F
ormanypeoplein
Queensland,theMerlo
namehasbecome
synonymouswithcoffee.
Twenty-eightyearsafter
foundinghisBrisbane-basedcaféandwholesalingbusiness,
DeanMerlo’sMerloCoffeeremainsindependentlyowned,
with 16 storesand 10 torrefazione(roasteries),supplying
morethan 1500 cafésandrestaurantsnationally.
Butthefamily’ssteadilyexpandingcoffeeempireis just
thelatestinstalment.TheMerlofamilylegacystretchesback
tothe1950s,andthearrivalofLuigiMerlofromItaly.It’s
a historyencompassingeverythingfromhand-builtguesthouses
andgroundbreakingespressobars,toa Brisbanefine-diner
whichendedupplayinghosttoeveryone,fromprime
ministerstoPopeJohnPaulII andQueenElizabethII.
LuigiMerlowasoneoftensofthousandsofItalianmigrants
whocametoAustraliainthegrimaftermathofWorldWarII.
In1950,hegambledeverythingtostarta newlifeontheother
sideoftheworld,sayinggoodbyetohiswifeandfamily,and
hissmalltrattoriainTiranoneartheSwiss-Italianborder,
settingoutfora jobcuttingsugarcaneinQueensland.
ThecontrastbetweenMackayandTiranowould
havebeenstark.Yet,bythefollowingyear,LuigiMerlo
wassettledenoughtosendforMariaandtheirsons,
Gino,LucianoandGianLuigi.
A decadelater,LuigiMerlo’seldestson,Gino,
wouldbefrothingcappuccino,presidingover
thebustlingbasementcaféMilanoonBrisbane’s
QueenStreet– a steppingstonetohisownership
ofMilano, oneofthestate’sfirstcontemporary
silver-servicerestaurants.
Thefamily’spushintohospitalitywasa family
affair.Gino’sbrothers,LucianoandGian,were
onthepayrollat botheateries,beforeLuciano
lateropenedhisowninner-citytrattoria,Merlo’s.
LuigiMerlo’sgrandson(andGino’sson),
DeanMerlo,foughthardtoachievehiswins
inthecoffeeworld,butheapplaudshisforebears
astrulyinspirationalgrafters.
“I meta manwholivedoppositetheminMackaywho
couldn’tbelievehowhardmyfamilyworked,”hesays.“Within
a year,they’dbuilta guesthouse.Mygrandfatherwouldget
upat 3amandthey’dstartcuttingat 4.30amor5amandbe
finishedbylunchtime.Then,they’dcomehomeandstart
building.Mygrandmotherwouldmakethebricksinthe
morningandthey’dlaythemintheafternoon.”
Inthecaneoff-season,Ginoworkedat theluxuryHayman
Islandresort, anexperiencethatopenedhiseyestothefiner
sideoffoodandbeverage,sparkinghishospitalityambitions.
By1958,GinohadmarriedandheadedforBrisbane.His
parentssoonfollowed,buyinga boarding house in inner-city
West End. And so the scene was set.Gino’scaféMilanoonBrisbane’s
mainshoppingthoroughfarenotonly
hadnoveltreatslikehandmadegelato
anda Carpigianiice-creammaker,it
housedthestate’sfirstLaSanMarco
espressomachine,introducingmanytocoffee,Italian-style.“We
believeit wasthefirstespressomachineinQueensland,”says
Dean.“Theyhadtoflya technicianupfromSydneytoserviceit.”
Thecafémenuwassimplebuttasty– toastedsandwiches,
soups,scaloppini.A confectioncalled“amozzarella”wasa
bighit.It lookedfamiliarenoughtobesafe,butfeaturedtwo
ingredientsmanyBrisbaniteshadnotyetencountered– rich
Italianragùandmozzarella.
“Itwasa thickpieceofbreadcoveredwithBolognesesauce
anda sliceofmozzarellaoverthetop,heatedinanoven,”says
Dean.“Itwasbloodydelicious.Weneveractuallysaidit was
Bolognese.Peoplewouldjusttasteit andthey’dreallyloveit.”
In1969,thecafé’slandlordstookbackthelease,which
spurredGinotothinkevenbigger.
StylishMilanolaunchedin 1970 onthefirstfloorof 78
QueenStreet.It wasdesignedbyRobinGibson,thecelebrated
BrisbanearchitectbehindprojectssuchastheQueensland
ArtGalleryandQueenslandCulturalCentreat SouthBank.
Witha 37,000-bottlewinecellar,a chefimportedfrom
Germany,andglamoroussilver-service,Milanowasunique,
particularlyforthecalibreofitsfloorstaff.
“Thesewereprofessionals– careerwaiterswhocouldspeak
fivelanguages,carryeightplatesandtripletheir
wageswithtipseveryweek,”saysDean.Thefood
wasrichandEuropean,featuringFrenchand
Italianinfluences.Themenurarelychanged,
offeringlobstermornay,steakaupoivre,tournedos
Rossiniandthelike.Petitsfourscamewitha
cloudofdryice.
Gino’sfriendshipwithwineguruLen
EvansandhismembershipofEvans’legendary
SingleBottleClubmeantMilanobecamea
notablevenueforwineandtastings,another
pointofdifferencefora Queenslandrestaurant.
“Youcouldn’tbelievethewine– at onelunchtheydid
a verticalChâteaud’Yquemtastingacross 12 years,”recalls
Dean,whoworkedthefloorafterschoolandwhilestudying
forhislawdegree.
At50,Ginoretired.It wasexpectedDeanwouldtakeover
Milano,butinsteadtherestaurantwassoldin 1985 andclosed
a fewyearslater.WhenDeanreturnedtoBrisbanein 1992 after
travelsintheUSandEurope,heopenedBarMerloat 344Queen
Street– notfarfromwherehisdadhadfirstopenedcaféMilano.
“Itwasexactlytherightthing,at therighttime,inthe
rightlocation,”saysDean.“Andreally,it’snevertakena
backwardstep.”Youcan’thelpthinkinghisgrandfather
wouldhaveapproved.
Merlo Coffee is sold at multiple locations, merlo.com.au➤Queensland
THE MERLO FAMILY
by Fiona Donnelly
“Imet a manin
Mackaywho
couldn’tbelieve
howhardthey
worked. Withina
yearthey’d built
a guesthouse.”GOURMET TRAVELLER 71