Chef of the year leaves
Kym Machin, the 2012 Queensland Good Food Guide chef of the year, is leaving Spring in the CBD. He's being tight lipped about his plans, but having followed his career for some years, we'd put a bet on a Machin-owned restaurant opening in the very near future.
Stay tuned. Spring, meanwhile, is looking for a new head chef.
Kym Machin.
Brisbane’s Best Bar Food?
That’s Matt Moran’s aim for his yet to open Brisbane Riverbar.
Another riverside eatery (the long-awaited Pony opened this week too) Moran and Peter Sullivan’s new venture at the old Boardwalk site on Eagle Street is due to open the around the second week of December.
It’ll be stepping off the mark and right into the pre-festive madness but Moran seems comfortable about it, with an experienced team at the ready.
"You sink or swim and this is not the first time we’ve opened and Solatel our partner runs 15 of the biggest pubs in Sydney.’’
Matt Wood, the number two at Aria will be behind the burners producing what Moran says is a ‘big menu’.
Matt Moran
"I don’t want to sound arrogant, but I reckon it will be the best bar food in Brisbane. We intend it to be something Brisbane hasn’t seen, and yes, it is simple bar food but quality- we don’t do anything by halves.’’
And speaking of not doing anything by halves, Moran and his architects have not left as much as a wire or tile from the old Boardwalk days.
"We’ve absolutely gutted it. It wasn’t an easy re-fit because it had been completely underwater in the floods and we found things like mud in the walls,'' Moran says.
A wood fired oven will pump out share plates like lamb shoulders, but there will also be typical bar menus like fish and chips and burgers, Moran says complemented with a great cocktail list and lots of wine by the glass. And watch out for changes at Moran’s other venue Aria too, with an increased bar area and al fresco dining on the cards.
Bye Bye, Ben
Look out for celebrity chef Ben O'Donoghue in a new venture. O'Donoghue has sold his interest in Southbank Surf Club and is now "scouting for locations and opportunities around Brisbane".
“South Bank Surf Club was a good entree for me into restaurants and I had the pleasure of working with some great people in a fantastic location.
“Whilst I was proud to be part of the continual enhancement of the precinct, it's now time now to look for a new location that enables me to spend more time in the kitchen and get 'back on the tools'.
O'Donoghue said he looked forward to "contributing to a growing restaurant scene".
We await the outcome with interest.
Ben O'Donoghue