The drain on the labour supply occasioned by the gold rush caused Australia to also seek workmen from Europe for land use and the development of cultivation.

A group of musicians from the town of Viggiano in the Basilicata region formed a small community in Little Lonsdale Street in the 1890s and relocated to Carlton.

[3] In 1896, the Dante Alighieri Society branch in Melbourne was founded to promote Italian language and culture in the city.

In the recent years, Australia has been witnessing a new wave of migration from Italy in numbers not seen in half a century, as thousands flee the economic hardship in Europe, with the Financial crisis of 2007–08 playing a large role, many Italians migrated from Italy to Australia in large numbers.

The recently redeveloped Abruzzo club opened 377 on Lygon in late 2015,[7] and the international award-winning 400 gradi restaurant, that was declared to have the 'world's best pizza' in 2014.

Toto's Pizza House, the first pizzeria established in Australia, has been located at the southern end of Lygon Street continuously since its opening in 1961.

The block between Cardigan street and Arglye Place South, are synonymous for the site of celebrations of Italian sport.

During the annual Australian Grand Prix, the restaurant district, particularly the stated block, is bathed in red and yellow banners in support of the Ferrari Formula One racing team and, in 1982 and 2006, it was also a major site of Australian celebrations when Italy's national football team won the 1982 and 2006 FIFA World Cups.