BELLISIMO FELLINI

THERE’S an inherent ingredient in the kitchen at Ristorante Fellini and its dazzling discerning diners.

It’s not the magnificent, made-on-the-premises pasta or ravishing ravioli – although both strike the palette superbly.

It’s a combination. The one between father and son and it may even have something to do with the Marina Mirage restaurant winning two Australian Good Food Guide Chef Hats recently.

Fellini has always been a family business. Owned and operated by the Percuoco family and partners Raffaele Di Benedetto and Richard Burt, it is now relishing the addition of a fifth generation chef.

Richard Burt has been Fellini’s executive chef for the past 14 years. Working alongside fellow executive chef Anna Cacace, his dexterous culinary skills have served the restaurant up a string of industry awards including, ‘signature dish of the year’ and he was also invited to cook at the Five Chefs for Queensland event.

Now son Jason is in on the act. During a sunny summer Sunday, with the Broadwater sparkling and alive with boats, the duo impress with a timballo de granchi – an entree consisting of cooked spanner crab meat on avocado in a delicate orange infused mayonnaise and complemented by an orange and lime salad.

The Tasmanian trout is also a mouth watering delicacy wrapped in poppy seed and fused with a trout mouse on a bed of potato leek, tomato and zucchini coated with saffron and chives. Washed down with fresh Australian sauvignon blanc, the afternoon simply drifts by in a serene swirl.

Having had a taste of what a career in cooking could offer, Jason started in the Fellini kitchen aged just nine, helping his father in the school holidays with preparation. Now 21 and having completed his apprenticeship, Burt jnr is now creating the dishes that has made Fellini famous.

Fellini’s menu draws upon influences from varying Italian regions with a strong focus on Neapolitan cuisine.