Neil Perry hires designer Collette Dinnigan to make Double Bay restaurant Song Bird sing

Restaurateur Neil Perry has brought in a close friend and well-respected designer to help his Cantonese restaurant Song Bird sing.

After what he describes as an “overwhelming” start, veteran chef Neil Perry has brought in friend and designer Collette Dinnigan to help make his Double Bay restaurant Song Bird really sing.

Perry opened the 240-seat Cantonese restaurant inside his $12m Double Bay hospitality precinct in August 2024. However, unlike his signature restaurant Margaret, which is next door and opened with huge fanfare and momentum, Song Bird’s start was rocky.

Perry said because the cost of the restaurant had blown out, he was forced to open the restaurant too quickly. Meaning staff weren’t trained properly in the restaurant and equipment like the dumbwaiter, which is used to transport food between levels, wasn’t working properly.

“The first three months were the worst of my life … I should have cancelled a months worth of bookings, so we could open properly,” Perry said.

“Even after this many years in business, you can still make monumental mistakes.”

Neil Perry at his Restaurant Song Bird in Double Bay. Picture: Tim Hunter

However, Perry believes with the help of his friend, designer Collette Dinnigan, Song Bird is morphing into a much better restaurant.

The two have known each other for over 30 years, with Perry catering Dinnigan’s fashion shows both in Australian and France.

Dinnigan, who has a farm in the Southern Highlands, supplies eggs for Perry’ Margaret which he uses in the crab omelette.

Fashion designer Collette Dinnigan (left) and chef Neil Perry. Picture: Earl Carter

Now she’s been brought in to help add her artistic touches to the interiors of Song Bird.

Perry explained the venue’s stylish, but hard, surfaces meant the acoustics inside the venue were “pretty horrific”.

Dinnigan helped Perry choose acoustic foam to soften the surfaces, as well as decorate columns and backing boards. Dinnigan has also been decorating the entrance of the restaurant with antique birdcages and is continually looking at art for the restaurant.

Neil Perry’s Song Bird restaurant. Picture: Hugh Stewart

The dumplings at Song Bird. Picture: Yusuke Oba

Song Bird at Double Bay. Picture: Hugh Stewart

To go with Dinnigan’s design changes, Perry has also expanded the menu. Inspired from his days at Wokpool and Spice Temple, Perry has morphed the predominantly Cantonese menu into one that is modern and includes flavours from Japanese, Korean, Thai and Vietnamese cuisines.

“Coming on seven months at Song Bird and it’s a totally different restaurant,” Perry said. “It’s brilliant now.”

Bookings and reviews also seem to suggest that.