Bandar Seri Begawan - "Welcome to my humble home," that's the alluring attraction of Villa Mauri, a famous restaurant of excellent Italian cuisine that comes with a twist of cozy and pleasant ambiance.

Located on the outskirts of the capital, along Jalan Muara, Villa, which means house in Italian, just celebrated its first anniversary.

The brainchild of Chef Mauri, Villa Mauri is managed by his good friend Michele Danieli.

On Wednesday, chef Mauri took time off from his busy schedule and spoke with Weekend Bulletin on his concept and Villa Mauri's Italian food.

Recalling where his idea come from, he said, "I have been working here for around 14 years and everyday I went past this location (where Villa Mauri is now). I always envisioned that it would be nice to have an Italian restaurant. It's always my dream to really settle in Brunei. I always like Brunei. It's a very peaceful and easygoing country. Family values are still very well preserved here."

One year ago, in August 2008, Chef Mauri's dream came true.

The new Italian restaurant, which fuses southern and northern Italian cuisine, was an instant success.

Hanging on the walls of the restaurant, which has three private rooms to host special occasions, are pictures of Chef Mauri with his family.

Chef Mauri said "villa means house. So the restaurant is like my house. It's like welcoming people to my home and I want people to feel like they are in my house. I then brought in Michele the manager to help manage the restaurant while I can concentrate on cooking my Italian cuisine in the kitchen."

Thinking back at the past one year, he said, "when we first opened, the demand and business had surpassed our expectations."

However, he said, "to be successful, we have to implement changes to cater to the customers. We are writing a new chapter in providing the full Italian feeling to our patrons in combining the flour of South Italy and North Italy in one place."

The must-try special Italian cuisine includes Baramundi fillet with avocado salad tossed in truffle oil, roasted rack of lamb with juniper and balsamic reducation, lobster rhermidor style or the Italian way served with spaghetti, tiramisu like no other in Brunei and the popular chocolate pudding

To celebrate its first year anniversary, Villa Mauri will be giving out a 20 per cent discount to customers celebrating his/her birthday while dining in the restaurant. Just show the identity card as proof.

The restaurant has also a introduced discount card for its patrons who spend over $30 on a single receipt. It has various discounts allocated for different dining times. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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