victorian icon and offered a state funeral. In 2020, a memorial table was installed outside Pellegrini's with Malaspina's portrait and an inscription commemorating his relationship with Melbourne. The COVID-19 period brought a change in ownership. In 2020, Vicki Malaspina and her son David bought out Pangrazio's share. David assumed management responsibilities and continued the established service style and menu. The transition preserved family involvement and connected the café's present operation with both the original Pellegrini family and the Malaspina era. In September 2024, Rocco Eliche retired after five decades as a member of the café's staff. His retirement highlighted the unusually long continuity of the venue's workforce and marked another generational change. In 2025, filmmaker Frank Lotito released Pellegrini's: A Melbourne Legacy, a documentary about the café's history, cultural importance, and Sisto Malaspina's enduring legacy. Pellegrini's continues to operate at 66 Bourke Street as a walk-in espresso bar and restaurant, retaining its traditional coffee, Italian food, counter seating, and mid-century atmosphere.

• 2025

  Documentary release

  [1]Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org

  Pellegrini's: A Melbourne Legacy, directed by Frank Lotito, is released in selected Australian cinemas.

• 2024

  Rocco Eliche retires

  [1]Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org

  A staff member with 50 years of service retires from the café.

• 2020

  Malaspina family assumes ownership

  [1]Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org

  Vicki and David Malaspina buy out Nino Pangrazio's share, and David takes on management.

• 2018

  Death of Sisto Malaspina

  [1]Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org

  Sisto Malaspina is killed in the Melbourne stabbing attack, prompting widespread mourning.

• 2014

  National Trust listing

  [1]Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org

  The National Trust of Australia lists Pellegrini's in recognition of its cultural and heritage significance.

• 1974

  Ownership passes to Pangrazio and Malaspina

  [1]Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org

  Nino Pangrazio and Sisto Malaspina acquire the café, with the Pellegrini brothers assisting during a three-month transition.

• 1958

  The café expands

  [1]Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org

  The originally small venue is expanded, helping establish the physical layout associated with the café's later heritage identity.

• 1954

  Pellegrini's opens on Bourke Street

  [1]Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org

  Italian migrant brothers Leo and Vildo Pellegrini establish the café at 66 Bourke Street in Melbourne.

A heritage Melbourne espresso bar combining traditional Italian coffee and comfort food with an unchanged mid-century café atmosphere and strong local cultural associations.

• Coffee · 1954

  Italian espresso

  Coffee prepared in a traditional Italian style using the imported espresso machine associated with the café since its opening. The espresso service is central to Pellegrini's identity and its historical role in Melbourne's early city-centre coffee culture.

• Italian food

  Traditional pasta dishes

  The café is known for straightforward Italian staples including spaghetti bolognese, lasagne, and ravioli. These dishes reflect the menu tradition developed under Nino Pangrazio and Sisto Malaspina while complementing the espresso-bar format.

• Soup

  Minestrone

  Minestrone is among the traditional Italian dishes associated with Pellegrini's. It forms part of the café's simple, familiar food offering rather than a modernized or highly specialized restaurant menu.

• Non-alcoholic beverage

  Watermelon granita drink

  A non-alcoholic watermelon granita-style drink associated with Pellegrini's broader Italian café offering and frequently mentioned among its signature refreshments.

• 2020

  Malaspina family buys out Pangrazio's shareM&A

  Background

  Following Sisto Malaspina's death and during the COVID-19 pandemic, ownership of the long-running café changed again.

  Action taken

  Vicki Malaspina and David Malaspina acquired Nino Pangrazio's share, with David taking responsibility for management.

  Aftermath

  The café remained family-operated and continued its established traditions at the Bourke Street site.

  Source

• 1974

  Sale to Nino Pangrazio and Sisto MalaspinaM&A

  Background

  After two decades under the founding brothers, the café required a change in ownership while preserving its established Italian coffee-bar identity.

  Action taken

  Leo and Vildo Pellegrini sold the café to Nino Pangrazio and Sisto Malaspina and stayed for three months to support the handover.

  Aftermath

  The new owners maintained the traditional service, atmosphere, coffee preparation, and Italian menu, eventually deepening the café's place in Melbourne's cultural life.

  Source

1. 1Pellegrini's Espresso Baren.wikipedia.org