‘It’s not a pizza until it comes out of the oven!’: Cosmo’s to open in west end
From the owner of Taco Cartel food truck comes Cosmo’s Pizza, opening next week inside Hindley Street Music Hall.
Josh Bartolo is taking his first big plunge in restaurant ownership after a career in management in locations like Wing It Sports Bar – but he’s not alone as he’s collaborating with Taco Cartel food truck owner Josh O’Shaunessy.
The venture is Cosmo’s – a Seinfeld inspired, New York style pizza bar that will be taking up residency inside Hindley Street Music Hall in a Renew Adelaide space.
Josh Bartolo says “this idea’s been around quite a while”.
“Josh (O’Shaunessy) and I have always been big Seinfeld fans, and I’ve travelled to New York and had New York pizza straight from New York itself,” he says.
But Josh says the space will be suitable even for those not fans of the 90s cult-classic show.
“We’ve got some photos and some artwork and in general we’ve got some stuff that if you’re a Seinfeld fan, you’ll definitely come in and be like ‘oh my god I know this from this episode’,” he says.
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“But, if you don’t know Seinfeld at all, and you’re just coming because there’s a gig upstairs and you want to grab a meal and a drink beforehand, we really value the quality of the pizza.”
Josh Bartolo. This picture: supplied.
The menu will focus on quality ingredients but also have nods to the show.
“We’ve been able to have a bakery in the hills make us a marble rye, which is a really nice starter/side type of bread that Seinfeld fans would know – when they see this marble rye, they’ll get the reference,” Josh says.
He says pizza will be a large focus but thinks “there’s an opportunity for killer desserts as well”.
“[We’re] making our house sauce, we’re making our house dough, we’re making our house desserts,” he says.
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Although they’re “more of a restaurant than a bar”, they’ve phoned a helpful friend in Wilson Shawyer – co-owner of Good Gilbert, Asha, Good Burger and more – to assist in constructing the wine list.
“He put us in contact with suppliers, put his recommendations together. Because obviously they’re an award-winning wine bar,” Josh says.
Josh says this is reflective of the close-knit community in hospitality.
“Everyone’s trying to help each other get through what’s a bit of a tougher time,” he says.
Josh O’Shaunessy and Josh Bartolo inside Cosmo’s Pizza. This picture: supplied.
Despite the cost of living crisis and multiple hospitality businesses closing, Josh is hopeful for the future of Cosmo’s.
“I think it’s a good time to open sometimes when things are quiet because it means that you’re the new kid on the block, and hopefully things start to pick up and we get to enjoy that wave of growth,” Josh says.
Josh says that when it comes to hospitality openings in Adelaide, “you get one opportunity” and wants to nail the basics when they open their doors.
“Obviously we haven’t done a New York style pizza business before – because there’s not really one that’s existed. So, we’re just trying to get all of that stuff down pat,” he says.
“There’s obviously a lot of Italian pizza places in Adelaide, and some killer pizza places as well.
“But we want it so that when you come and get a pizza from us you can say ‘oh, yeah, I can taste how this is a little bit different from some of the other popular places in the city’.”
Cosmo’s Pizza is located at 149 Hindley Street, Adelaide and will officially open its doors on Friday, 9 May.
Connect with the business on Instagram for more.