From Newtown to the Hunter Valley: A complete list of new venues opening this winter
Winter is usually a time when restaurants batten down the hatches, and hope for the upturn of spring. And that is without a cost of living crisis. However rather than wait for better times, these operators are trying to create them.
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The winter frost is starting to thaw on Sydney’s hospitality scene with an unseasonable amount of venues opening.
Winter is usually a time when restaurants batten down the hatches, and hope for the upturn of spring. And that is without a cost of living crisis.
However rather than wait for better times, these operators are trying to create them.
In North Sydney, Etymon Group this week are opening four new venues on Walker Street.
They range from a providore Una, to bread and wine bar Sol, to restaurant Soluna and Japanese restaurant Genzo. They are all being led by ex-Sepia chef, Chef Rhys Connell, while the group have reached into their diverse portfolio of staff and using rising pastry star Rhiann Mead to help bring the precinct to life.
“I think the diversity of what’s available here and how each venue complements each other nicely. Across the four venues there’s a bakery, gourmet grocery, breakfast and takeaway coffees through to all-day dining, wines, snacks and then elegant and edgy Japanese dining. It’s a real culinary neighbourhood,” said Mead.
“Ultimately, it shows that North Sydney is a hospitality destination to take note of and that it’s not all doom and gloom in the industry”.
The Applejack Hospitality Group have announced the opening date of their new restaurant Rafi at UrbnSurf in Homebush.
Set to open on Thursday July 25, the restaurant is a sister to their North Sydney venue and promises to bring elevated dining to the west.
Hospitality Group Housemade Hospitality has announced it’s precinct, within the Sofitel Sydney Wentworth, will open in Spring after undergoing a $65m renovation.
When it opens, they will have luxe 110-seater Tilda on the Group Floor on Phillip Street, which is led by Head Chef Nathanael Merchant (ex-Bentley, The Ledbury London). The menu will centre on Australian seafood roasted in a charcoal oven. Adjacent to that will be Bar Tilda, where signature cocktails will evoke the glamour and
nostalgia of the 1960s – the era the hotel was launched.
On Level 5 there is Delta Rue,, a lavish and bustling restaurant with Vietnamese-French influences with a champagne bar at the entrance.
Then there is also Wentworth Bar on Level 5, which is set to become an al fresco drinking destinations.
But it’s not just the big hospitality groups that are throwing caution to the winter wind.
It’s smaller, independent operators too.
In Newtown, Mexican chef Alejandro Huerta has teamed up with Kieran Took to open a modern Mexican restaurant, Comedor.
Huerta has incredible pedigree, working at arguably the best restaurant in the world Noma in Copenhagen, as well as Pujol in Mexican City. He recently worked at El Primo Sanchez before deciding to start his own venue. He’s been able to step into the space, a 100-year old warehouse on Australia street, because the owner Walter Shellshear wanted to open it up to hospitality verses bulldoze it for apartments.
Shellshear told The Daily Telegraph, locals have responded to the fact he didn’t set up two semi’s on the site.
“I definitely did consider looking at small boutique apartment but this just seemed more fun. Everyone does warehouse apartments in Newtown, so I rolled the dice and then when I met the two guys it was a perfect fit,” Shellshear said.
Huerta saying despite the tough economic times he’s excited about the change to step out on his own.
“ I think at a certain point the problem with hospitality, because it’s tough, that groups are doing safe bets and as a chef you can play it safe,” he said.
“But when you’re passionate about what you do and you showcase that passion, usually, hopefully the end result is good.
“I don’t want to be in comfort zone anymore, I want a challenge and see if I can make it.”
Huerta wanted to create a space that was inspired by moments around his family’s dining table (hence the name Comedor which is Spanish for dining room) and inspired by the dishes his mother cooked. But that doesn’t mean they come expensive. With lunch a big push the venue, he’s created a Comida Corrida menu, which is a $35 three-course chef menu that will change weekly and inspired by lunch options in Mexico City.
The trend continues outside Sydney too, with The Daily Telegraph revealing that family-run Hunter Valley winery Harkham is opening a restaurant on their sit on July 18.
The winery is owned by winemaker Richie Harkham, who focuses on small batch varietal wines with minimal intervention.
Harkham, who has been dreaming of opening up an Italian restaurant for the past 8 years, has brought on ex-Cutler and Co chef Shaun Nash to head up the restaurant.
“In the Hunter Valley it’s all fine dining and is missing a place that is a good, fun vibe,” he said.
“It is a scary time. But we were the first to do preservative free and natural wines in 2008 and it was bloody scary and people say not going to work and be a disaster and it took of. There is never a perfect time. The last four years have been super tough for the region with bushfires, covid, the cost of living, so when is being a good time? You shouldn’t hold back your dreams.”
Manu Feildel’s Bistro by Manu at Rozelle’s Red Lion also opens this week.
DEAL OF THE WEEK
Crown Sydney is already home to the cities biggest culinary names like Alessandro Pavoni at a’Mare, Ross Lusted at Woodcut and Guillaume Brahimi at TWR. But now it might be home to one of Sydney’s best – yet glam – happy hours.
It’s something the hotel has never done before, but across weeknights from 4pm to 7pm they have happy hour specials at five of their different venues. Meaning a frizzanti at a’Mare cost $10, a beer at Cirq (with views of the harbour) cost $7 and a wine at the award-winning Woodcut costs $10.
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