To dive into the story behind Maiorano’s big-hearted approach to entertaining, we teamed up with the summer hosting legends at Sandhurst to talk Italian hospitality, Aussie produce and celebrating the good life through food.
Ready to host the Italian way this summer? Pick up some Sandhurst goodies for all your Euro-inspired treats, charcuterie snacks, pickles, preserves and picky bits.
This article is sponsored by Sandhurst and proudly endorsed by The Urban List. To find out more about who we work with and why read our editorial policy here.
You’ve likely come across Daniela Maiorano’s recipes on your daily scroll—vibrant clips of old-school Italian flavours, brought to life with her infectious energy and local Aussie ingredients. Or, you've sampled the goods yourself at one of her roaming pop-ups—communal affairs where hearty plates of handmade pasta are passed around. Wherever your paths have crossed, the same message rings true: Maiorano’s food is deeply connected to her Italian roots. Rich in stories, made for community and crafted with love.
Life's complicated, relationships are complicated, everything is hard, so why would we want to make food hard? And if you’re using very good ingredients, why would you want to hide their flavour?"
Editor’s note: This article is sponsored by a2 Milk™ by Anchor™ and proudly endorsed by The Urban List. To find out more about who we work with and why read our editorial policy here.
To join Wright in recreating nostalgic noms and finding connection through food, pick up a fresh bottle of a2 Milk™ by Anchor™ and some of your favourite Kiwi pantry staples and hit the family kitchen.
By Coby Renkin
How Daniela Maiorano Blends Her Abruzzo Roots With Byron Bay Values For Simple, Flavourful Hosting
20 December 2025
FEATURE
A social media star, renowned chef and even international tour operator, Maiorano wasn't the first in her family to find purpose in food. She grew up in Abruzzo, Italy, surrounded by chefs—with a childhood spent in and out of the kitchen of her grandparents’ restaurant—igniting her love of not just Italian cuisine, but the joy of communal dining. A move to Rome at 18 further immersed her in the hospitality world and sharpened a skillset that would take her to London, Berlin and eventually Byron Bay, where she now calls home.
“I had never even thought about going to Australia,” she says of her move across the world, sparked by a casual invitation from her brother. "This trip changed my life”. Maiorano fell fast for the Aussie way of life, the region’s hospitality, and the incredible local produce, always so readily available.
Sourcing seasonal and quality ingredients is key in Maiorano’s approach to cooking.
“I’m eating good things, good products—it’s my obsession,” she says. For her, they play a central role in the connection and community born from sharing a meal. “If you try a carrot from the local farm and it still has the green on top, you can feel that there is something behind it,” she explains. “I’m trying to create a connection between local farmers and the people that actually eat their products.”
While Maiorano’s larger-than-life approach to hospitality may stem from her Italian roots, she’s found ways to merge these values with those she’s found in Byron Bay. “I really love these two worlds almost the same,” she says. “Both places give me something different.”
It's the awareness around what people are eating—a focus on local ingredients, native plants and sustainable practices—that's helped shape Maiorano's devotion to Byron. “The farmers' markets are incredible, you can find the best products," she says.
“I like to respect the place where I live and use the things that I have there,” Maiorano says. For six years she worked in every restaurant in Byron, connecting with locals and learning about the community and the area.
In many ways, the laid-back attitude found in Byron Bay aligns perfectly with Maiorano’s Italian heritage. A focus on the good things in life, kept simple and done well. She’s found a way to honour both parts where they can shine individually, while shaping the way she works as a chef.
Maiorano’s approach offers a reminder we’re especially grateful for as we head into hosting season: sometimes simple is best—good ingredients and good company are what make an event memorable.
And if you ask us, a couple of jars of our Sandhurst faves never go astray. From pickled goodies on antipasti platters to the juicy olives in an ice cold dirty martini on a summer’s night, we’ll always save a place at the table for fine foods. Bellisimo.
In Maiorano’s world, food is the universal language. “When we're sitting at the table, we’re all the same people,” she says.
For Maiorano, it's also the unwavering tool we have for connection. “I use this tool a lot,” she says. “It’s my way to bring people together, to show the love that I have for them.” A lesson learned in the family restaurant back in Abruzzo, and one she practices on the daily.
Reminiscing on her grandparents’ restaurant, Maiorano spent her days eating with familiar faces. “When we finished school, we went to the restaurant every day because my parents were working, so we had lunch every day. There was always this communal table—very long—where all of these people would come and we’d eat together,” she explains. Most of the time, her nonna wouldn’t even charge them—it wasn’t about business, it was about community. Many of their diners were elderly, lonely or missing loved ones.
“There was a professor, there was a teacher, and there was another woman, she was a partisan who helped hide soldiers during the Second World War—all of these people with incredible stories, and they were eating there because they knew that our restaurant had this feeling of family,” she says.
It’s an approach to hosting Maiorano credits as the Italian way. “Our people are very good hosts,” she says. For her, it's about keeping things simple, focusing on what’s important and letting go of pressure and perfectionism—all of which play into how she hosts now, decades later and halfway across the world.
When you put people together, they don’t know each other and they’re sitting at the table, everything disappears. We’re all the same. There’s no age, there’s no race, there’s nothing.”
When it comes to Maiorano’s ideal menu for summer hosting, veggies are king. “So many vegetables cooked in different ways. Little things: olives, fermented and pickled vegetables,” she says.
Think olive all'ascolana (crumbed olives stuffed with meat filling), beautifully plated burrata and simple salads. And her advice for hosting? Whatever you cook, do it with intention. Make it easy for yourself with no time limit, no alarms, no phone—take your time and do everything with purpose.
Outside of the menu, music sets the tone of any event (Italian disco is her go-to), but above all, make space for real connection. “It’s still very simple,” she says, “It’s all about connection and storytelling, that’s what makes it special.”
