Brisbane restaurant favoured by Billie Eilish closes after six years
But its operators have big plans for a funky Fortitude Valley rooftop bar, to open later this year.
One of Brisbane’s best vegetarian restaurants, Za Za Ta, has closed permanently. The news was announced in a statement to the media on Tuesday.
“After six years of delivering bold flavours and vibrant experiences, Za Za Ta has closed its doors to make way for exciting new developments at Ovolo The Valley,” the statement read.
“We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our guests, followers, and team members for their unwavering support.”
The restaurant ran its final service on Sunday night.
James Clark, the general manager of Ovolo The Valley hotel, said on Wednesday morning the decision to shutter Za Za Ta was a strategic rather than financial one.
“2024 was a record year for us in terms of [conferences and events],” Clark said. “We’re a smaller property … and we only had the one space, [The] Grand Hall, for C and E, so we saw an opportunity to move into [that business] in the Za Za Ta space, essentially.
“From a financial perspective, the restaurant was performing very well. But it’s purely a change of strategy to meet that event demand.”
The restaurant’s popular Conservatory dining room will be turned into a private event space, while Za Za Ta sister venue Kazba will continue to operate next door with an expanded all-day food menu that includes the defunct restaurant’s vegetarian mezze.
Later in the year, the hotel will expand its level-seven pool deck to accommodate a new rooftop bar with capacity for 90 people.
Za Za Ta opened with a splash in mid-2019 on the ground floor of Ovolo The Valley, turning heads with its Middle-Eastern menu and distinctive, multi-room Luchetti Krelle design. In the kitchen was executive chef Roy Ner (formerly of Nour and Lillah in Sydney, and known for his appearances on SBS TV) and head chef Dario Manca, who now owns and operates Attimi in Paddington.
Later, the restaurant shifted focus under chef Michael Jackson to cook an entirely plant-based menu. Dishes such as a barbecue cauliflower shawarma, a burnt cabbage salad, and beetroot kibbeh nayyeh were a hit with vegetarian and vegan diners – including singer-songwriter Billie Eilish, who recently tagged the restaurant in a worldwide Google Map round-up of her favourite plant-based eateries.
Jackson left last year and was succeeded by Kya Knights, who will remain as head chef at the hotel under the new food and beverage arrangements.
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Matt Shea is Food and Culture Editor at Brisbane Times. He is a former editor and editor-at-large at Broadsheet Brisbane, and has written for Escape, Qantas Magazine, the Guardian, Jetstar Magazine and SilverKris, among many others.