Any history of dining on the Mornington Peninsula would have to devote a chapter to the de Santis Family. These days, Robert de Santis continues the tradition started by the family at ‘Rugantinos’ in Frankston during the 1970s.

His much admired mother, Mirella, operated Mornington’s dining landmark, ‘Julius Caesar’, for 22 years, until it closed in 2003.

‘Villa D-este’ was another of the family’s restaurants which injected some European zest into a then fairly bland local dining scene.

After gaining a degree in hotel management, and learning the ropes at two of Melbourne’s leading hotels, Robert and wife Lisa opened Frankston’s much acclaimed restaurant,’Via Mare’ in 1994.

They won the contract from a wide field of tenderers to operate a restaurant at one of the Peninsula’s dress circle locations, the Mornington Yacht Club. ‘The Rocks’ opened in 2002.

I guess you had no choice but to go into the restaurant business?

I was brought up sleeping under backroom tables at Julius Caesar, with waitresses as babysitters. I practised tennis and footy in the car park. That’s just the way it was in this business and I suppose it’s now in my blood to work the odd hours that we have to do.

Even my mother, Mirella, is still involved for a couple of days a week. You can’t step out of a 7 day a week restaurant business that you’ve run for 22 years and completely retire.

She makes gnocchi, agnalotti, soup of the day and some speciality dishes. She’s got a great sense for food and does things very traditionally.

Sometimes the new generation of chefs tend to forget the traditional ways of doing things, often just simple things like how to treat spaghetti after boiling it in a restaurant scenario.

Via Mare was a ground breaker in Peninsula dining – was it a risky venture?

A lot of people told me that I was stupid. We put everything we had into it – didn’t have a dollar to my name after starting it – even had to stock the refrigerator using my credit card. We lived above the restaurant until we could get on our feet.

The region took to it immediately and it’s had a very solid following since then. There were a few established restaurants there at the time, like Tamari, Ling Wah and Siddharta. The Boat House opened a few years back, but there’s still a need for more quality restaurants in Frankston. There’s a big population to draw upon between Mt Eliza, Cranbourne and Chelsea. Most people want to eat in their community, rather than having to drive back from the city.

How does The Rocks stand out from the competition?

We have prime position as far as waterfront dining goes, so the views are probably what attracts first time diners.

Via Mare is traditional Italian, so we decided to give Peninsula diners something quite different at The Rocks, using the flavours of the Middle East and Mediterranean. We’re predominantly seafood, but infused with the flavours of that region.

We also wanted to incorporate a casual eatery, not only to remove the ‘fear factor’ about trying us for more formal dining, but also to provide a comfortable, relaxed eating environment during the day for families to enjoy. They can come in and have a coffee, cake or frittata. They can then read the evening menu and realise that just because we have carpet on the floor doesn’t mean we’re expensive.

How important is tourism to the business, or does local trade keep things afloat?

Via Mare relies almost entirely on business trade and a very loyal group of local people, but at The Rocks on a weekend tourism is huge. Mornington now offers as much, and probably more, than Sorrento does - and without the crowds: markets, street shopping, cafes, great ice cream, boats, walks and views.

Frankston doesn’t have quite the same ‘stroll down the street’ atmosphere. The foreshore redevelopment will help, but on the weekend you like to take a walk, your wife likes to look at boutiques, have a cake and coffee, get the kids an ice cream.

Hopefully Frankston will have it too one day, if it can avoid the suburban shopping mall syndrome.

Is it important to have a happy kitchen?

Very. If you haven’t got a happy environment then you can forget about it. It has to be a team environment with close-knit people, and you need to listen to them.

I’ve had the same chef, Des, at Via Mare for

10 years and some of the waiters, Jean-Pierre, Barry and Juliano have been there 6 to 8 years.

They’re the face of my business and many customers become quite attached to certain staff.

That’s something you don’t get in a lot of restaurants.

What’s been the biggest change on the Peninsula during your family’s time here?

Probably the influx of Melbourne people. I see them every day at The Rocks and they tell me they have just moved down from Balwyn or Armadale. For $600-$700,000 down here you’re buying an acre block, with pool and tennis court, while back in Armadale you’re lucky to get a single fronted terrace home.

Many young families also realise the lifestyle we have and the value for money the area offers.

Mornington’s gone through a big subdivision boom. Places like Mt Eliza are still great value, with its village atmosphere, no through traffic, great schools and big blocks that are protected.

Which of the local wines get your nose and tastebuds excited?

I tend to lean towards the ones that do a good Pinot Grigio, like Ermes Estate, Barrymore and T’Gallant. Stumpy Gully does a great Sauvignon Blanc.

Stonier has always been up there with the best and we’ve always had a strong relationship with Garry Crittenden because of his excellent variety of wine. We source from many of the local wineries and you’d love to have them all on your list, but you need to chop and change to provide variety.

The local Pinot Noir tends to go well with our style of food, and being a mainly seafood restaurant, we suggest customers try some different style white wines, like Arneis and Verdelho.

What’s your idea of a day off?

With the two businesses, you tend to only get half days off, so I’ll take a walk on the beach with the dog, then head out with Lisa for lunch & slip in a bit of shopping.

What are your favourite locations on the Peninsula?

If we’ve got friends down we often take a drive through Red Hill, go to the Strawberry Farm to pick some fruit, then down to Cape Schanck for a walk. Maybe a bit of horse riding at Ace-Hi. I love the beauty and atmosphere of Flinders, with its bay and ocean beach, the pier and that drive through the golf course.

We tend to eat casually, so we often head to La Baracca at T’Gallant Winery - have a pizza on the wine barrels there and let the kids run around.