Insiders reveal what Martha Stewart REALLY thought of trendy Bondi restaurant beloved by eastern suburbs elites – as she is spied at the chic boutique all the ‘It’ girls love

Martha Stewart cooked up a commotion in Bondi on Wednesday.

The culinary icon, 83, who is in Sydney for an ‘In Conversation With’ event as part of the Vivid Festival, skipped over to the east for some shopping and a bite to eat on Thursday.

She chose to dine at Totti’s, a mecca for local and international celebrities, reportedly after a friend’s recommendation.

The Merivale-owned restaurant, known for its famous bread and small plates, as well as its signature rich pasta dishes, is beloved by the eastern suburbs in-crowd.

Given its reputation as one of Sydney’s best restaurants, we asked around what America’s kitchen queen thought of her dining experience.

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Martha Stewart, 83, took Bondi by storm on Wednesday as she scoped out local hotspots

Stewart is in Sydney for an ‘In Conversation With’ event as part of the Vivid Festival

And, after a bit of wild goose chase, we were able to find a diner who had been at the restaurant at the time and just so happened to overhear Martha’s musings.

‘She was impressed. She had a great time and ate everything,’ they said, adding that she ‘was really lovely’, ‘super friendly’ and asked the staff ‘lots of questions’. 

The cookbook author ‘enjoyed a large selection of antipasti’ accompanied by the signature wood-fired bread, but our spy didn’t stay long enough to see if she sampled any of the mains.

She had ‘Sanpellegrino sparkling water’ while she ate, said our source, and ‘seemed very interested in the produce, asking the waiters lots of questions.’

Before her lunch at the eatery owned by billionaire pub baron Justin Hemmes, Martha was first spotted browsing through some ritzy stores on Gould St.

At one point, she popped into the flagship boutique for SIR The Label, an upmarket clothing brand that is very popular among eastern suburbs set.

Onlookers at the store were stunned when the American star walked in off the street, looking chic in a dark blue velvet co-ord sweats set.

She topped it with a matching blue vest and added another brown cardigan to protect herself against the cold. 

The culinary icon was impressed by popular eatery Totti’s

Owned by the Merivale group, Totti’s left quite the impression on Martha who is said to have enjoyed a large selection of the venue’s signature antipasti

Wearing her grey tresses in their usual bob, Martha finished her cosy look with a pair of grey sneakers. 

A fellow shopper said Martha ‘seemed chill’ as she looked through the racks. 

‘She came into store but she didn’t buy anything. She was just browsing,’ they said.

‘I think she was just having a little day in and around Gould St. It was a quick pop in, pop out. She seemed lovely.’

Martha was seen browsing through the coats upon entering the boutique, and even picked out a brown blazer that retails online for $560. 

However, she left empty-handed and was later seen arriving at Totti’s.

The cookbook author was first spotted enjoying a cool outing in Bondi earlier in the day as she browsed through some ritzy stores on Gould St

At one point, she popped into the flagship boutique for SIR The Label, an upmarket clothing brand which is very popular among eastern suburbs socialites

Onlookers at the store were stunned when the US star walked in off the street, looking very chic in a dark blue velvet co-ord sweats set

‘She came into store but she didn’t buy anything. She was just browsing. I think she was just having a little day-in on Gould St. It was a quick pop in, pop out. She seemed lovely,’ a source said

Totti’s fast made a name for itself as the place to be among Sydney’s elites after it first opened its doors at The Royal Bondi in December 2018.

The highly regarded menu, created by executive chef Mike Eggert, features an array of Italian dishes from pasta, antipasti and its famous ‘puffy’ wood-fired bread.

The Merivale eatery now has three locations all up, with its Bondi, Rozelle and George Street venues considered the trendiest of casual hot spots for Sydneysiders.

Totti’s interior was inspired by an Italian taverna, featuring old timber chairs, paired-back walls and huge olive trees filling out the lavish courtyard.

The restaurant has become so iconic in Sydney, it was once even the victim of an apparent ‘copycat’ in Paris. 

Martha left SIR empty-handed and was later seen arriving at the ritzy Italian eatery Totti’s

Martha was spotted exiting a vehicle outside the popular venue where she stopped to have a brief conversation with friends

Fellow diners who were at the restaurant at the same time as Martha said: ‘She was really lovely’

‘She came in and was asking the team lots of questions and was super friendly with the staff. ‘She had all of the antipasti and loved it and had a good time,’ they added

A doppelganger venue was spotted in France last year, with the name and branding all the exact same but with the ”s’ dropped off the end of Totti’s, making it Totti.   

The French ‘cut copy’ was spotted by famous Australian Instagram account Miss Double Bay, who called the likeness between both restaurants ‘uncanny’. 

While the French Totti doesn’t have the famous ‘puff’ bread on the menu, it does have a garlic and olive oil bread and other similar dishes like burrata, schnitzel and tiramisu.

Justin, 52, broke his silence on the apparent copycat in January last year. 

‘Don’t they say “imitation is the sincerest form of flattery”? I’m not sure I agree with that,’ he said in response to the news.

Just hours before Martha made a surprise appearance at Totti’s, she was seen arriving at Sydney airport in the early hours of the morning

She flew in from the US ahead of her Vivid Sydney ‘In Conversation’ event, and was greeted by airport staff holding a sign which bore her surname Stewart

The home-cooking icon was all smiles as she stopped to meet fans outside her terminal, toting a personalised ‘MARTHA’ travel bag

The Merivale group, which owns Totti’s and more than 80 other venues across Sydney, is headed up by billionaire Justin. Pictured with his girlfriend Madeleine Holtznagel

Radio shock jocks Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson went so far as to confront the almost identical Parisian restaurant.  

The duo went the extra length on their radio show by contacting the doppelganger restaurant to call them out.

‘It’s here in Australia. Are you the same company?’ Kyle pressed a staff member.

‘Oh no, we are not the same company actually,’ the employee replied.

‘But the logo is exactly the same, the fonts on the logo, are you sure it’s not the same?’ Kyle continued, to which the man answered: ‘I’m certain we are not the same.’

The staff member revealed the Parisian restaurant opened in 2022, while Totti’s first opened in Bondi, Sydney, back in 2018.

He also noted his boss had ‘never been to Sydney’, let alone heard of the iconic Merivale chain.

The Merivale group, which owns more than 80 venues across Sydney, is headed up by billionaire Justin.

Many of Sydney’s most famous restaurants are owned by the group, including the Coogee Pavillion, The Allawah and The Beresford Hotel.

Just hours before Martha made a surprise appearance at Totti’s, she was seen arriving at Sydney airport in the early hours of the morning. 

She flew in from the US ahead of her Vivid Sydney ‘In Conversation’ event, and was greeted by airport staff holding a sign which bore her surname Stewart.

The home-cooking icon was all smiles as she stopped to meet fans outside her terminal, toting a personalised ‘MARTHA’ travel bag. 

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