Divido, meaning ‘I divide’ or ‘share’ in Italian, is finally open on Scarborough Beach Road in Mount Hawthorn.
Divido, meaning ‘I divide’ or ‘share’ in Italian, is finally open on Scarborough Beach Road in Mount Hawthorn.
Jan and Lindsay Turner and award-winning Perth chef Jason Jujnovich took over the lease of the old Aegean Café in February but had to wait until recently to open their refurbished restaurant.
And they’ve designed Divido as a place to come and share good food including tapas-style starters and wood-fired pizzas, and special main courses of wood-roasted pork belly and homemade gnocchi.
Mrs Turner told WA Business News Mr Jujnovich’s vision for the restaurant was for something fresh and exciting with classic Italian food.
And although they have only been open a few weeks, 40 walk-ins on several weeknights is a promising sign of things to come.
And there’ll be many in Perth happy to have Mr Jujnovich back in town and opening his own establishment.
The 32-year-old chef has been away for eight years, living and working in Melbourne and London, returning to Perth only 12 months ago.
Mr Jujnovich said he left Perth in search of bigger challenges than the city could offer at the time.
“If you are going to do something you have got to do it right. I wanted to run with the big dogs,” he said.
So, for about five years, Mr Jujnovich worked as a chef in Melbourne, including in the role of executive chef at one of the city’s most renowned and prestigious restaurants, Il Bacaro Cucina e Bar. During his short stay he collected several awards, including the Melbourne Dine Out for best Italian and one of The Age newspaper’s Good Food Guide ‘Chefs Hats’.
But it wasn’t just about the cooking for Mr Jujnovich, who also learned the business aspect to running restaurants.
His time in London furthered ambitions in this regard, with Mr Jujnovich’s CV now boasting the famous The River Café, and L’Oranger Restaurant.
“I came back to open my own restaurant; something simple but modern and with a smart edge,” he told WA Business News.
“I like casual eating, I love pizza and I wanted to create this and somewhere where you didn’t have to spend $50 or $60 [for a meal]. Opening my own restaurant was a natural progression.”
Divido will soon incorporate its “new world” wine list, which will be something different, according to Mr Jujnovich (think South America and chilli).
• For more food and wine news see Gusto, page 27.
