7 – How did the Marble Dessert Bar name come about, and why did you choose the West Village to open your restaurant?
Maya: This exact location is where we first met each other! I was in charge of ChikaLicious’s first US expansion at this particular location. A few months later, Mauro was asked to take on the project for China’s expansion. One Saturday, my sous chef called out, and Mauro was requested to join me to see the open kitchen operation. Right away, it was as if we had worked together before. We barely talked, but we knew how to move through the kitchen together seamlessly. Something essential in every kitchen and rare to find without a long time spent together.
Both of us love to travel and love nature. It inspires us. We chose Marble for the name as marble is a natural stone that has a parallel comparison to how we view dessert. Marble is often regarded as elegant and beautiful. But if you look closer, marble has so many more characteristics, such as texture, color, temperature, time, and more, that create this unique stone. For us, dessert is the same. Most people think of dessert as something sweet and pretty or just something to end their meal with. But to us, in order to create a good dessert, every detail matters, and it has to come together in a perfect way. That’s why we focus on choosing the best seasonal ingredients, showcasing what nature has to offer at its best without trying to alter natural flavors.