Siracusa restaurateur Darrell Dring marks Father’s Day by relaunching popular Helensvale eatery with sons as chefs

Father’s Day is always special for this popular Gold Coast restaurateur, but this year he’s marking it in a remarkable way.

Siracusa owner Darrell Dring at his Helensvale restaurant. Picture: Jerad Williams.

THERE’S one Gold Coast dad who will be prouder than most this Father’s Day.

When Darrell Dring launches his revamped Siracusa restaurant in Helensvale tomorrow, sons Harley and Shannon – both chefs who have honed their craft at iconic Burleigh eatery Rick Shores – will be by his side.

Siracusa reopens tomorrow after a major rebuild. Picture: Jerad Williams.

The two brothers have inherited their father’s long love affair with cooking, which stretches back to his time growing up in Sydney’s Maltese community.

“I learned to cook with the Maltese mammas,” said Darrell.

“My passion grew from there.

“I loved the way on Sunday I used to go over there and the table was as long as our restaurant sometimes.

“The way they would celebrate food, from 12 o’clock until late afternoon ... I was just hooked.”

Darrell Dring says he caught the ‘cooking bug’ growing up in Sydney’s Maltese community. Picture: Jerad Williams.

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It’s that passion for great food that has seen Darrell’s eatery, on a sleepy suburban street, become a Helensvale institution.

Having begun as a small pizza pasta cafe six years ago, Siracusa tomorrow reopens as a fully-fledged licenced restaurant after a major rebuild.

Siracusa use fresh local ingredients in their popular pasta and pizza dishes. Picture: Jerad Williams.

Key, says Darrell, is using fresh local produce.

Siracusa’s prawns, for example, are bought direct from Southport trawlers.

“The boat comes in and they ring me and say they’ve got so many kilos of green and I make sure I go in and grab ’em,” he said.

“You get them caught that night and you pick them up off the boat that day. That’s how we get our prawns so fresh and tasty.”

The new outdoor dining area at Siracusa. Picture: Jerad Williams.

Siracusa has earned rave reviews from locals, earning a near perfect 4.9 out of five on Facebook.

It’s also attracted customers from further afield, keen to sample dishes such as the signature prawn carbonara, the ‘Lachy special’, named in honour of popular local boy Lachlan Wall, who passed away four years ago.

From tomorrow there will be more to try, with extended hours including breakfast and lunch, and an extended menu devised by Harley and Shannon.

“I love cooking,” said proud dad Darrell. “But my two boys are the chefs, they’re the ones coming up with the new, great menu.”

The bar area at the new-look Siracusa restaurant. Picture: Jerad Williams.

While the two brothers serve up great food, a third, Wade, serves his country in the air force – a further source of pride for Darrell this Father’s Day.

“He’s just passed as an officer,” said Darrell. “He never got the cooking bug. He went another way, which is great anyway. I couldn’t imagine all three of them in there!”

Siracusa, 112 Discovery Drive Helensvale, is open 6am-8pm Monday to Thursday, 6am-9pm Friday, 8am-9pm Saturday and 10am-8pm Sunday.