Modesto Marini

Selling Malaysia A slice of la dolce vita since 1995

A chance visit to Malaysia turned into a lifetime opportunity for Modesto Marini, the owner of The Marini’s Group, a culinary collective of rooftop restaurant Marini’s on 57, the Marble 8 steakhouse and champagne and caviar bar M Marini Caffe. In his two decades, the man from Lake Garda, 90 minutes from Milan, has introduced Italian cuisine to a country that he now regards as very much his home.

On childhood
Growing up, my favourite dish was my mama’s Polenta Carbonara. Eight cheeses and nine kinds of salami mixed into pot and slowly stirred into melting – a heavenly and richly flavoured dish.

On coming to Malaysia
Starting F&B in Malaysia was down to fate. At 21, I was working as a sous chef at Cecconi’s in London’s Mayfair when I was offered a job in Singapore. Somehow, I came to Kuala Lumpur in the early 1990s for a casual visit and the rest, as they say, is history.

On his approach to cuisine
In the early days, I focused on simple and authentic Italian cuisine; thin crust pizzas and pastas to lasagne and tiramisu. Now, 20 years later, we see many other Italian restaurants sprouting up. To set ourselves apart at Marini’s on 57, we still remain true to good ingredients, but with a complex, refined presentation similar to contemporary and modern European.

On work
I love my job for the fact that every day promises a surprise. There is no such thing as boredom. Most of all, I love that I get to meet so many different personalities – they have given me plenty of good insights into life, and what it is all about.

On where to eat in Italy
I may be biased, but I love the northern Italian restaurants. Via Victor Hugo 4 in Milan and Enoteca Pinchiorri of Florence are two standout names – highly acclaimed and using the fresh ingredients so pivotal in fine Italian cooking.

On his business
My hope for The Marini’s Group is for our patrons to experience and notice an edge of difference when they dine with us. This is something that motivates our team to work hard, to take us through an erratic and fickle business such as F&B.