Kitchen Confidential: New rooftop bar to be ‘Ivy of Brisbane’

With private cabana-style booths, views to the Story Bridge and a premium drinks list, check out the new Brisbane bar set to rival Sydney’s Ivy.

Tim Gurner from Gurner and James Sinclair from SHG opposite Foresters Restaurant & Bar and Altitude at Foresters at the FV complex in Fortitude Valley. Picture: Attila Csaszar/AAP

“WE WANT it to be the Ivy of Brisbane.”
That’s the plan for new rooftop bar Altitude at Foresters when it opens mid-June in the $600 million FV development in Brisbane’s Fortitude Valley.

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Located on the sixth floor of the third building in the triple tower construction on Brunswick St, it is the work of property developer Tim Gurner and Signature Hospitality Group.

The 250sq m open-air bar is designed as an up-market party destination with views across the Valley to the Story Bridge, private, cabana-style booths that can be booked out with bottle service, and a focus on craft beers, cocktails and creative tapas.

“The whole experience will be a level that Brissie hasn’t seen before,” Gurner says.

The rooftop venue will be joined by stunning gastropub Foresters Restaurant & Bar on the ground floor, which is a nod to the building’s history as community hangout Foresters’ Hall, built in 1889.

Featuring the building’s original facade, pressed metal ceilings and bricks, it will be complemented by a timber-coffered ceiling, oak hardwood floors, exposed beams and modern art deco touches to deliver a “cozy, intimate, luxe feel”, without being “intimidating”, Gurner says.

The 300-seat Foresters will be split into a bar and restaurant with the bar focused on classic cocktails with a spin, quality wines and craft beer; while the restaurant will be fronted by chef Peter Popow (ex-X Cargo, Fortitude Valley) who promises classic Australian favourites with a contemporary twist.

Think damper and local ale pull-apart loaf with crispy chicken skin and sage butter, calamari with lemon myrtle and finger lime, and a share-style 1kg Yardstick T-bone cooked on one of four American grills served with mountain pepperberry salted chips and a Vegemite and black garlic butter.

A gas-fired stone oven will also turn out traditional Italian-style pizzas, with the restaurant open daily for breakfast, lunch, dinner and room service for the adjoining FV by Peppers hotel.

“The residents here are crying out for more (food and beverage) and for a nicer offering too, so I think we’ve got quite a captive market down this end of the Valley,” says Signature Hospitality Group’s James Sinclair.

Tim Gurner from Gurner and James Sinclair from SHG show off the view from their new rooftop bar Altitude at Foresters in Fortitude Valley. Picture: Attila Csaszar/AAP

A BLESS CHU

Brisbane’s Bowen Hills is getting an exciting new pan-Asian eatery and bar with Chu Bistro taking over the former Loco’s site on the corner of Mayne Rd and Campbell St.

The 70-75-seater is from Joe Zhu, the restaurateur behind Camp Hill’s popular Picnic Cafe and will serve up a tapas-style contemporary menu heavily influenced by Indonesia and Thailand with nods to Malaysia and China.

Picnic head chef Andre Chandra is designing the offering and wants to put a unique spin on dishes.

“I might do something like soy and Vegemite fried chicken – a bit of a twist,” he says.

You could also expect the likes of grilled eggplant with Balinese sambal, crispy tofu with Thai-style seasoning or, perhaps, crispy spatchcock chicken with turmeric and galangal.

More traditional lunch specials will also be in play, such as nasi goreng, green curry and beef rendang.

Belinda Zivkovic (ex-Bosc, West End) is curating the drinks list and says there’ll be a clipped, food-focused wine offering, but the stars will be cocktails and beer, with eight taps pouring craft beer from Queensland, NSW and Tasmania. Four of those taps will rotate to showcase different brews to match the seasons.

On the cocktail front, the alcoholic blends will be classics with an Asian twist such as an Amaretto sour with ginger and a sake-based drink.

DCQ Constructions (behind the Ze Pickle burger outlets) is handling the fit-out, which will feature walnut-hued leather banquettes, grey patterned walls, a concrete bar and zinc-topped tables.

Chu Bistro is set to open mid-to-late June once the liquor licence comes through.

THE SWEET LIFE

Fancy a maple bacon doughnut? How about a lemon meringue pie version or a white chocolate latte incarnation?

Adam Sharvell and Dennis Chen are looking to revolutionise Queensland’s dessert scene with their New York-inspired twist on the humble sweet treat.

Brooklyn Donut & Coffee Co will open mid-June at Westfield Chermside and will star NY-style doughnuts made fresh daily using real ingredients and fillings made from scratch in their offsite kitchen.

“The product we’re offering is all authentically made. It’s not got any commercial fillers or jams,” Sharvell says.

“We’re bringing back that rustic, old feel of the New York doughnut and the experience that goes with it.”

Unlike many current doughnuts on the market, Sharvell says his won’t be super sweet or excessive, they’ll be light and fresh using only the best quality ingredients, including premium Belgian chocolate in their signature classic milk chocolate glaze.

They’ll also use Belgian chocolate for their mochas and hot chocolate, and a specialty gluten-free brownie, while an open sandwich-style breakfast doughnut topped with egg and bacon is set to become a hit on Instagram.

The fit-out will be bright orange and black and include a handwashing station and fun graffiti.

The Chermside venture is tipped to be the first Brooklyn Donut & Coffee Co for the men, with the plan to open multiple venues across Queensland.