King of winners
After recently taking out the 2022 Hospitality Awards Supreme award, King of Snake’s David Warring took a quick five to chat with Avenues editor Joshua about their new Terrace location, the team behind the win, and the summer ahead for the restaurant.
Firstly, congratulations on your wins! Tell us all about it! We were thrilled with the result and so humbled. Winning Restaurant Of The Year and the Supreme Award was outstanding and a massive achievement for all of the individuals that contributed to that result. I am really proud of the entire team. They’ve worked hard in very difficult circumstances and under immense pressure, and still, they’ve delivered. I think it speaks to the culture we’ve created. We have a shared ideal, and we work toward it by expecting and encouraging the best in each other.
Speaking of the team, tell us about your talented crew. We are very fortunate to have some very loyal and passionate leaders. Ole, our head chef and Dang, her husband, are completely committed, and it shows in the quality and consistency of our food. They’ve worked extremely hard and deserve the accolades. Lewis, Monte, and Sammy have done an outstanding job as a senior management team. There are too many names to mention, but it’s not possible without all of them, and I am very mindful of that and so grateful.
You’ve now settled into your new location on The Terrace. How is that going? It’s fundamentally an entirely different restaurant. My wife, Jennifer (Warring – of Studio Collective), and I worked together for a year on this project. It’s always an unknown as to whether the market will love the elements you put together as much as you do, so it was hugely rewarding to win the outstanding design and ambience award as well. Both Jen and I fell in love with the openness of the space and knew that whatever we did, we needed to make the best use of its unique aspect. I also believed that the market had outgrown the traditional theme approach to the interior. We took a calculated risk by showing some discipline and restraint in the design. Because of the scale of the space, I knew we had a unique opportunity to create a sense of arrival and movement through the space that would provide a feeling of luxury and generosity and a sense of personal ownership. Jennifer was able to interpret that resort-like experience I was aiming for. She made some really good decisions about details as simple as floor levels that capitalised on the opportunity. We were able to source some stunning materials across the globe, and our relationships with some of the trades enabled us to pull off some stunning features, like our bespoke marble floors and restored antique joinery. There were some very nervous moments about the decisions we’d made, but when it came together, we knew we had created something special. We’re thrilled at the feedback we’ve had from our customers, and the support has been really encouraging.
Anything you’d like to leave with Avenues readers? Just a huge thank you to all of you who have supported us over the years. Without your support, this wouldn’t have been possible. It’s deeply appreciated.