RESTAURANT NEWS
MELBOURNE Dave Parker (Asado, Pastuso) has opened Sebastian on Williamstown Beach, a new project that recalls the sights and sounds of San Sebastián. Chef Leigh Robbins took inspiration from his own time in the coastal town for the menu. A dish of flounder with burnt anchovy butter is inspired by eating sole roasted over coals, while memories of carrying plates of mussels to Playa de la Concha gave rise to fried mussels with fermented chilli aïoli. A sunny deck overlooking the water seals it.
NSW After a stint working in London, chef Bonny Porter has launched Bounty at Brunswick Heads. David Lovett (ex-Uccello) is also in the kitchen, overseeing a menu featuring barbecued prawns with seaweed salt, Ballina spanner crab with wakame aïoli, and pipis with ’nduja and coastal greens. The pair are embracing seaside ingredients in their drinks, too, experimenting with saltbush and samphire for their cocktails.
In Sydney’s inner west, Toby Wilson (Bad Hombres) and James Wirth (Club 77) are part of the team behind The Duke of Enmore. The revamped pub will serve Nashville school prawns and salt-and-pepper enoki mushrooms, plus fresh takes on classics, and Joel Amos (DRNKS) has put together an interesting wine list.
Matt Whiley is opening a Sydney chapter of his London bar, Scout, in The Dolphin Hotel. The European Bartender of the Year’s not-so-typical drinks include a wine made from roasted bananas fermented with wattleseed, and will be teamed with Monty Koludrovic’s food.
LONDON There’s no false advertising with Cakes & Bubbles, Albert Adrià’s first venue outside Spain. The acclaimed pastry chef has imported his “cheesecake” (made with a rind of white chocolate) from his Tickets menu. Also: air pancakes, chocolate corks and £625 bottles of 2000 Dom Pérignon if you want to splash out.
From left: the deck at Sebastian; Burnt Orange Sunset Sour cocktail with white anchovy, green olive and guindilla pepper at Sebastian.