All the text message said was, "the scoop from Kent Town is Pan and Vine's $12 Negroni. $12!"

You don’t need much more reason to cross the terraces and head out of the city than a well-priced cocktail, but Pan & Vine pizzeria in Kent Town has plenty more than a good value Negroni to offer as bait.

The walk to King William Street, Kent Town is astonishingly brief. No sooner have you crossed East Terrace by the new Stag Public House than you’re halfway there. It takes 12 minutes to walk to new pizza and wine shop, Pan & Vine.

“It’s the perfect place to start a night or finish a night or – whatever you want,” says Luke Savas. We instantly like Luke. He and business partner (brother) Anthony Savas set up shop under the neighbourhood re-defining, mixed-use apartment block Verde, about a year ago and still the pair say they’re settling into the rhythm of running a small business.

“It’s just really hard to plan for, or get a rhythm going,” says Luke. “It keeps it interesting,” says Anthony with a genuine smile. The most recent disruption has been Fringe, with two major festival hubs – Gluttony and The Garden of Unearthly Delight – a stone’s throw away, upsetting the regular flow of things on King William Street, Kent Town.

But rather than gripe over the competition that’s popped-up in the city’s East Park Lands, the brothers swung into gear and worked with the festival season. For several nights Luke and Anthony burnt the midnight oil at the Kent Town shop, preparing ingredients and pizza bases for their stall at RCC Fringe.

The brothers are not foreigners to the concept of hard work. The pair got their pizza tossing stripes at a traditional pizza bar in West Beach. Their concept with Pan & Vine was really to emulate the success of that neighbourhood pizza bar but add some seats and grown-up drinks to encourage locals to mingle.

“I’m happy to let the customers decide what we do. When we opened up, I thought it’d be predominantly takeaways but people love to eat here, grab a wine and hang out – it’s great,” says Luke.

The headline our friend sent as a text message – the $12 Negroni – is a well-balanced blend of quality gin, vermouth and, of course, Campari. Another cocktail catches our eye on pan and vine’s list; the “Bitta Margarita,” Luke explains, is an Italian take on the drink otherwise attributed to Mexico. “We throw some Campari in the mix with tequila, Cointreau and lime juice,” says Luke.

Outside Pan & Vine

The pizza at Pan and Vine is a little different than you might expect. Luke and Anthony prove their dough for three days in the style of their former West Beach pizzeria employer. The more mature base then takes a little longer in the stone and gas fired oven to cook. But don’t worry – Anthony says there’s minimal wait time, “that oven can fit up to 17 pizzas at a time,” he says.

The sun is falling behind the buildings of Adelaide’s CBD to the west, which correlates with an increase of white collar shirts filling up the restaurant. It’s knock-off time and both Luke and Anthony are smiling and busy.

panandvine.com
If you would like to set-up shop in Kent Town, connect with the City of Norwood Payneham & St Peters Council here.