La Trattoria

Rustic southern Italian cooking inspired by la cucina povera of Puglia.

Raised in the hustle and bustle of her parent’s Italian restaurant, Dara Klein, the chef behind Tiella trattoria & bar, has been helping to build lasagne and stealing spoonfuls of tiramisu since early childhood. After her two-year stint as resident chef at London’s famous Compton Arms pub, Dara returned to her home kitchen ready to distil a life of culinary experience into unfussy, honest recipes like Sugo di pomodoro (slow cooked tomatoes), Braised Ox Cheek and the perfect seasonal side salad. A natural teacher, Dara presents her kitchen know-how in the same way she trained her team of chefs to really interrogate how to build flavour into your cooking. You’ll enjoy the process and learn how to cook instinctively, just like an Italian mamma.

Featuring insights into life behind the scenes at London’s buzziest eateries and the tips and tricks you can use to get exceptional quality food at home, La Trattoria is an indispensable guide to Italian cookery and an ode to family restaurants around the world.

About the Author

Dara Klein is a London-based chef specialising in rustic Italian cuisine. Half Pugliese and half American, her family moved to New Zealand when Dara was six. She was raised in her parent's trattoria, Maria Pia's in Wellington, and has been in hospitality for most of her life. After training in some of the UK’s hottest restaurants including Rovi, Rubedo, Brawn, Trullo and Sager & Wilde, Dara opened Tiella at the Compton Arms.

This residency received rave reviews in The Independent and Evening Standard and cemented Dara’s status as a chef to watch in the London food scene.