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The North Sydney dining scene is heating up with the arrival of Poetica, a 120-seat wood-fired restaurant and bar set to open Friday.

The latest venue by Etymon Projects, the hospitality group behind hatted restaurants The Charles Grand Brasserie and Loulou Bistro, adds to a growing number of after-work options in the office-laden suburb, ahead of the Victoria Cross metro station opening next year.

Those seeking a casual drink can gather in the 60-seat bar and outdoor terrace, where Kieran Lee (formerly of Sydney cocktail bar The Barber Shop) has curated a series of signature cocktails inspired by Australian poets and native ingredients.

There’s the Dawn, a riff on a Bloody Mary using bush tomatoes and native pickle brine; the Plum Clarity, a margarita with a rim of Davidson plum salt; and the Poetica martini, using saltbush and a few drops of charcoal dill oil taken from the hearth.

They join a 450-strong wine list, with options starting at $60 a bottle, and a snacking menu of cheesy, wood-fired toasties and freshly baked, stuffed focaccia.

A custom wood-burning hearth will form the foundation of the 15-metre open kitchen, where head chef Connor Hartley-Simpson (former head chef at two-Michelin-starred Swedish restaurant Gastrologik) will create everything from smoke trap eel with braised leeks and nori to Sydney rock oysters torched with a flambadou (a cone-shaped grill tool), and flavoured with 𝄒nduja and guindilla pepper.

The menu, which is divided by methods of preparation and cooking (“charcoal”, “wood” and “dry-aged”), will also feature a selection of premium steaks dry-aged on site, including whole sirloins, T-bones and tomahawks.

“In the kitchen we’re focusing on using incredible local produce,” says Hartley-Simpson, “cooking with either charcoal or fire where it works, pickling and fermenting to play around with flavours, and really letting the produce be the hero.”

Culinary director Sebastien Lutaud says the team initially passed on the site during a COVID-era inspection, but their interest was piqued when return-to-office mandates saw the streets fill with corporate workers.

“I think with the metro line opening next year, it will change how North Sydney is seen,” Lutaud says.

“We’re excited for Poetica to join North Sydney’s growing dining scene.”

The metro station below Miller Street, due to be completed next year, is predicted to transform North Sydney by facilitating the travel of thousands of commuters every hour via driverless trains.

A 42-storey office tower is being built above the station, while North Sydney Council approved a 51-storey office tower on nearby Walker Street earlier this year. The latter is expected to open with a providore, bakery, LA-inspired all-day diner and Japanese eatery in 2025.

Poetica was created with the expanding corporate sector in mind, Lutaud says.

“The concept for Poetica was to create a bar and grill that reflects the refined and relaxed style of contemporary Sydney dining,” he says.

“[It will have] a welcoming vibe that works as well for entertaining clients over lunch as a dinner with friends or a drink after work.”

The restaurant features a 700-bottle wine wall, floor-to-ceiling glass windows and four outdoor dining terraces. The wine list runs to about 450 entries, including hard-to-find back vintages from the likes of Moss Wood and Craggy Range, some dating back to 1987.

Reservations are now open.

The restaurant will open Tue-Sat noon-3pm, 5pm-late; bar open Tue-Sat noon-late from September 1.

Mezzanine level, 1 Denison Street, North Sydney, poetica.sydney