Chef Francesco Armillis

Born in Naples, I grew up in my mother’s kitchen, dipping fingers into sauces, sampling and watching as raw ingredients got transformed into tantalising irresistible visual delights. In Italy where food is the soul of life I realised the eye truly is the window to the soul, the king of the senses, controlling what is chosen for our taste buds to experience much more than smell. It was there that I developed my passion for cooking. Its creativity inspired me. To me, cooking is like art, to which there are no limits and endless opportunities for self expression, from nature’s magnificent rainbow of colours through to the encapsulating aromas, exquisite flavours and lingering memorable taste a true chef’s creativity is born.

My passion for cooking has now taken me a long way from my mother’s kitchen. I commenced my apprenticeship at fourteen years of age in the celebrated Cavalcanti School of Hospitality in Naples. Gaining much recognition for what my teachers tabled as ‘Pure Natural talent’. After graduating I worked in various establishments in Naples, before travelling throughout Italy and Europe to extend my knowledge and experience, cooking under the guidance of some of the best Chefs Europe had to offer. I acquired the position of Head Chef at some of Italy’s best restaurants, including the famous Grand Hotel Quisisana Capri (recognised as one of the world’s 50 best hotels), Tana Degli Orsi in Florence, Co. Ga. Na Hotel in Ischia, and Ciro A Mare, one of the oldest and most well known restaurants in Naples. I now understand what my mother meant when she told me experience is not something you learn in a day or a week, it’s something you acquire throughout life. My Italian background and experience enables me to bring the true essence of Italy to your table.

Acknowledgement and appreciation of my culinary creativity is what brings both satisfaction and happiness to me. My ambition is to be the Best Italian chef in Sydney, to institute the sublimely simple to create the most complex and tantalising flavours displayed using the vibrant radiating colours of nature. To bring culinary pleasure and memorable dining experience to patrons is my motivation.