April 7, 2011: Gertrude Street Grub - Piadina Take Away

August 8, 2015: Fitzroyalty reports that Piadina have packed it in after four years of good lunches on Gertrude Street

It's been a long time between Gertrude Street Grub posts - mostly because on the rare day that we don't have any leftovers, I can't resist revisiting Sonido or Trippytaco. But Brian's post on Piadina Take Away alerted me to a new option for the days where I have neither lunch from home or time for a proper outing. Takeaway lunches around my work have been limited to some fairly rudimentary cafe options, with Fatto a Mano too far away for a speedy trip.

Which is where Piadina Takeaway comes in. It's a fairly plain looking takeaway joint (which I think used to be a fish and chip shop) - there's a couple of plastic tables, lots of bare tiles, and a general undecorated vibe. Thankfully, the food is great. They've got a small brekkie menu, some sandwiches and a selection of half a dozen piadinas.

There are a few vegetarian options, of which I've sampled two: the roasted beetroot with carrot, rocket, dukkah and tahini yoghurt ($9.50) and the mushroom with tasty cheese and thyme ($8.50). They're made fresh to order (obviously the beetroots have been pre-roasted), with the flatbread getting some nice crispy brown bits on the grill, and everything inside warming up deliciously.


The beetroot one was a roaring success - sweetness, spiciness and yoghurty tang making for one of the best sandwich-style dishes I've had in ages. The mushroom version wasn't quite as good: the combo of grilled mushroom, melted cheese and thyme is pretty fantastic, but everything had gone a bit soggy by the time I was back at my desk.

Still, they're streets ahead of the other local sandwiches - I'm not sure I'll go anywhere else for my desk-based lunches in future. So don't be fooled by the lack of a flashy fitout, this place does some of the best lunches on Gertrude Street (although our vegan and coeliac readers will struggle I'm afraid).

Kudos to Brian at Fitzroyalty for putting me onto this place. Nobody else seems to have discovered it yet.

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Piadina Takeaway
130 Gertrude St, Fitzroy
9419 8819
veg lunches $7 - $10

Accessibility: A couple of biggish steps to get you inside but once you're in there's plenty of light and space.