Published 12 June 2023, updated 17 October 2023
Bunbury’s food scene has evolved in recent years thanks largely to a throng of young, brave entrepreneurs who have brought their food dreams to life in the City.
Think award-winning, share-style food at Market Eating House, fine-dining at Mojo’s Kitchen, Bar & Bottleshop, staple Italian favourites at Nicola’s Ristorante or flavour-packed Asian dishes at Jo’s Curry House.
The list goes on.
That culinary success is spilling onto the streets, quite literally, with food vans popping up at permanent locations across Bunbury.
Among the local favourites is what could be considered the original food truck in Spice Journey, an Indian mobile food van dishing up some of Bunbury’s tastiest curries.
The self-proclaimed “curry on wheels” eatery is a hit among locals, switching between its iconic locations at Ocean Drive, Jaycee Park and Estuary Drive during the week.
But a newcomer has quickly made its mark on the Bunbury community, with family-owned Antonio’s Pasta a welcome addition to the City’s food scene.
Dishing up some seriously tasty homemade pasta (and meatballs to die for), it is little surprise the Ciallella family’s idea to recreate head of the family Antonio’s established restaurant from 20 years ago on wheels has taken off.
Parked up at Jaycee Park most nights of the week, the Italian inspired food truck also regularly partners with local businesses and organisations for events.
In true silver-lining fashion, the Ciallella family saw an opportunity during the COVID-19 pandemic and put the wheels in motion, literally, for Antonio’s Pasta food van.
“You couldn’t go to restaurants, so we thought a food truck would be perfect,” daughter Cheyenne says.
The Ciallellas haven’t looked back and remain grateful for the overwhelming support of the local community saying “backing each other” is what Bunbury is good at.
“It’s been really, really good and quite overwhelming actually,” Cruize Ciallella says.
“Going into this we didn’t really know what to expect and it was quite a big gamble for us to take, but we’ve been blown away really.
“Bunbury is really good at supporting local businesses … things like sporting clubs get such a big backing and great sponsors, backing each other is something Bunbury does well.”
It’s not just food vans popping up across Bunbury. Complementing the vast selection of cafes brewing delicious coffee throughout the City is the new, uber trendy Piccolo Coffee Caravan located in the mornings at Bunbury Recreation Ground.
Like Antonio’s Pasta, the mobile coffee house has quickly become a favourite in Bunbury.
Owners Grace Daniels and Clancy Wheeler are pretty much locals, growing up in Bunbury and Esperance respectively, and after travelling and living in Perth and abroad, both came to the conclusion that “nowhere does coffee quite like Australia”.
“Bunbury felt like the perfect place to bring our idea to life,” Grace says.
We are so spoilt with an incredible coastline, plenty of green space and a great community.
Our local businesses have fantastic offerings, and our intention is to add to that.
Providing delicious caffeine and friendly banter, the iconic Piccolo Coffee Caravan is the perfect fit for its coastal location and is just the latest example of clever entrepreneurs seeing the City’s potential and just going for it.
Grace says since setting up shop, the community support has been invaluable and the duo is excited about Bunbury’s bright future.
“There’s something special about business owners in Bunbury, everyone is super friendly and you’ll often see or hear them promoting other local businesses,” she says.
We are really excited about the future of Bunbury, there are so many incredible people in the community that want to see each other and the community as a whole succeed.
“We believe Bunbury will continue to flourish – there are so many opportunities here and lifestyle that we are so grateful to have.”
Check out more of Bunbury’s amazing coffee and food offerings here.