La Capanna has been serving Italian food in Kingston for more than 30 years. Photo: Tenele Conway.
Nostalgia is hard to pin down. It’s an ephemeral concoction of faint memories and fleeting moments all folded up in that fuzzy feeling that’s so often a singular experience. It’s also elusive and hits you when you least expect it, but I know a place that many Canberrans can go to induce a bout of nostalgia.
For more than 30 years, La Capanna in Kingston has remained largely unchanged. That’s a rare thing in today’s fast-paced hospitality scene, and 2026 seemed like as good a year as any to take a walk down memory lane and revisit a Canberra classic.
Stepping through the charming little sage-green timber frontage, the nondescript fuzzy feeling I carried with me faltered as we were met with an empty dining room. Settling in with the menu, I experienced a resurgence of fuzziness as Simon and Garfunkel coo, coo, ca-chooed the promises of a naughty little tryst with an older woman, and as a family of five walked through the door, followed by a handsome young couple who were promptly seated in the front window, all was right with the world again.
As with most of us who have surpassed the 30-year threshold, the trimmings are a little tired: the green stucco walls have seen better days, and the cherub-like resemblance of Romulus and Remus encased under the glass of the tables has faded into amorphous blobs. Yet I don’t mind. It’s comforting in a way to know that a nice meal doesn’t need to come with a half a million dollar restaurant fit out, and as I browse the menu, I can sense the Nonna of my imaginary childhood in a picturesque Tuscan village telling me that I’m too skinny and I must eat more.
The menu has a range of bruschettas; this one is a classic plus anchovies. Photo: Tenele Conway.
Who am I to argue with Nonna? So to please her, I ordered the alici e pomodoro (anchovy and tomato) bruschetta and a caprese salad, and pinned my hopes on the lasagne, which sent me into a carb-induced fever dream.
The rest of the menu touches on all the nostalgic classics, both traditional, like the margherita pizza, and the somewhat less traditional like the Mexicana pizza. There is, of course, a large pasta menu, and no matter what your penchant is for, creamy or tomatoey, it’s all covered here, and despite Nonna rolling in her grave at the notion of cream in a carbonara, it fits with the nostalgic vibes.
Bright and fresh caprese salad is a strong accompaniment to a rich lasagne. Photo: Tenele Conway.
For much of its life, La Capanna was BYO; that’s now a thing of the past, and there is a full drinks menu. The wines include two drops from Italy, a white from Tuscany and a Pinot Grigio from Venice. No local Canberra wines make an appearance, rather a range from the Riverina, Adelaide Hills, Western Australia and New Zealand’s Marlborough Sounds.
Being a beer gal myself, I opted for the Peroni. With roots in Northern Italy dating back to the mid-nineteenth century, it’s a Nonna-approved drink that I find pairs well with rich dishes like lasagne.
As for the meal, the bruschetta was a solid start. The toasted Italian bread was more bread than toast, but it was as pretty as a picture and a nice blend of Italian flavours.
The caprese salad was a good accompaniment for the lasagne, and while the quality of the tomatoes probably doesn’t warrant them being a hero ingredient on a dish as simple as caprese, I enjoyed the overall effect.
Nonna would approve of this hearty lasagne. Photo: Tenele Conway.
As hoped, the lasagne was just what Nonna called for. The layered pasta stuffed with the meaty tomato filling was robust and plentiful, and the shaker of Parmesan took me right back to the early 90s, when I knew no other form of the Italian cheese.
To assist in the conjuring of nostalgic notions, while you dine at La Capanna, you can peruse historical news stories about the restaurant that adorn the walls. One particular article caught my eye.
Written 12 years after the restaurant first opened, the story’s title, ‘No Pretensions, Just Good Food’, matches La Cappana’s tagline on Instagram. The reference to a news story from long ago is the sort of historical tie-in that shows these guys are also prone to a bout of nostalgia from time to time. Not a bad affliction to have if you ask me.
La Capanna is at 32 Giles Street, Kingston, and is open Tuesday through Saturday from 6 pm to 9:30 pm.
