Living the dream

A couple of popular sayings spring to mind when considering Adelaide’s new Bar Torino – in particular “good things take time” and “it runs in the family”. For owner Nick Favaro, good food and drink is in his blood.

Though it only opened in February this year Nick says Bar Torino has been “in the works” for ten years. With his Italian family in hospitality for over three decades now and Nick’s long-term ambition to start his own venture, the sustained dreams and hard work have paid off with a successful opening and ongoing patronage.

After finding a suitable site for the bar in 2013 Nick left behind a career as an accountant and embarked on a research trip to Europe. Here, he focused on exploring his Italian heritage and learning as much as possible about how Italians and Spaniards eat, drink and enjoy life.

Now, with Nick and his sister Jessica running Bar Torino and the pair sharing ownership with their parents, the family has together shaped the venue into a unique and memorable dining and drinking destination. The bar’s popularity is due in no small part to the balance it delivers.

The food is fun, relaxed and communal. The “bar bits” menu includes such tempting tastes as house-cured meats and popcorn drizzled with honey butter – then served with salted caramel sauce. The interior of the bar also has a warm, European feel with whitewashed walls, black tiles and lots of rustic, wooden tones.

Open for 11 hours a day, six days a week, and with seating for 120 people, demand on the kitchen is considerable. The kitchen and bar area is also on display to patrons. So it’s important that it’s in keeping with the contemporary, sophisticated fit-out.

When setting up their kitchen Nick turned to Moffat, before installing a whole range of the high performing Waldorf 800 Series equipment. This includes a Waldorf twin pan gas fryer, a chargrill, salamander, cooktop and target top.

To add to this impressive line-up of powerful equipment, Bar Torino has installed a 10.10 and 6.10 gas Convotherm combi-steamer oven as the double-stacked backbone of the kitchen. There’s also a Turbofan prover holding cabinet, a Friginox blast freezer and for a productive dishwashing solution, a Wexiodisk dishwasher and Washtech dishwasher.

With a technology line-up like this, and Nick’s passion helping to drive it, Bar Torino will continue to offer culinary treats and beverage delicacies – bringing people together to share in his Italian dreams.