Scalini's Restaurant

Our Story
Scalinis means small steps in Italian.

Over the years, we have taken small steps in our business to get to where we are today. Scalinis began in St Heliers, Auckland, New Zealand back in 1999, our plan was always to move home to Samoa – Joe was born in Samoa, & Amanda is a kiwi girl from the Manawatu (just north of Wellington, NZ). That plan came to fruition in 2009, and we have never looked back.

Joe has been a qualified chef for over 20 years. This experience, along with his fluency in the Samoan language and understanding of fa’asamoa (the Samoan way), has enabled us to train local staff to a high standard.

We have just begun phase two of our adventure in Samoa, which will see us move towards a farm to plate approach. Our very own family farm, producing local produce, with our menu incorporating local flavours with our Scalinis twist. We are already composting our restaurant food waste, and are researching ways to recycle waste that is currently not recyclable.

In Sept 2017, the opportunity arose for us to occupy the whole building where Scalinis is situated. We have renovated and built a brand new (larger) kitchen, & in June 2018 we opened our deli “The Pickled Lam” which is right next door to Scalinis, sharing the kitchen & staff. See our “Deli & Pizza” page for more info.

As well as our business interests in Samoa, we are also involved in our local community:

In 2015, the Samoa Culinary Association was established, with Joe nominated as the founding President. The SCA is a not-for-profit organization with a key focus on promoting culinary skills through training in Samoa and generating pathways to careers. Find out more on the SCA Facebook page.