Groundbreaking Italian-Australian restaurateur Maurice Terzini is shortly to open Da Maria in Petitenget, his first venture into Bali’s flourishing culinary scene. Exquisite Taste was thrilled to catch up with him pre-opening to uncover a little bit about the man and what we can expect from Da Maria.
E : It’s a real pleasure to see you here in Bali, so tell us, why Bali and why now?
A: Well I’ve been coming to Bali since the mid-80s and I didn’t really feel that what was happening here was right for me businesswise until now. Then a series of coincidences occurred and here I am. Nowadays, Bali is like an opening into the world. Australia is so far away, but with Bali’s global market, you have a global reach without having to get on a plane for 18 hours or more. It’s also just the right time for me personally, I’m really enjoying the lifestyle.
E : How did you get into the restaurant business?
A: That’s easy, I needed a part-time job when I was very young and found that I loved working front of house, in restaurants. I used to be an excellent and passionate waiter, but eventually just lost the vital factor – patience! I still love the environment, so I turned that passion and experience into running restaurants. My parents are Italian and I grew up between Italy and Australia. I lived in Milan for a year when I was about 19 years old and at that time, it was the coolest city in the world. I still remember the first time I went into this little bar and just thinking “this is it”. In Australia, the Italian culture was very watered down, so my determination was to create a real Italian experience and to do Italian food properly – to present Italy with passion.
E : What’s the overall concept? And how much is it based on your previous groundbreaking restaurants in Australia?
A: Da Maria is a fun Italian osteria serving real Italian food made with high quality local produce sourced from the local farmers and producers, where possible. We’re already growing our own tomatoes here. Steve Skelly is heading our kitchen giving us traditional Italian flavours but produced in his own style. To me, Da Maria is fun, healthy with strong flavours; it’s all about crafting the Italian mood, the vibe.
Every night in Bali is a Saturday night and I want this to be a place where people can get great food, but as the night progresses, the music gets turned up and people can dance and have a great time. It’s blurring the lines between a restaurant, club and bar.
E : So in a line?
A: I’m planning to offer good, simple drinks, good wine, great food and all in a fun venue, whether you want to eat, drink or dance.
: How did you come up with the name?
A: It’s typically Italian without being fixed to a particular style. Any name with “da”, which means at, is popular for an Italian restaurant. Maria is like a kind of mystery woman… It also means I can take the basic DNA of Da Maria in the future and make other restaurants with their own characteristics using names with “da” without creating a chain concept.
E : You are known for stylish venues, who is designing Da Maria?
A: I’m working with Lazzarini Pickering again. I’ve worked with Carl on eight projects now, including Icebergs. He’s based in Rome, so he really gets the Italian feeling that I love to convey and we have a common understanding.
Da Maria, for us, is the Amalfi Coast, the Italian Riviera, but in Bali. The design brief for each project is individual, but it incorporates his design DNA as well as my own, so although the concept and menus for Da Maria are inspired by Da Orrazio, it’s a development, not a copy.
E : Is there any feature you really like?
A: Yes, Da Maria has these incredible peaked domes, so it feels semi-open, with trees and plants inside to create a lush feeling.
E : Who is Da Maria aimed at, what’s the target market?
A: Our target market is everyone, eight to 80! I want children, my mother, rich, poor, surfies…everyone. I’m lucky in that my venues in Melbourne and Sydney are well recognized by a wide range of people, so plenty of people in Bali will already be familiar with what I do.
E : I’m sure Da Maria will be an instant success – do you have any other plans to expand in Asia?
A: This is my first Asian venture, but I’m in the process of finalizing a beach club, which I hope will happen soon, which also has a hotel. Hotel Terzini has been my ultimate ambition and dream for a long time.
CRUDO SNAPPER, TOMATO, OREGANO, WOOD-ROASTED CHILLI.
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INGREDIENTS
• 1.5kg snapper fillet
• 4 ripe tomatoes
• 1 cup picked oregano
• 1 red chilli
• 1 green chilli
• Prosecco or champagne vinegar
• Extra virgin olive (choose a grassy oil
over a peppery, robust oil)
• Sea salt flakes
• Black pepper
For the tomato pulp:
Cut the tomatoes into quarters and remove the seeds. Press the tomatoes flesh side down through a fine sieve and hang in another sieve until excess water has run off. Discard the water, season the pulp with sea salt. Refrigerate the pulp.
Slice the snapper, starting at the tail end, and slice as thinly as you can. In between each slice wipe your knife. Arrange the slices in a circular pattern, slightly overlapping. Allow 70g per person.
To serve:
Dress the fish lightly with the oil first, 1 tablespoon per plate. Follow with the vinegar, around 1 teaspoon each. Using a dinner spoon, distribute the tomato pulp in oval shapes, around five or six per plate.
Slice the chillies as thinly as you can, seeds intact. Use around six or seven slices of each of the red and green chillies.
Finish with the oregano leaves. Serve immediately.
