Maria Luciani (kneeling) and Keana Lufe (standing). Photo: Supplied.
Maria Luciani and Keana Lufe, the dynamic duo behind beloved Wollongong eateries K.malu and Casa Lu, have opened their third culinary venture, Lu Mare.
Perched by Wollongong Harbour in the former Anchorage space inside the Boat Harbour Hotel, Lu Mare is serving up regional classics from Maria’s home that transport patrons straight to Italy.
Focusing on classic, authentic dishes from the Italian coast and countryside, the menu is a showcase of Maria’s childhood memories – with specialties such as matriciana, gnocchi cacio e pepe, traditional veal cotoletta alla Milanese and, coming soon, a lasagne from her town called vincisgrassi.
Desserts temp tastebuds with the coffee flavours of tiramisu, to rolled chocolate salami, and rhubarb semifreddo.
Lu Mare, meaning “the sea” in her Marchigiano dialect, features other personal touches through photographs from Maria’s hometown and a hand-painted mural of Italy.
Maria said she originally came to Wollongong with no English 13 years ago to visit extended family, but soon found herself working under an Italian chef cooking quality Italian food at the then newly opened North Beach Pavilion.
“I worked there for almost nine years and Keana was also working as a chef at the pavilion,” she said.
“From there, we decided to open something together.”
They launched modern European kitchen and bar K.malu in 2021, which won Outstanding Restaurant of the Year at the Local Business Awards this month.
It was followed by traditional Italian sandwich shop Casa Lu last December, where the upscale sandwiches were often selling out by 1 pm when it first opened.
“When we decided to open K.malu we didn’t want to do 100 per cent Italian,” she said.
“But after four years of K.malu, it’s always been my dream to have an Italian restaurant with all the Italian wines and so we decided to do 100 per cent classic Italian food without a twist.
“I’ve gone around all the regions and found very typical dishes. For example, from my region we have a polenta with a mushroom and sausage ragu.”
However, Maria admitted opening a third restaurant with 26-year-old part owner and head chef Keana was not always the plan.
“This one started because the owners of the [Boat Harbour] hotel are our customers at K.malu,” she said.
“It started almost like a joke, because they decided to close Anchorage last September.
“They said, ‘Why don’t you come to see the restaurant?’ and I said, ‘’No, no way will I have another one’.
“When we came here, we realised it’s actually a little gem. It’s beautiful.”
She said she envisaged the restaurant as a simple, casual Italian dining option for Sunday lunch after beach-goers spent time on the harbourfront.
“We want people to come in from the beach, with their T-shirt on, and come for dinner or lunch,” she said.
Initially operating Thursday through Sunday, Lu Mare will expand to include Wednesdays and open up its outdoor area after Father’s Day.
After its launch on Saturday (26 July), it’s already experiencing strong interest from the community.
Lu Mare is open at 3/9 Wilson St, Wollongong from Fridays to Sundays, noon to 2:30 pm and 5 pm to late; and Thursdays, 5 pm to late.
