Donna Chang. Blackbird. Boom Boom Room. Iris. Bisou Bisou.

Over the past decade, the Ghanem family has steadily built a restaurant empire notable for its quality and variety.

But the beating heart of the group has always been Byblos, which opened at Portside Wharf way back in 2005, its Middle East-inspired food tapping into the Ghanems’ Lebanese heritage. Still, when set against the newer restaurants in the group, the flashy riverside spot was beginning to feel a little dated.

So, what to do? Ghanem CEO Vianna Joseph reckons the group has spent three years wrestling with that question.

“There’s … a lot of sentimentality around Byblos, with it being the original venue that Ghanem Group is built off, and we wanted to give the project the attention it deserved,” Joseph says. “As a family, we’ve put a lot of thought into it. It’s been a hands-on process [with] lots of discussion and research.”

The result in late October will be a completely reimagined Byblos. Gone will be the dark, moody and relatively ostentatious flourishes of the original, replaced by a light-filled interior that better connects the venue to the river outside. Diners can expect sand-like textural walls, arched travertine features and marble surfaces to better capture the ancient coastal city of Byblos in Lebanon, after which the restaurant is named.

“It’s a complete internal rebuild,” Joseph says. “Every wall has been knocked down, every doorway has been moved, every feature stripped out, and the floor plan reimagined.

“When you walk into the new Byblos you will think you are in a brand-new restaurant, and essentially, you will be.”

The menu will be different as well, with Joseph and Ghanem Group directors, Nehme Ghanem and Adonis Ghanem, along with executive chef Jake Nicolson, travelling to Lebanon last year to immerse themselves in the country’s modern cuisine.

“We really wanted to understand the various parts of Lebanon, from the coastal towns to the mountains,” Nicolson says. “It was about understanding that, experiencing it. I was keen to get that knowledge to be able to execute the food to the very best of our ability.

“We’re looking to do less of a fusion of Lebanese cuisine and more so take the traditional staples and flavours and elevate them using premium ingredients. Byblos set the benchmark in the early days for Lebanese cuisine and so many great restaurants have followed in our footsteps. But this is an opportunity to do something really special while keeping those core values of the cuisine at heart.”

For drinks, expect a continuation of Byblos’ focus on fun cocktails, a broad spirits list and a lengthy international wine cellar.

“There’s a little pressure [in relaunching the restaurant] because Byblos is so iconic,” Joseph says. “But there is a lot of excitement also, especially now the project is coming to fruition.”

Byblos is scheduled to reopen at Portside Wharf towards the end of October.