Good times for moteliers in their own "Sassi's"

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 300, 18 August 1989, Page 11

Good times for moteliers in their own "Sassi's"

Memories of good times with ftiends at "\ a Melbourne restaurant led Larry and Cheryl Julius and Greg Quick to name their bistro "Sassi's"

They chose the name from "about 150" possibles purely because it was the name of their favourite Melbourne eatery. Ohakune's newest restaurant is run bistro style with lots of hard work, in the trio's Alpine Motel building in Miro Street, just along from the council offices.

Larry is a Kiwi who met his wife Cheryl and mate Greg in Melbourne, where the two men worked for a brewery. They decided to make the move the opposite way to lots of Kiwis to find an alternative lifestyle. They've been here about a year now, running the motel and,

since the restaurant was Ibuilt, hosting diners as well. Greg says they expected regular meals like steak to be the most popular but that they've found dishes like deep fried burguignon cheese, satays and pork scallopine are more regularly ordered. Their dishes also use fresh pasta and fresh fish, vegetables and meats. One speciality

they offer which is definitely not fresh, but beautifully aged, is their cheese board. It includes French style cheeses made under licence in Eltham, Taranaki by

Ferndale Dairies. The most interesting is the Bleu de Bresse which is a soft, rinded, blue veined cheese with a Camembert texture. A regular real treat on

the blackboard menu is Sassi's chocolate orange with Grand Marnier. Sassi's is licensed and they offer a special "wine of the week". Recently they offered