Maurice Terzini is the owner of Sydney’s iconic restaurant, Icebergs Dining Room and Bar. As the restaurant celebrates its 20th anniversary, Terzini reflects on the last 20 years in 20 questions.
Maurice Terzini is one of Australia’s most famous restauranteurs. In his nearly three decades in the industry, he’s owned 18 restaurants across Sydney, Melbourne and Queensland. He’s previously run the Melbourne Wine Room in Victoria and Otto’s Ristorante in New South Wales, but reached the pinnacle with Bondi’s Icebergs Dining Room and Bar. Now, Icebergs will be reopening in December with a newly renovated space to mark its 20th anniversary.
Favourite feature on the Icebergs horizon?
Minute to minute, hour to hour, day to day, that horizon is forever changing. I love it all.
Favourite aspect of the restoration?
The Icebergs is about the ocean, the beach, the sky, it’s about Sydney. We worked hard to respect that, to create a restaurant that takes a backseat to the view, with food and service that can do the same. Consequently, much work has gone into maintaining the DNA of Icebergs. The
restoration is about caring for this restaurant, 20 years on.
That said, I am excited about sharing the new Icebergs Pacific Dining Room with everyone – I mean, you’re sitting outside, on top of the Pacific! It’s so good, it’s inspired a new Sunday service – a sunset lunch for leisurely conversations, for eating, drinking, dancing, and maybe the odd magnum.
Your most cherished Icebergs creation/dish?
Our crudo menu – it sings of seaside dining. In part, it is Japanese-inspired, but the simplicity is very Italian. It’s the embodiment of my brief to the chefs (a brief that hasn’t changed in 20 years, except through the eyes of the chef at the helm): flavours my parents would recognise but
food they would never cook. There is something so special about eating seafood while looking out over the ocean from where it all came. We are so taken by it, we’re now bringing the selection of seafood into the middle of the dining room.
Favourite table?
I very rarely sit on a window table – these are for guests – so my favourite
table has become 60. I am in amongst it all, I can see the staff, the guests
and the movement of the restaurant, while also having some privacy and
a feeling of being protected by those glass waves.
Who would you most like to sit there with?
My kids. I love that I can furnish the childhood memories with the beauty of Icebergs Dining Room and Bar. I think it will provide them with life time skills, table manners being one, but also knowing how to behave in a public environment.
What would you order, from menus part or present?
We’d start with Monty’s incredible selection of crudo, followed by Orazio’s spaghetti vongole, Alex’s beautiful lobster pasta, finishing with Jaci’s tiramisu. And anything from Karen’s first menu – those early days established the Icebergs! Of course there’d be wine, something smashable, less alcohol and more fun.
I have grown closer to smaller wine lists over the last few years – no one
wants to look at a thesis of 10000 wines! There’s a tighter focus more on
Italo varieties in Oz and coastline vineyards. We’d probably drink a chilled
red and there’d have to be a gimlet in there somewhere, Lenny is the
king of the gimlet!
What’s your greatest failure?
Allowing Icebergs IP to be exploited. I believe Icebergs has played an important part in the development of Italo/Oz food, but as with all creative endeavours, that line of reference and respect is often blurred. I think that’s a shame – we should do better for all creatives. It would be remiss of me not to mention the delays in opening now.
The weather is all out of whack, staffing is a nightmare in Sydney at the moment but we needed
that new kitchen to take us into the future! It’s been very frustrating.
Greatest success?
I love, in spite of all that work and effort, that the Icebergs has such a natural sense of celebration, of party. I’m very proud of that. And, through all the ups and downs, that we’ll be celebrating 20 years on December 14, 2022.
Most important values for a restauranteur?
Respect that customers have made their choice to spend their money with you. People get married with us, people get divorced; it’s where they do business, have fights and become better friends. People go to a restaurant to impress, to celebrate, because it represents who they are as
a person, who they want to be, what they’re proud of. It’s where they go to show their love, or to spend an afternoon in great conversation. We must respect that.
What’s the best party you ever attended?
NYD 2003. The first. The best.
What’s a secret about Icebergs you’ve never shared?
Icebergs lives by the rules of the old school world of service: we serve and by default we hear, but we never really hear anything. What happens at the Ice stays at the Ice.
Most important addition to the Icebergs uniform?
Lucy Hinckfuss – she has an incredible sense of seaside elegance, she gets the vibe. Her work with the uniforms has made them such an important part of who we are – and those white jackets, they remain forever.
If icebergs was a person, how would you describe her?
Funny, sexy, smart, determined … and a good dancer.
What has the industry gained over the past twenty years?
The availability of good produce – from salad leaves and local cheeses to incredible new wine making techniques – this has changed dramatically over the past two decades. We’ve also become more confident and united – I’m happy to see the end of the boring comparisons between Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane.
What has it lost?
Almost a decade of horrific lockout laws, with no consideration for the night economy or those who live at night, has changed us forever. The disrespect for a whole host of industries who don’t work 9-5 was just a part of the mess.
How have you seen Italo/Australian food change?
I believe my work with Karen Martini at the Melbourne Wine Room, and then Icebergs, was the beginning of a movement, of building an identity for Italo/Oz food: the orecchiette broccoli cavolfiore, the polenta chips, the lamb cutlets with hot fetta dressing – these dishes may feel normal now, but they were so ahead of their time back then, we weren’t just breaking the mould, we were creating a whole new one!
What does the future look like for that mix?
Absolutely magnificent … there’s so much talent out there.
How would you describe your perfect day?
A service full of happy clients, happy staff, satisfied, knowing they’ve created beautiful work, great sounds and conversations; maybe someone has proposed, the joy of love and the odd dolphin or two, the open doors letting in a gentle breeze or a full moon. That’s her mystery, it’s pot luck, but if you’re there for one of those nights it will be the best of your life. That’s the allure. Twenty years on, and I’m still hooked.
What song best represents Icebergs?
Poolside harvest moon remix, the perfect daytime disco.
If Icebergs was the titanic and the ship was sinking, what would you save?
I see how fortunate I am. This opportunity doesn’t come around again – there are restaurants all over the world but how many of them become institutions? To be custodian of a place like this, it’s a body of work, it’s about dedication. And yet, if I had to justify the value of that room it’s not the food, the wine, the uniforms or even the view, it’s about its value to us as people. Icebergs can only be seen as the sum of its parts … it’s all or nothing.