Can you believe Adelaide’s most loved pizzeria, Antica, has just turned 5!! That’s 5 years of eating those amazing, gooey fried mozzarella, crispy polenta chips and world class pizza. With twenty-eight staff and two locations Antica is going from strength to strength and had so much to celebrate on Wednesday night at their 5th birthday party.

And what a party it was! We know Antica are the masters of parties and functions – centered around their iconic 1 metre pizzas and insta-worthy Antipasti spreads when it comes to a party for themselves; they really turn it up!

With a seemingly endless supply of crisp, golden polenta chips served in bamboo cones, arancini topped with creamy truffle sauce, boats filled with luscious four cheese gnocchi, salumi, meatballs, pizza bread…..you get the idea.

Obviously, the Pizza took center stage, the simple and traditional Margherita, clearly the crowd favourite, vanishing as quickly as it was presented, but the classic Funghi, Salumi and Boscaiola with ham, mushroom, salami and fior di latte satisfied the lucky crowd.

“Our pizza cooking method starts from the ground up where the handmade dough is proofed for 72 hours, giving it a light, airy taste. All flour, sauce, prosciutto, buffalo mozzarella and many more ingredients are imported from Italy; even our wood oven which accommodates for our iconic metre long pizzas,” says owner and Italian native, Anthony Crea. After travelling to his hometown of Naples, Anthony was inspired to emulate the passion and flavours of authentic Italian recipes in Adelaide. Antica’s traditional approach to food is encapsulated in the popular restaurant’s name – Antica – the Italian word translating to old or ancient. It’s a loving nod to the rich history of Italian cooking and the passing down of recipes from generations.

Of course, no birthday party would be complete without a cake, but in typical Antica style they finished the party with their signature Nutella Calzones. Lashings of Nutella encased in pizza dough was the perfect end to an incredible evening.

Adelaide Food Central wishes to congratulate Antica on a wonderful 5 years and we hope to celebrate even more achievements with them in the future.

Words by Kate Wilkinson