Olivine Wine Bar, North & Common to open in Pentridge Prison precinct

It once housed one of Australia’s most famous prisoners but now this jail block has new life as a chic eating establishment. See the details here.

North and Common is opening next year in the old B division section of Pentridge Prison.

The grim block of bluestone slabs once home to the last man hanged in Australia is being turned into a chic restaurant and wine bar.

The new additions are part of the billon-dollar reimagining of the heritage-listed Pentridge Prison site which operated as Melbourne’s main remand and reception prison until 1997 but is now a lifestyle precinct in Coburg.

Restaurant North & Common and wine bar Olivine are part of the Shayher Group’s plans to bring shopping, dining, cinema, events space, restaurants and a hotel into the bluestone walls of the former ‘Bluestone College’.

North & Common will be adjacent to the prison gate while Olivine will be located in B division which housed the likes of Ronald Ryan as well as recurring offenders and long-term, violent offenders. Ryan escaped from the prison in 1965 and was found guilty of killing a prison guard — he has hanged in 1967.

07/01/1966: Ronald Ryan (C) heading for Mascot in police car. Hanged in Pentridge prison, Melbourne in 1967 for murder of prison warder. pic News Limited. Victoria / Crime

With such a deep history to keep intact, Olivine has had to find a way to marry the historic past with the venue’s future.

“Put simply, Olivine marries food, wine, art, community, while the textural bluestone walls give a nod to the history of the space,” Olivine beverage manager Liinaa Berry said.

“At the end of the day, an impressive wine list might get people through the door but it’s the experience they have with you which keeps them coming back.”

While the site used to contain jail cells and an exercise yard, that has given way to booths with plush finishings in the heritage cells while grilled sardines with smoked buttermilk is on the menu compared to the rudimentary prison diet.

“We’re on a mission to deliver an ever-evolving dining experience with a focus on simple food and great techniques that highlight the natural quality of the produce,” North & Common’s head chef Thomas Woods said.

“What we’re creating with the restaurant is a lively, welcoming space free of pretension that’s inviting for locals and travellers.

“I am excited to work closely with producers that I’ve built a relationship with over the past 15 years to deliver a menu that pays homage to the first-class produce we have available in Victoria.”

Both venues are expected to open to the public from February 2023.