Harbourside venue which has hosted Kylie Minogue and Justin Bieber gets luxe makeover

After a four-month intense renovation, iconic harbourside venue Cruise Bar and Restaurant, which has hosted the likes of celebrities like Kylie Minogue and Justin Bieber, will reopen in May.

After a four-month intense renovation, iconic harbourside venue Cruise Bar and Restaurant, which has hosted the likes of celebrities like Kylie Minogue and Justin Bieber, will reopen in May.

The venue inside the Overseas Passenger Terminal in Circular Quay has undergone a luxe makeover, with the aim to elevate the offering for guests. They are also opening up a separate rooftop area, Melba’s, named after Dame Nellie Melba.

Cruise Bar is operated by hospitality group C! NC, which is run by Christopher Cheung and also has Coogee Bay Hotel in its stable. Speaking to Kitchen Confidential, the venue’s General Manager John Harvey said despite Cruise Bar’s popularity, it needed a “fresh identity.”

Then: Cruise Bar at the Overseas Passenger Terminal. Picture: Richard Dobson

Now. The new look of Cruise Bar & Restaurant. Pic Supplied.

“Sydney has changed a lot in the past decade, but there’s always been a place for a venue like Cruise,” says General Manager John Harvey. “It’s got history, it’s got views that stop you in your tracks, and now it’s got an elevated experience to match.

The kitchen will be lead by Head Chef Han Chen, of A’mare at Barangaroo and Felix. Chen has developed a menu that focuses on Australian produce and obviously involves seafood.

The bar, which has hosted the likes of Kylie Minogue and Justin Bieber, will open in May. Pic Supplied.

Dishes include bush tomato butter mussels, pan-seared Humpty Doo barramundi with macadamia cream, and confit duck risotto with butternut squash and crispy saltbush. The most indulgent being the Grande Cruise Seafood Tower which features Royal Miyagi oysters, Australian prawns, scallop ceviche, and scallop mousse zucchini flowers.

While former Tom Bulmer, who has worked at Neil Perry’s Margaret and Tristan Rosier’s Jane, has been brought in to take charge of the cocktail menu.

Harvey added because of the location, the venue will no doubt attract tourists however it was important that Cruise Bar and Restaurant was for Sydneysiders.

In 2014, Cruise Bar was forced to close when the Overseas Passenger Terminal was being redeveloped.