The food service industry in general is always a challenging environment, but fi ne dining restaurants – with their higher standards and costs – have a particularly diffi cult time of it. Add a few more trials into the mix (inadequate parking, high levels of taxation, small population base and diffi cult-to-source products/ supplies), and you’d think it was a recipe for disaster. But not for Andrew and Tanya King. The husband/wife team (he’s the executive chef and she’s the manager) have been the proud proprietors of DaMaurizio’s in Halifax since 2007.

Asked to share their secret recipe, they noted the importance of catering to local clientele. “Tourists are important, of course, but they only fi ll in the gaps for a restaurant like ours.”

How have they built local respect and repeat business? They say it is because they ensure food is consistently delicious, that the reception is warm and inviting, that the dining room is both cozy and intimate, and that service is attentive and professional. In other words, they pay attention to detail. A lot of attention.

Executive chef Andrew King describes it as a magical combination of food and people. “We love to serve our clients, we love to work together, we love the food and drinks we serve, and it shows.”

The formula has worked. So much so, in fact, that DaMaurizio’s has expanded signifi cantly under the Kings’ leadership. When, after working at the restaurant for seven years, they purchased it from another Halifax power couple (Stephanie and Maurizio Bertossi), DaMaurizio’s was already a successful enterprise with 20 people on staff and seating for 90. Today, there are 30 people on staff and the dining capacity has expanded to 150. That doesn’t include the outdoor terrace which is used during the summer season.

They’ve also grown outside the restaurant, instituting a hot lunch program for a number of Halifax schools. The idea came from their daughter: when she started grade school in 2011, the Kings identifi ed a need for healthier, higher quality food in schools. Now, a number of Halifax families can place online orders for hot nutritious lunches that their children can enjoy in school.