The Best Restaurants to Book in Cottesloe, Perth

Nina Throsby’s path to a career in wine was accidental. While finishing her master’s degree in forensic science at The University of Western Australia she took a casual job at The Shorehouse restaurant in Swanbourne. “I fell in love with wine and never looked back,” she says. Now group sommelier for Kailis Hospitality Group, Throsby devises wine lists for three Marine Parade venues: the airy Shorehouse, relaxed seaside brasserie Gibney and beach house-style Magic Apple Wholefoods. These are the places she loves in the Cottesloe (Mudurup) area.

North Street Store for a conti roll

“This tiny bakery and food store is run by the guys behind Big Loaf Bakery, Little Loaf Lunch Bar and Wards Central Dining. In the mornings, people queue for great bread and cinnamon scrolls. I like to pick up an iced latte and a conti roll – the Western Australian speciality of salami and ham layered with cheese and salad on a baguette – then head to the beach.”

Boatshed Market for champagne and oysters

“This place is a fancy grocery store with a butcher, fishmonger, fromagerie, hot-food deli and an amazing wine loft. The sommelier has an eye for champagne, including great grower [solo producer] varieties, and it always feels like a treat to sit in the loft with a glass and some freshly shucked oysters, a cheese selection or a small plate of sashimi or sliders.”

Vinotto for anchovy toast and chenin blanc

Anchovy toast at Vinotto in Cottesloe, Perth

“A narrow open kitchen takes up much of the space in this teeny-tiny wine bar in nearby Swanbourne. The wine list – an interesting roster of old- and new-world smaller producers – always includes something that piques my interest. The compact menu has dishes like veal polpette and fritto misto but for me, a glass of WA chenin blanc with the awesome anchovy toast is killer.”

Sal’s Pasta Deli for fresh pasta

“Sal [Paul Salmeri] learned to make pasta in Italy, worked at The River Café in London then came home to open this cool pasta shop. It has a really nice vibe. You can buy pasta and sauces to take home or eat in at lunch. It’s BYO so pick up a bottle of wine at Boatshed Market then order from the blackboard menu – whatever Sal thinks is the best that day.”

Il Lido for aperitivo

“This spot has the charm of an Italian trattoria. In the morning it’s a coffee haunt and breakfast spot then it segues into a restaurant. The 4-6pm apertivo tradition – most drinks are $12 – is epic. Sit in the al fresco area with a Negroni and some snacks, perhaps crostino with house mortadella and stracciatella or, if they have them on, the stuffed and fried olives.”

Rodney’s Bait n Tackle for the fish raffle and a beer

“An eccentric dive bar and live music venue in nearby Mosman Park, Rodney’s is enjoyable chaos. The bar’s made of a boat, there’s ‘yacht rock’ playing and it draws the wildest mix of people of all ages. On Friday nights they run a fish raffle and you can win a bounty of local seafood to take home. There’s usually something to snack on but I go for the drinks – a clever cocktail or a pint of WA beer, perhaps a Beerfarm IPL.”