Karen Martini hopes to bring the spirit of 1990s St Kilda to her new restaurant, Saint George Tavern and Grill, opening February 1 on Fitzroy Street across the road from one of her early career highlights, the now-closed Melbourne Wine Room.

“We want to be familiar and consistent, an all-round good clubhouse with good eating and great drinking,” says the chef, who also ran Mr Wolf pizzeria in the suburb until 2021.

A bright pink and turquoise palette, large artworks by Scottish-born David Band, fish burgers, caesar salad and “convivial” Mediterranean dishes are part of Martini’s overhaul of what was the Saint Hotel, which she’s undertaking with partner Michael Sapountsis and owners Public Hospitality, a Sydney group making inroads in Melbourne.

The Saint was relaunched by the group last March (its third major overhaul since 1915) as a polished steakhouse with several bars over two levels. In its new guise, Martini hopes to revive some of Melbourne Wine Room’s grungy spirit.

“Some of the best things of the late ’90s and early 2000s happened across the road,” she says.

Saint George’s 80-seat restaurant is the place for spatchcock with bitter greens, 650-gram rib-eye steaks from the Josper grill, and whole lamb neck in a baharat spice crust to share alongside flatbreads and pickled radicchio.

Lighter dishes include fritto misto (fried seafood), two different kinds of bruschetta, caesar salad made with witlof, and gnocco fritto in a ribbon shape with culatello (cured pork leg). Three pastas are also on offer.

In the tavern at the front of the building, you might find a fish burger (but not quite a redux of Martini’s famous Hero fish sandwich), potato cakes, grilled peppers, a mushroom burger and chicken schnitzel with slaw.

“There has to be a schnitzel … But I’m not doing a chicken parmigiana yet!” jokes Martini.

Martini, culinary director at Saint George, has brought on Diana Desensi (ex-Montalto, Pt Leo Estate) as her head chef, as well as several front-of-house staff from her last restaurant Hero at ACMI, which closed in October following a breakdown in contract negotiations with the state government-run leadership of the Australian Centre for the Moving Image.

Martini is thrilled to be back in St Kilda and developing new dishes and a new atmosphere for the storied Saint site.

“We’re very familiar with what St Kilda is and has been and will be,” she says.

Affordability is important, she says, and they will be finding “cool ... interesting” ways to do that.

“Not every glass of wine is going to be $18,” she says. Drinks include Italian wine varieties, local pinot noir, mezcal-based drinks and “really cold beer”, another nod to Melbourne Wine Room.

The dark-stained timbers and black leather modular booths of the last revamp are gone, with more flexible seating for 80 people in the grill and an “airier” look. Private dining upstairs will be added at a later date.

Open from Thursday, February 1: Wed-Thu 4pm-9.30pm, Fri-Sat noon-9.30pm, Sun noon-5pm.

54 Fitzroy Street, St Kilda, saintgeorgestkilda.com.au