First taste: Neil Perry’s switch from noodles to gnocchi at Gran Torino

• Australia’s favourite chef, Neil Perry, has just performed the culinary version of a volte-face, serving up La Dolce Vita every day.
• Song Bird, his Chinese restaurant in Double Bay, is now Gran Torino, an Italian.
• And the staff have also had to make this extraordinary cultural and culinary shift in five days.

Our waiter, Oscar, explained the menu in exquisite detail. From the delicious garlic prawns to the duck and pasta, Oscar might have been waiting on tables in Rome all his life.

Except five days ago, he was standing in the same spot explaining a Cantonese menu.

Neil Perry’s extraordinary switch from Chinese Songbird to Italian Gran Torino in just a week is a culinary and cultural about-face that would leave lesser chefs in a dead faint. But he’s done it – and the vibe at the two-storey Bay Street on a Sunday lunchtime was good. Bellissimo, in fact.

His amazingly energetic, friendly and obliging wait staff took it all in their stride, though Oscar did admit that the “soft launch” had been a bit of an ordeal, and learning the high points of each Italian dish had been quite a task.

And as the dishes rolled out, there was a satisfactory hum in the air. The hum of happy clients enjoying a Sunday lunch and Perry’s promise of “La Dolce Vita” daily.

We tasted the Burraduc Farm buffalo mozzarella with artichoke caponata – and it was fresh and delightful. The Tagliolini with blue swimmer crab, garlic, chilli and lemon had just the right amount of bite, with the fresh pasta cooked to perfection.

The roasted rock flathead alla ghiotta with tomato, capers and olives was a delightful and surprising combination, while the fennel and blood orange, pistachio salad gave it all a sweet and tangy balance.

The tiramisu was huge – so much so that we had to call for a doggy bag and take it home.

The decor has not undergone a dramatic change. Photographs adorn the walls, and the cocktail bar on level two was churning out martinis or Campari spritzes as fast as they could.

The real drama must have been in the kitchens.

If it was tough for Oscar to learn the new dishes, downstairs in the kitchens – with big bay windows so guests can stare in from the street – it must have been even harder on the chefs, busily re-purposing their woks under the watchful eye of Executive Chef Richard Purdue and Head Chef Ervin Mumajesi.

The pair had worked magic at Perry’s now well established Double Bay diner Margaret, and were now working with the boss at the stoves to make Gran Torino work.

The importance of their work has been well rehearsed. Perry has bet his house of making this latest venture work, after successfully taking over Double Bay dining with Margaret, Baker Blue and Next Door just one block up Bay Street.

We liked Songbird, and were deeply saddened when walking past its open, corner block you could see how few guests were at the tables. But Gran Torino looks to be a better Double Bay bet.

They say the debate over whether Italian explorer Marco Polo stole the idea for Italian pasta during an expedition to China in 1274 when he tasted noodles. True gourmands know better – history says the Italians were making spaghetti at least 100 years before that.

What: Gran Torino

Where: 24 Bay Street, Double Bay NSW 2028.

Price: Our starter, and two mains with water and bread was $214.50.

Bookings: themargaretfamily.com