Restaurateur Chris Lucas was sitting down to lunch at a Parisian bistro late last year when he received a call from a Melbourne property owner offering a potential site.

And by December, if all goes to plan, Melburnians will be able to sit down to Lucas's take on the French bistro and wine bar, Batard.

Lucas says 80-seat Batard will steer a middle course between classic bistro and cool contemporary update.

"We'll have a big emphasis on charcuterie, which is a bit of a lost art, but we'll contemporise it and make it lighter, and more modern."

Beef in various guises (steak frites, chateaubriand, en croute) will also be on the menu. And to match the steak, the wine list will go large on pinot noir. "We intend to make Batard a destination for lovers of the noble grape."

The kitchen will make batards (shorter, plumper baguettes) in-house "and if we're baking our own bread, we might as well do pastries for breakfast", he says.

Although he's best known for his perpetually pumping Asian restaurant Chin Chin, Lucas says the bistro has been years in the making (he registered the name Batard in 2016). He just needed the right location.

"If you ask any chef or restaurateur 'What would be your dream business?' they'll always they want to open a little French bistro."

Melbourne-based designer Rabindra Naidoo will oversee the rebirth of the Victorian terrace, adding a rooftop terrace, a basement wine cellar, a bread oven and a big grill. The City of Melbourne is considering Lucas' plans. If approved, he hopes to open before Christmas.

Key staff members will be announced in the coming months.