Trattoria Maranello

Head Chef: Uli Staam:

Owner and chef Uli Staam has the passion and the know-how to surprise you with authentic Italian and Mediterranean cooking. After a three year apprenticeship in the best restaurants in Germany, he left to travel the world. The most important destinations for an ambitious chef being France and Italy.

Working with Bocuse, Troisgros and Marchesi was just as interesting as cooking up country in small trattorias or with the "mamas" at home. His journey lead him all around the Mediterranean sea as well as Middle East, India, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

In the Eighties he took over one of the eight restaurants in the hotel Treasure Island, Las Vegas, together with his brother. From there he went to Germany and opened "The Bundschuh", a wine-restaurant in the oldest house of Karlsruhe built in 1463; after a short time well-known for its extensive wine menu complementing chef's seasonal specialties. His perseverence was rewarded with one star and 13 points by the restaurant guide Gault et Millau for five consecutive years.

In 1999 he met his wife Maggie in Cape Town, took her over to Germany and showed her 'the old world' but they decided that South Africa was the right place to live and returned in 2000. Arnold's in Kloof Street, the well known Papino's in Hout Bay, the first Trattoria Maranello in Camps Bay were the restaurants where he sizzled before he moved to Melkbos - together with his wife - again to the oldest restaurant in town.