French-born chef Benjamin Tremblet has an impressive resume under his belt. He’s been chef de partie at Alain Ducasse’s now-shuttered Parisian restaurant 59 Poincare, and sous-chef at Paul Bocuse’s Brasserie L'Est, in Lyon.

Now, he’s opened his own 36-seat restaurant on Smith Street, Fitzroy. Norma, a green and white wood-panelled bistro, draws on the Italian heritage of Tremblet’s maternal grandmother – from whom the venue takes its name – as well as his own upbringing in France.

The chef comes from a family of French winemakers and was brought up around two grandmothers who loved to cook. “Since I was young I wanted to be a chef, and both my grandmothers supported me in that,” Tremblet tells Broadsheet. “They gave me the taste of cooking for people. It was one of the best things I learned from them.”

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Many of the dishes at Norma are adapted from Tremblet’s childhood favourites. The pizettas, for instance, are his take on the ones his grandmother Norma used to prepare as a pre-dinner snack. Toppings range from pistachio pesto and mortadella, to eggplant and scamorza, to caramelised onion, anchovy and black olives – a specialty of Nice.

Larger dishes include confit lamb shoulder served on a bed of creamy polenta with sauce vierge (a Provençal dressing made with tomato, olives and herbs) and flounder pan-fried in butter with lemon juice, capers and parsley. There’s also coquillettes (a typical French pasta), cooked low and slow in a pan with smoked ham, pecorino and cream.

“It’s kind of like a risotto, but with pasta,” says Tremblet. “I tried to add some things that aren’t that well-known.”

The wine list offers a mix of French, Italian and Australian bottles, but there is a growing focus on red wine and rosé from Tremblet’s family vineyard near Bordeaux. It’s not the only nod to his upbringing – from the vintage light fixtures to the art and crockery, all the eclectic second-hand decor was curated to evoke the feeling of a visit to his nonna’s house.

Norma
197 Smith Street, Fitzroy
No phone

Hours:
Wed to Thurs 5pm–9pm
Fri 5pm–late
Sat 10am–late
Sun 10am–3pm

normafitzroy.au