223 Barkly St, Footscray. Phone: 9689 2772

It’s Saturday night and we’re hunkered down on the sofa, waiting for the start of the Tri-Nations rugby union decider between the mighty All Blacks and the Wallabies.

Bennie’s asked about dinner three times in the past half-hour.

There’s all sorts of goodies in the kitchen – including ripe avocados and a tip-top loaf of sourdough bread.

But frankly I’m as sick as a dog and the thought of getting amongst it in the kitchen holds zero appeal.

Earlier in the week, Bennie had stated he’d had enough of Lebanese pizzas and was hankering for a slab of old-school Aussie pizza pie – specifically, of the “meat lovers” variety.

Why not?

A few minutes on the phone and the deal is done.

Il Paesano is certainly one of those ubiquitous old-school Aussie-Italian pizza joints. We pass it virtually every time we head to or from Footscray central.

We’re extremely unlikely ever to set foot in the place, but have found it fuss-free and efficient when the very odd and occasional mood strikes us for home delivery. And that’s despite the fact that there are at least three very similar establishments much closer to home.

I find our pizza – a large meat lovers for $12 – much less greasy and gloopy than I had feared it would be. That processed ham stuff seems to dominate, and I discern no chicken at all. Then again, my sense of taste is shot, so what would I know?

Bennie loves it, granting it a rating of 7.5 out of 10, which he subsequently revises upwards to 8 out of 10.

I manage just two slices, the boy eats all the rest bar one.

Foodie criteria and processed ham be damned – sometimes it’s nice to give somebody precisely what they want, especially your kids.

Pizza for $12, two cans of that Coca Cola stuff for $2 each, $1 for the driver – $20 the lot.