Bar Machiavelli renamed to Bar M due to confusion of restaurant with same name

RUSHCUTTERS Bay’s Bar Machiavelli has had a name change to distance and differentiate itself from CBD venue, Machiavelli. The owners said it was a “rebranding and respoitioning” but there was a lot of confusion.

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RUSHCUTTERS Bay’s Bar Machiavelli has had a name change to distance and differentiate itself from CBD venue, Machiavelli.

“It is the same restaurant, we have rebranded it Bar M because there was a bit of confusion about the Sydney restaurants with the same name,” said owner Paola Toppi, whose family once owned Machiavelli.

“This is a rebranding and repositioning of our family affairs. We also did it because there was lots of confusion. People were coming here expecting something they wouldn’t receive and vice versa.”

Bar M owner Paola Toppi said it’s a rebranding and repositioning of their family affairs. Picture: Tim Hunter

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While Sydney institution Machiavelli is known for luring political bigwigs, Bar M prides itself on attracting the millennial “it” crowd and A-listers including Deborah Symond, Nicky Oatley and Terry Biviano.

“I have a very cool crowd. It is not so much the political scene that the other venue was famous for. The only thing going up on the wall is Instagram posts, not politicians’ heads,” Toppi said.

The new name comes after months of legal woes for the Toppi family and Nicolae Bicher, to whom they sold Machiavelli in 2015.

The rebranding and re-name comes after there was confusion between two venues with the same name. Picture: John Appleyard

Daughter Paola and mother Giovanna took up residence in Rushcutters Bay in 2016 post sale, where they opened the doors to Bar Machiavelli (now Bar M), in which Bicher was listed as a shareholder.

But Bicher’s company later took legal action against Bar Machiavelli Pty Ltd and Paola Toppi, claiming it was owed hundreds of thousands of dollars. It’s understood the legal stoush has been sorted.

Now it’s onwards and upwards for mother-of-two Toppi and her team.

“It is amicable. It has all been fixed up. We have a new 15-year lease here and we are going to power through it. There are no legal troubles,” she said.