Sydney Eat Street: Seafood delights as new venues open after lockdown
From takeaway shops to cafes and restaurants, seafood is front and centre at many of the latest post-lockdown openings.
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FSH MKT
After months of isolation, it’s fair to say that we’ll never take picnics for granted ever again.
Seeing as they were the first opportunity we had to reunite with family and friends, picnics are no longer just about food; instead, they’ve become symbols of reunions and celebration, and few people have been better positioned to see this literal transformation than the team behind Fish Shop (which opened in January) and 10 months late, its sister eatery, FSH MKT.
“The beautiful little park out front is a big reason behind us taking this spot. We always knew we were going to offer takeaway, so saw it as an extension of Fish Shop,” says co-owner Casper Ettelson, who, along with owners Nathan Dalah and Nic Pestalozzi, also launched the DIY poke-bowl chain, Fishbowl.
It’s a good thing, too, as, from day dot, people were clamouring for the refined, yet straightforward seafood dishes created by head chef Joel Bennetts (Pepe’s Three Blue Ducks, Pier).
“My style of cooking came about quite naturally; I just want to cook like I would on a Sunday. There are obviously things that require a bit more depth and finesse, but I go with things that I love,” Joel says.
“When Nathan brought me in (to head up the kitchen), I didn’t know what I was going to produce. I just pull memories from different places. I learned to cook from other cultures in the world, through travels or from other people working in the kitchen.”
One of Joel’s favourite sauces is the chopped herb green sauce, salsa Verde, common to Spanish and Italian cuisines.
“I use fish as a vehicle and link the protein of seafood to a sauce of that style.”
It’s no wonder then that during lockdown, Fish Shop’s takeaway orders became overwhelming. Casper notes that they essentially needed a kitchen three times the size of what they were working with.
“Knowing the type of takeaway product, we were able to sell during lockdown, we thought it deserved its own space,” says Casper, noting that the vacant shop a few metres away seemed like a logical choice, and thus FSH MKT was born, becoming the takeaway alternative to Fish Shop’s dine-in offering.
“Joel comes from a dining environment, and we come from a take environment, and it all just came together. Sure, there’s fish and chips and burgers on the menu, but they’re prepared in a style that still holds its flavour profile rather than being drowned in sauce or covered in cheese.”
A popular item on the menu just happens to be one of Joel’s first Fish Shop creations: prawn toast. More like a prawn loaf. It’s huge with a generous amount of filling that comes with Joel housemade chilli jam (which FSH MKT also sells by the jar).
It’s not all fish, though, as there is a regular rotation of seasonal salads and vegetables, though fresh oysters, prawns and grilled barramundi rank high on the list.
And as Joel promised, there are burgers, the crowning jewel being the Yellowfin Tuna Cheeseburger — light on cheese, but big on flavour.
— Shop 4/17 Warners Ave, Bondi Beach; fshmkt.com.au
Nanyang Malaya Cafe
Billy Chong opened the doors of the casual Malaysian/Singaporean casual eatery, Nanyang Malaya Cafe just 10 days before Lockdown 2.0, quickly garnering a loyal following, so when lockdown hit, diners were left high and dry.
“Our customers were reaching out to us, saying they missed our food, so we had to do something to keep the momentum going,” he says.
The cafe was so new Billy hadn’t had a chance to set up their takeaway offerings, so they weren’t quite able to follow the transition that so many other restaurants were doing, much less a partnership with a delivery service.
But they managed and a month later were ready to go.
“After the first week of the cafe reopening, we realised our efforts with the third-party delivery service and takeaways were still not enough. Therefore, the cafe joined with Nanyang Tea Club (a more refined venue in Haymarket) home delivery service and launched a new website nanyanghome.com.au,” Billy says.
“The new home delivery service was developed to service these customers. We did a couple of preliminary tests with some of our regular customers, which helped us gain insightful feedback, that enabled us to roll it out.
“We are grateful to have survived this lockdown while retaining our kitchen team. Our team at Nanyang Malaya Cafe has started to reboot everything to restart again with our dine-in service, which includes a concise brunch menu filled with all the faves, including the Singaporean breakfast staple, Kaya toast – two pieces of toast sandwiched together with a thick layer of housemade kaya (coconut jam) and a slab of butter.
“It’s traditionally served with two soft boiled eggs and soy sauce in a small bowl, allowing it to be mixed as a dip for the toast itself. The lunch and dinner menus are focused mainly on Malaysian dishes, as the Nanyang Malaya Cafe has become a real destination for laksas, curries, and mud crabs.
“We’ve recently launched more mud crabs, as we now have up to six variations, including one with the ever-popular Singaporean Chill. We’ve also introduced some vegan options such as the ramen-based Ramly Rendang Burger, which comes with more-ish salt and pepper wedges.” Definitely add this one to your post-lockdown dining list.
— Marrickville Metro, Shop G001, 20 Smidmore St, Marrickville; nanyangmalayacafe.com.au
The Redfern
A revamp of this historical Redfern watering hole was always in the works, but with the past four months of downtime, The Redfern’s general manager and licensee, Chelsea Carter, made the most of a difficult situation.
“The lockdown period allowed us the time to really focus on our core vision for The Redfern and what we wanted the brand to stand for in the community,” Chelsea says.
“Lockdown was not ideal for anyone, let’s face it, but it gave us the opportunity to work through a really detailed plan and strategy to open with our best foot forward.
“We’ve had kinks and things to work through, as any new pub would, but the weeks of lockdown gave us a head start. We had great fun experimenting with different menu items and ultimately nailing our homemade slice of pie.
“We’ve had the time to develop a training program for our new recruits and give them the best opportunity to succeed. Ultimately, we’re very excited for the future progression of our team and the evolution of the venue.”
The renovation started a few years ago, first with the funky upstairs lounge and cocktail bar, Misfits, which opened in 2018 and now, the street-level Public Bar, whose warm atmosphere and cold beers (26 on taps) welcome you inside for pub food done right.
You’ll get the requisite chicken parmi and selection of burgers but also some more polished dishes such as spanner crab linguine, barramundi with broccolini, spiced squid, and for the grand finale of housemade pie for dessert.
The Redfern’s owner Martin Short explains in the late 1800s, the building began as a small one-level corner pub known as the Royal Albert Hotel, then in the 1900s, it was expanded up to a second level, given a new look and renamed The Court Hotel.
“It’s the same facade structure we’ve restored today, bringing it back to its former glory,” Martin says.
— 106 George St, Redfern; theredfern.com.au
Charcoal Fish
Calling Josh Niland an award-winning chef is an understatement. His Paddington restaurant, St Peter, is regularly ranked at the top of restaurant lists – both here and abroad, he’s also considered a forerunner in ethical and sustainable seafood cooking practices, practically redefining nose-to-tail cooking practices ala “gill to fin”.
He’s the first Aussie to win the James Beard Book of the Year award, his first publication, The Whole Fish Cookbook.
Now, as only Josh could do, he transformed his vision of a fish & chippery meets charcoal chicken shop and opened Charcoal Fish amid lockdown (September 2021).
Sure, it was a business venture, but there were practicalities involved.
“As easy as it is to pick up a roast chicken and salad for a family meal, the same can’t be said for a fish dinner,” Josh says.
“Our mission is to make restaurant-quality, charcoal-grilled Australian fish accessible to everyone. We have taken away all the hesitancy associated with a fish meal – fishy smells and pin bones are a thing of the past. There has never been a simpler way to get fish on your dinner table (or beach towel).”
While Josh’s career has celebrated serving fish, the whole fish and nothing but the fish, it’s of note that Murray cod gets most of the attention at Charcoal Fish.
Well, 92 per cent of the cod gets attention, from the boneless rotisserie cod fillet and gravy gold to caramel ice cream made the rendered fat from the fish.
Of course, with the family dinner in mind, the hero item on the menu board is the square of butterflied, boneless Murray cod available as a whole, half, quarter or single fillet grilled over charcoal. Round that out with their salads, and dinner is sorted.
— 670 New South Head Rd, Rose Bay; charcoalfish.com
WHAT’S FRESH
Taste of Coogee
A sure sign that we’re leaving lockdown behind is that food festivals are again showing up event calendars, including the annual Taste of Coogee Food and Wine Festival.
Back for its eighth year, the festival celebrates local and regional food, wine, craft beer and more with an abundance of stalls such as Crepe de France, local artisan distiller Bondi Liquor, and Hanging Tree Wines, celebrity chef demonstrations, and the ever-popular Taste of Coogee Long Lunch where you’ll enjoy live entertainment while taking your place at a communal table loaded with plenty to eat and drink.
Tickets are available online. Entry is $40pp (kids under 18 are free), Long Lunch is $100pp, kids 5-14 is $40pp and under 5 is free).
Oh, and added bonus, you can also use your $25 Dine & Discover Voucher. Saturday, November 20, 2021, 10am-10pm; Sunday, November 21, 2021, 10am-6pm.
— Entertainment Quarter, Lang Road, Moore Park; tasteofcoogee.com.au
MORE NEW VENUES...
Miss Jaffles Cafe
The humble jaffle gets a makeover at this bright and cheery cafe. Despite opening within the first couple weeks of lockdown, Miss Jaffles’ sweet and savoury jaffles not only won over locals but went on to win WOTIF’s Uniquely Aussie Award for Australia’s Best Jaffle.
There are 15 variants of the toasted treasure ranging from Miss Basic, a classic with baked beans and cheese, to Miss Mary Mac, not surprisingly filled with mac & cheese and bacon bits.
On the sweet side, try the Miss Apple Pie or Miss Biscoff. There’s also a small all-day breakfast and lunch menu plus a pretty comprehensive drinks menu.
— 9/20 Gerrale St, Cronulla; instagram.com/missjafflescafe
Motto Motto
This casual yet refined Japanese restaurant was set to open mid-year along with the launch of the new Marrickville Metro Centre, but lockdown put a halt to that; however, now that diners have had a taste of their innovative dishes, they’re crying out for “more, more”, or in Japanese, “motto motto”.
The menu takes you way beyond bento boxes with rich Japanese curries, fresh poke bowls and famous ramen super broth.
— Marrickville Metro, Ground Level, 20 Smidmore St, Marrickville; mottomotto.com.au
Roundhouse
Newcastle’s rooftop venue Roundhouse is garnering widespread attention by showing how they’re keeping things local. Executive chef Natalie Bolt has created a modern Australian menu with the majority of ingredients coming from producers within a three-hour radius, such as Merriwa pork belly, Hunter Valley Wagyu tenderloin and of course, an extensive list of Hunter Valley Wines.
— Level 9/282 King St, Newcastle; facebook.com/roundhousenewcastle
Watson’s
The hospitality industry got a real sucker punch with lockdown, but in true blue fashion, there were some success stories such as the newly opened Aussie pub in the Entertainment Quarter, Watson’s.
Taking over the spot that once housed PJ Gallagher’s Irish Pub, Watson’s will offer modern takes on classic pub grub, alongside an extensive drinks list that includes wine, cocktails and beer. Lots of beer; in addition to bottled beer, there’s an additional 32 on tap.
And as the Sydney Football Stadium hits the home stretch, reams of a pre-match brew and burger are getting nearer and nearer.
— The Entertainment Quarter; 1 Bent St, Moore Park; watsonseq.com.au
Winter warmers to celebrate the season
Everyone is happy to see the sun peeking through the clouds, but winter’s not all bad. Bid farewell to the colder days with one last hurrah of warming fare.
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