Brunetti is the Carlton pasticceria that has been feeding Melbourne's Italian sweet tooth for decades, a big, bright cafe on Lygon Street where the counters run for metres past cannoli, sfogliatelle, gelato, biscotti, and pastries lined up like jewellery. It captures the Lygon Street idea of Carlton as Little Italy better than almost anywhere — busy, loud, family-oriented, and open late.
Order a coffee and something from the cabinet and watch the street go by, or take a box of pastries away. It is more polished and more commercial than the old single-room espresso bars that first made Lygon Street famous, but the quality holds up and the scale is part of the spectacle. Good for an after-dinner gelato on a warm evening.