We’re thrilled to welcome an exciting new addition to the Grill Americano family, with the talented Vincenzo Ursini joining the kitchen as our new Head Chef. He comes to us fresh from leading the team at the acclaimed Victor Churchill, but also brings a wealth of experience working and training in Michelin-starred restaurants — including Italy’s Ristorante Reale and Le Calandre, and Spanish icon Mugaritz.

Here’s a glimpse at what he’s been up to and what he’s got in store for Grill Americano.

Where did it all begin?

Actually, my kitchen career didn’t start out normally at all! I have a masters in philosophy and I was playing soccer for Italy and working in a pastry shop in Giulianova near my hometown to make some money during the summers. Then when I was about 20, I sustained a pretty major injury and had to change direction completely.

As it turned out, the owner of the pastry shop also had a Michelin-starred restaurant in the same city and I was lucky enough to begin working there. It was an incredible place to start out because they had relationships with other world-renowned restaurants and Michelin-starred places where I was able to learn and train — that setting was what really inspired my jump into this world of fine dining.

After all that, how did you find yourself in Australia?

After about three years, I travelled around Europe and did some training at Mugaritz in Spain. I needed to learn English, but wasn’t keen on going to London, so in 2012 I decided to visit Australia for a six-month holiday. The idea was to challenge myself a little, to have a break from the pressures of fine dining and do something a bit different. I didn’t know anyone here and I had no idea what I would find — but it wasn’t long before I realised I loved it here and was staying for good.

I ended up on the Mornington Peninsula, working with The Epicurean Group for its first four years. It was a big change shifting from one venue to an expanding, multi-venue group, but I was able to learn so much, honing my fine-dining skills on a small scale while gaining an understanding of bigger numbers, of being able to manage multiple venues at once. I get bored easily, so that sort of thing keeps it interesting!

I then spent a few years working across Andrew McConnell’s Trader House venues, and most recently I was Head Chef of Victor Churchill. 

And what made you decide to stay?

I realised pretty quickly that the quality of life is much better here compared to Europe. Just in terms of time, time at the end of the day to do what you want, having the chance to actually enjoy your days off. Here, I could enjoy working at a very high level of hospitality but still have my life. The Australian mentality is much more aligned with my way of thinking, with how I want to live and work.

What are the main things that inspire and influence your cooking?

I’ve been very lucky to work in kitchens that have had access to incredible produce and the knowledge to go with it, and where I’ve been able to have close relationships with the suppliers. I think that really gives you something special to work with and steers the way you cook.

It’s one of those things; once you try something exceptional, you cannot go back. When you eat the pasta from your Mamma, yeah it’s amazing, but then you go to a three Michelin-starred restaurant and you eat something mind-blowing, you quickly become much more picky.

In Australia, the availability of really high-quality meat is fantastic, much better than in Italy, and that has a big influence on my cooking. I also have a strong connection to all things to do with fish and seafood, which is what drew me to living on the Mornington Peninsula.

Are there any chefs that have especially inspired you along the way?

Well, I’ve been lucky enough to work with so many amazing chefs, but if I had to nail down a couple that have really made a difference, it would be Gialluca Francesco (Osteria dal Moro), Darren Vaughan (The Epicurean Group) and Damian Snell (Lucas Restaurants Head of Culinary), who I met when I was working on the Peninsula. As well as being inspiring, they’ve always supported me and been able to see my potential, which is so important. It all comes down to the way that people are able to manage you as a person and make you more confident in yourself so you can achieve your best.

What are you most excited about with this new role?

I think the perspective and potential that comes for working with a group like Lucas Restaurants. Chris Lucas is definitely someone who’s not shy to strive for the best, for excellence. I’m excited about the organisation, the support, the produce, the people.

Then there’s helping to train and develop other chefs, which is a really enjoyable part of my work. You want to have confidence in what your team can do, what you’ve taught them. I say to my guys, I want to create the kind of environment where you’ll be happy to stay for years, but I also want to be proud of you going to apply for a job anywhere else and know that you have what it takes to get it.

What are some of your favourite dishes from the current Grill Americano menu?

I think Grill Americano’s pasta offering in particular is very special. It’s very seasonal, and forever changing, so there’s always something new to try. That said, it’s hard to choose favourites! There are a lot of incredible dishes on the menu that I love, and it all comes down to the freshness and quality of the produce we get to work with. You can’t go wrong, really.

Have you got any big changes in store for us?

For me, I think it will just be about honing the details, little tweaks that won’t change too much on the surface, but can really amp up that depth of flavour. Maybe some different techniques here and there. I promise the regulars there’s nothing to worry about!