Oakwood Premier Apartments opens Strato restaurant, Sky Bar in late June

Lively bar snacks, theatrical meals and rocking cocktails will charge this sky-high restaurant when it opens 40 floors above the city this month.

Restaurants with a view don’t always get a great rap for their food.

But Gagan Sharma is hoping to change that at Strato and Sky Bar, the jewel-in-the-crown venues perched at the top of the city’s new Oakwood Premier Apartments tower.

The Indian-born chef has spent nine months fine tuning his modern Australian dinner menu, which will be served 40 floors above the city from June 30.

Chef Gagan Sharma at Sky Bar in Melbourne Southbank Picture: Tony Gough

“I grew up in Old Delhi, so I’ve used that for some of my (menu) inspiration,” Sharma said.

“I also worked in the Middle East cooking Italian and Lebanese cuisine and most of the chefs that work with me are from the Philippines, Korea, Zimbabwe and Naples.”

He’s using native ingredients, grown on Wurundjeri land where the hotel is based, in most of Strato’s dishes – and isn’t afraid to get theatrical with some plates.

“We have a peanut chaat … which is a sweet and savoury Indian street food, sprinkled with native river mint,” he said.

“We’ll also be using liquid nitrogen in some of our desserts to create that ‘up in the clouds’ effect.”

Sharma, who has worked in hotel restaurants across his 22-year career, said he was excited to see the venue come to life.

“It’s not just about the view. In the restaurant it’ll be all about the food. If people want to come for the view the SkyBar will be the place for that,” he said.

Catch of the day

Call it the Bruce Collis party trick.

The Corner Inlet fisherman can taste whether the fish you’re eating was caught within 24 hours.

After more than two decades in the game, the second-generation fisherman knows bucket loads about seafood.

He’s also a hero in restaurant circles, supplying King George Whiting, calamari, rock flathead and the like to chef royalty Neil Perry and Josh Niland within hours of it being caught.

“Yes, you can taste the difference,” Bruce says.

“When the chefs prepare them they can tell the difference, too. As soon as (the fish) land in the kitchen, they’re walking out the door.”

Bruce Collis, from Corner Inlet, is a finalist in the Delicious Produce Awards. Picture: Nicki Connolly

Using an environmentally friendly fishing method, ‘seine netting’, has earnt Bruce a national finalist title in the 2022 delicious. Harvey Norman Produce Awards.

This year’s awards aims to unearth producers who are changing the conversation with sustainable food production practices.

Seine netting involves using a dip net to lift the fish from the water allowing juvenile and unwanted species to return to the fishery without handling.

For the past 130 years, Corner Inlet has been fished commercially and is now the last bay and inlet fishery in Australia.

delicious.com.au/people-events/produce-awards

Ian Curley at Lona Misa. Picture: Fiona Byrne

Next-gen chef lunch

After a Covid hiatus, the William Angliss Institute’s long-running Great Chefs series is back.

Melbourne chef Ian Curley is among the big names lending their expertise to budding chefs, as is MoVida chef and owner Frank Camorra.

While all the tickets have been snapped up for their events – held at the TAFE college’s newly renovated Angliss Restaurant in the city – more chefs are expected to be revealed for future dinners in coming weeks. Book early because seats sell out fast.

Ototo scallops.

Hidden bar

A new underground, great-value modern Asian bar and restaurant has opened beneath Flinders Ln. Ototo, which means “younger brother” in Japanese, opened this month below sibling-venue Akaiito. Head chef Winston Zhang will serve small bites and share plates in the cosy 60-seat restaurant, with snacks starting at $6. There’s also a more substantial feed-me offering for $68 a person. Think a mix of Chinese, Korean, Malaysian and Japanese food teamed with sustainably made cocktails.

349-351 Flinders Ln, City

ototo.com.au

No boozer

Famous Yarra Valley gin distiller Four Pillars is jumping on the no-alcohol bandwagon in time for Dry July.

The distillery will release zero-alcohol alternatives to its popular rare dry and bloody shiraz gins from late June.

Both the Bandwagon Dry and Bloody Bandwagon took two years to make and are said to taste like the real deal. I’ll let you be the judge.

Available at Dan Murphy’s, IGA, Coles Local, Liquorland. RRP: $50 each.