Cucina is an Oamaru restaurant built around seasonal food, beer and wine, aiming to create a consistently comfortable and enjoyable environment for guests to share Oamaru's finest fare with friends and family. The restaurant supports local business and incorporates fresh produce into its cooking, with the team focused on maintaining a high standard of integrity alongside good food and enjoyable times.
Cucina is owned by Yanina and Pablo Tacchini, whose connection to Oamaru began with a holiday in 2008, building on Yanina's earlier year as an A.F.S. student in the town in 2001. Pablo's skills as a chef led to a job offer that brought the couple to settle in Oamaru, and as their family grew, they turned their shared love of food into their own restaurant, blending Yanina and Pablo's South American heritage with their Italian and Spanish ancestry.
After more than six years of running Cucina restaurant alongside their Tees St Cafe, the couple went on to open Del Mar, a waterfront eatery in Oamaru offering stone-based pizzas, homemade gelatos, burgers and seafood. Cucina occasionally hosts special events, including an Asado planned for October 2026, and gift cards are available for purchase.
Cucina sits on Tees Street in Oamaru, built on a simple idea: create a comfortable, enjoyable place where people can share great food, beer and wine with friends and family. The restaurant leans on fresh, seasonal produce and supporting local business, with a stated focus on maintaining a high standard of integrity alongside good times.
Cucina's story belongs to owners Yanina and Pablo Tacchini. Yanina's connection to Oamaru goes back to 2001, when she spent a year in the town as an A.F.S. student. Years later, in 2008, what began as a holiday for the couple turned into an enduring connection with the town. When Pablo, a chef, was offered a job in Oamaru, the couple decided to make it home, taking on the challenges of both work and parenthood as they settled in.
As the Tacchinis' family grew to include two more children, their love of food evolved into something bigger: the idea for their own restaurant. Cucina reflects the blend of cultures that defines the family — South American heritage combined with Italian and Spanish ancestry — resulting in a fusion of flavours designed to bring people together over a meal.
Cucina has now been running for more than six years, alongside the couple's Tees St Cafe. Their culinary story continues to grow: more recently, Yanina and Pablo opened Del Mar, a waterfront eatery in Oamaru built as a haven for families, offering stone-based pizzas, homemade gelatos, burgers and a range of seafood. Together, the three venues reflect the same underlying philosophy — food made with care, rooted in the family's heritage and their adopted hometown.
Cucina occasionally hosts special events beyond its regular dinner service, including an Asado planned for October 2026 — a nod to the South American tradition of open-fire barbecue that fits naturally with the owners' heritage. For anyone wanting to share the Cucina experience, gift cards are also available to purchase.
Cucina is located at 1 Tees Street, Oamaru, and is open Tuesday to Saturday from 5pm until late. Reservations can be made online through the restaurant's booking system, and the team can be reached by phone or email for enquiries. Guests can also find Cucina's sister venues, Tees St Cafe and Del Mar, for a different side of the same family's cooking.