It's a big, fatty, food day.

I had arranged to load off some of the hot cross buns that I made the other day. The receiving soul would be Claire and +39 was the decided venue. Even though I hadn't eaten the sausages that I was part of this morning, I felt like I had.

Maybe it was because despite showering, I still smell like meat.

Or maybe it is the phantom smell of meat following me around, like...a...bad...smell.

Yeah, that didn't work out quite as well as I would have hoped.

Whatever, we split these, in true I-want-to-taste-everything style and there was no shame in taking out a camera and admitting a possible doubling up of posts. The only advantage here is that I don't have to go to work until 6, and I guess Claire is working until 6.

The pizzas are $10 each. This has eggplant, cherry tomatoes and breadcrumbs. In the ways of DOC, thin, crisp bases you fold together to eat like a sandwich. Very simple, light and flavoursome ingredients that still manage to hold their own textures.

But the clincher, (I love sharing food, you never get food envy) the Burratta, $16. A perfectly creamy and salty ball of cheese torn over penne in napoli with a mellow clove of garlic and basil leaves. Welcome to flavour country.

Perfect with the Peroni.

+39
362 Little Bourke St, Melbourne
Phone 03 9642 0440

DOC

I love DOC. And unlike my Sicilian friend would like to believe, it does NOT stand for Department Of Cheese.
Plus, that would make the abbreviation incorrect.

I do admit, I have been there quite a few times, too many for the time it has been open, some would think. It is incredibly Italian. I would like to rival egos and Italian-nesses of the staff here to those at the Carlton Espresso.
That is a dream for another day.

Oh, I should also mention that they do not take bookings, so you have to be smart about this one. I was here on a Sunday night and they were packed.


JAM-packed.


This is the Bresaola with Buffalo Mozzarella. $20.50.
Oh so very good and salty. The waiter accidentally dropped the ball of buffalo mozzarella on the way to the table, and it being the size of a tennis ball, decided to roll like one, next to a drunken old guy's shoe. The waiter didn't know how to save himself without sacrificing his pride, so he pretended to spill some water on the ground and mopped it up with a serviette and picked up the (dead) ball in the same go.
I was impressed.
He was embarrassed.
I was also the only one who saw.
And in case you're wondering, it is a different ball of cheese, here.


Creamed broccoli, buffalo mozzarella and Leo's sausage.
This was a point of envy for all the tables around us. I was pretty much done after one piece, having split this and the cheese above with my eating-partner.

We also ordered the Bottarga pizza with calamari, but I didn't take a photo, regretfully.

Amazing quality produce used respectfully and one of the places worth going to near, off or in the vicinity of Lygon St. Surprisingly, they do take-away, if you're that way inclined.

DOC
295 Drummond St, Carlton.
03 9347 2998