Plans to reinvigorate Broadbeach with new laneway bar Fig and Frankie’s

Moody lighting and dark paint is just “so not Gold Coast” according to the owners of a new laneway bar promising to liven up the city.

DIM lighting, dark paint and Chesterfield couches? The owners of new Broadbeach bar Fig and Frankie’s say that’s just so not Gold Coast.

“A lot of the bars around here are quite moody,” co-owner Bella Lovell says.

“We’re in such a lively, beachy part of Australia, we wanted to bring some warmth.”

Fig and Frankie’s is a new laneway local expected to open in the coming weeks near Cha Cha Japanese.

It’s the product of two couples with a shared passion for hospitality — Bella and Euan Lovell, and Tom and Sam Angel.

“It would be two years ago we saw this little spot. Euan actually found it, and he wanted to do a bar there,” Mrs Lovell said.

The bar is the product of two couples. Picture: Tim Marsden

“We were running a social media marketing company and one of the places we were creating content for, Tom worked there in the bar. That’s how we met Tom.

“Both Euan and Tom have had 15 years in the hospitality industry, I’ve had 10. It’s something we know like the back of our hands.

“When this opportunity came up, we knew this dynamic would work really well. We all have such a love for crafting specialty cocktails.

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“It’s been a long time coming but it fell together quite seamlessly.”

If you consider you’ve ever had a night on the town, it’s likely you’ve been served by Tom before. The award-winning bartender has worked behind the taps at a number of trendy watering holes including Old Tom’s in Broadbeach, La Casita in Brunswick Heads and The Star Gold Coast’s Cherry Bar and Kiyomi.

Tom Angel has already wowed customers with his cocktails at other venues.

Mr Angel says Fig and Frankie’s will offer a refined drinks menu with an alternating selection of hard liquors.

“Our cocktails will be based on our eight selected spirits to reflect the cosy feel of our bar and dining,” he said.

“Each spirit will have a cocktail attached to it and we plan to rotate the spirits on a regular basis.

“(We will work) with the seasons and feature native ingredients like strawberry gum, wattleseed, macadamia.

“One drink I am working on currently is a macadamia lemonade with green apple using Brookie’s Mac. Another one is a wine spritzer with Marionette liqueurs.”

The best part? No cheesy cocktail names to recite to the bartender — especially handy when you’re dealing with noise.

“There won’t be any names for the drinks, we are planning on just numbering the drinks,” he said.

The bar is set to open in Broadbeach.

“A selection of wine and beers will be available too, I have a great passion for natural wines.

“My style of bartending and cocktails is definitely cleaner and a focus on the quality and flavours. Very heavily inspired by classic style of bartending using only a few ingredients per drink.”

The fit out features a peach colour scheme with rendered brick walls and blonde timber trimmings, reflecting the style of a Melbourne alleyway haunt.

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As for the name Fig and Frankie’s, that was inspired by the couples’ pets.

“It’s really funny, me and Euan have a cat called Fig, they (Tom and Sam) have a dog called Frankie,” Mrs Lovell said.

“Fig and Frankie’s is a true laneway bar. There’s something about laneway bars - this one’s small, it’s tucked away, to us it felt like a real destination.

“We love Broadbeach, we think it’s the heart of the Gold Coast, but we kind of watched it decline after the Games.

The owners say they want to bring some life back to Broadbeach. Picture: Tim Marsden

“I think we all wanted to make it a bit more lively, bring it a bit more traffic, open a smaller business with industry-run owners.”

Fig and Frankies will open later this month at 2702 Gold Coast Highway, Broadbeach.