Cicchetti at Isle of Capri and That Italian Place on Chevron Island go into administration a day apart
Lovers of Italian food have suffered a double blow with two separate popular restaurants going into administration in two days this week.
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LOVERS of Italian food have suffered a double-blow with two separate popular restaurants going into administration in two days this week.
Square & Co, the company behind swanky Cicchetti at Capri on Via Roma, was placed into administration on Monday, while That Italian Place, at Chevron Island, went into liquidation on Tuesday.
Liquidator Matthew Bookless said health issues of the owners and a lack of profitability had likely caused That Italian Place to fail.
Cicchetti, which hosted 300 VIPs at a lavish launch in 2015, reportedly did not re-open after the Easter break.
Marco De Vincentiis, Luca Giacomin and Enrico Semenzato launched Cicchetti Gold Coast after enjoying success with Cicchetti Byron Bay, and the Isle of Capri venue became a popular haunt in the waterfront village.
The 130-seat restaurant, which featured a dazzling custom-made chandelier, was a favourite of Mayor Tom Tate, who held a surprise party there for his wife Ruth in 2017.
Mr Giacomin resigned as a director of the Cicchetti Gold Coast company in February last year, while Mr Semenzato resigned in 2016.
The sole remaining director, Mr De Vincentiis, also a DJ and producer who performs as Marco Demark, did not return the Bulletin’s calls.
Marco Demark had a 2008 smash hit in Europe with a version of Elton John’s Tiny Dancer, which featured Gold Coast singer-songwriter Casey Barnes and peaked at number 66 on the Australian charts.
Mr De Vincentiis is also listed as director of Markeri Fish and Chips which was at Mermaid Waters before its closure earlier this year.
He was also owner of Main Beach cafe Local & Co but company records show he sold his shares to Ivana Badalotti, 69, the estranged sister of developer Robert Badalotti.
Andre Lakomy, of Cor Cordis in Sydney, has been appointed administrator of Cicchetti Gold Coast company Square & Co.
The restaurateurs’ previous venture, Cicchetti at Byron Bay, closed before its site was redeveloped to make way for the town’s new Mercato retail centre.
The business, now solely directed and owned by former Cicchetti Gold Coast business partner Donna Hobbs, apparently planned to relaunch as White Wolf Bistro and Bar and advertised for staff last month.
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Cicchetti customers will soon have a replacement venue, with new operators already stocking the bar, moving furniture and moving in when the Bulletin visited yesterday.
A sopkesman for the new operator declined to detail his plans for the restaurant.
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