Il Forno means ‘the oven’ in Italian and is symbolic of what this family restaurant is aiming to achieve — to be a melting pot of all things Australian and Italian.
Owners Nazzareno Cugliari and his wife Kristina are proud of their Italian heritage, with both sets of parents migrating from Sicily and Calabria in the early 50s and 60s.
They brought with them a rich tradition of Italian culture and cooking, which has been passed onto both Naz and Kristina. Naz recently travelled to Italy for four months and embarked on an incredible journey of discovery, paying particular attention to his own family’s history and the flavours of the food he happily devoured!
“We like to keep our menu up to date with delicious new seasonal dishes”
- Naz
“Visiting the country side where for generations they worked the land and grew crops, fruit and vegetables and reared their animals both for sale and their own consumption was amazing,” he said.
“Often I would try to imagine what it was like — I know it was a hard life for my family and the generations before them, but it was a good life. They ate what they produced off the land and I’m sure it was as organic as you’re ever going to find."
Il Forno is Naz’s tribute to his rich Italian culture and history — both the ambience and food aim to take you on a journey back to Italy, as well as celebrating the creative and modern touches that keep the menu exciting and flavoursome.
Naz and Kristina look forward to personally meeting you at Il Forno and sharing some of their passion for Italy and food with you.
