Venue #46

TV Dinners Masterchef in the 'burbs Paul Kelly Goes All in at The Star

Crumpler’s Bag of Retail Tricks page 42

page 36

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NOVEMBER

Nº 46

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Column

Not Another Steve Jobs Obituary

Steve Jobs had just quit the week I met Crumpler’s Creative Director Sam Davy.

And now the doyen of design has passed on. It seems strange now, but as Jobs was holding in his last breaths, I was already experiencing his legacy. Davy was Creative Director at Apple for six years prior to coming to Australia and Crumpler.

At the time, Jobs, in full control-freak mode, was looking to move his marketing and advertising in-house, and Davy became that guy.

He was the one who pitted PC and Mac stereotypes against each other in a series of ads where ‘PC’ was played by a balding incompetent nerd of yesteryear, and Mac was a much younger, slightly condescending nerd of today. It was full of simple clichés wrapped in humour set against a quintessential Apple backdrop of white. Old v new, shirt v t-shirt, glasses v contacts, but still, being computers, nerd v nerd.

Davy also helped design the first Apple stores. Pure representations of simple egalitarian function and form: Big space, polished concrete floor, and wooden counters, everything stripped back to let the product be the hero. It was simply about retail.

In all Jobs’ genius, culture-defining moves. He always managed to carry out what we all tell ourselves to do, but somehow can’t help ruin with overzealous enthusiasm for our own ideas — to keep it simple, stupid. Call a spade a spade. Jobs was the master of the basics, a reader of minds, of what people need, and presenting it in a form and way they never knew they could have desired so dearly.

Davy, with the eye of Ryan Russell, has continued on the legacy at Crumpler.

Not so big spaces, but still with a polished concrete floor, wooden central counter, and everything stripped back to make the product the hero. In this case, heaps of product.

Standing in the Melbourne Central Crumpler store surrounded by rows, levels, entire grandstands of bags, should feel more overwhelming than it does.

There’s no reasonable way that that much product should be able to occupy almost every inch of the fitout and not amount to death by a thousand choices.

But it all makes sense; every bag sports a minimal infographic letting you know whether that particular satchel will house your camera, laptop (conveniently annotated with Apple sizing), or both.

It’s a fine balance — to reach people in a crowded market without overcomplicating your message, to be the right bag among many bags. But simplicity of purpose is written into the DNA of great design. A pub is designed for social drinking, a restaurant is designed around a food experience, and a club is designed for dancing, and well, you know, drinking and flirting too. So while the temptation may be to cover the gamut of your market by attending to a cross section of tastes, maybe there’s a lot to be said for simplicity and a backdrop of Apple white.

Mark Davie is editor of venue magazine.

Drop him a line at: mark@venuemag.com

“Keep it simple, stupid. Call a spade a spade. Jobs was the master of the basics”

Arcon would like to congratulate Spiedo Restaurant and Bar and have enjoyed being a part of this project.

S PI E D O

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We are building contractors who take the time to listen, review your plans and work with you to match intended design usage. This matching process delivers you a business that is durable in terms of quality and functionality; a business that functions as intended...one that supports your point of difference.

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NOVEMBER

Nº 46

Contents “We decided to spoil ourselves this time... We’ve got all the technology up there, with flat screen TVs that pop out of the ceiling if you want to get up real close and see the detail of us plating up a dish.”

George Calombaris, St Katherine’s — pg30

CONTENTS CONTACTS: Advertising Office: (02) 9986 1188 PO Box 6216, Frenchs Forest, NSW 2086 Editorial Office: (03) 5331 4949 PO Box 295, Ballarat, VIC 3353 Editor: Mark Davie (mark@venuemag.com) Publication Manager: Stewart Woodhill (stewart@venuemag.com) Editorial Director: Christopher Holder (chris@venuemag.com) Publisher: Philip Spencer (philip@venuemag.com) Art Direction & Design: Dominic Carey (dominic@alchemedia.com.au) Additional Design: Leigh Ericksen (leigh@alchemedia.com.au) Circulation Manager: Jen Temm (subscriptions@alchemedia.com.au) Accounts: Jen Temm (accounts@alchemedia.com.au)

alchemedia publishing pty ltd (ABN: 34 074 431 628) PO Box 6216, Frenchs Forest, NSW 2086 info@alchemedia.com.au All material in this magazine is copyright Š 2011 Alchemedia Publishing Pty Ltd. The title Venue is a registered Trademark. Apart from any fair dealing permitted under the Copyright Act, no part may be reproduced by any process without written permission. The publishers believe all information supplied in this magazine to be correct at the time of publication. They are not in a position to make a guarantee to this effect and accept no liability in the event of any information proving inaccurate. After investigation and to the best of our knowledge and belief, prices, addresses and phone numbers were up to date at the time of publication. It is not possible for the publishers to ensure that advertisements appearing in this publication comply with the Trade Practices Act, 1974. The responsibility is on the person, company or advertising agency submitting or directing the advertisement for publication. The publishers cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions, although every endeavour has been made to ensure complete accuracy.

New Kit Sit Lit Barrio Chino Burberry Corner House Smooth Operator Komeyui St Katherine’s Black by Ezard Paul Kelly Crumpler Richmond Club Hotel Spiedo Half Moon Melbourne Public The Byron at Byron Commercial Edge You Wish

pg10 pg14 pg16 pg18 pg20 pg22 pg24 pg27 pg28 pg30 pg36 pg40 pg42 pg46 pg50 pg54 pg58 pg62 pg64 pg66

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Speakeasy Kitchen Bar in Melbourne isn’t really that much of a prohibition den, though it does rustle up some of the classic drinks of the era. Designed by Eon Design for first-time operators Petros and Alexis Lambis, the kitchen dining room is a light, wooden affair, with Paul Round graphic silhouettes shushing you from the wall. Things are a bit darker elsewhere, exposed globes with draping cord chandeliers glow warmly over timber floors and below pressed metal ceilings, and it’s in these darker corners that a sense of the past is retained.

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Plantation, a Sensory Lab spinoff, has sprung up in Melbourne Central. The specialty coffee outlet sends the coffee experience even deeper down the nostrils. You’re encouraged to lift coche jars and sniff single origin beans from Brazil, or sample yet another coffee brewing method that’s destined to become a trend — cold drip. It’s the hipster alternative to a Big M iced coffee. It’s black, harvested in a painstakingly slow process, bottled and cooled in a tub of ice. You can also buy Harioworld coffeemaking kit to brew your own at home. The design was a collaboration between Jennifer Lowe, Brooke Thorn (both of The Design Collective) and Adele Winteridge (Foolscap Studio). It’s a long thin space with metal arches, a tiled front, and timber elements that manages to fit a lot in the one space while still serving great coffee.

VIDEO WATCH

The Hotel Hospitality + Design Exhibition will be back in 2012, colocated with Australia’s premier design expo DesignEx at Sydney’s Exhibition Centre from April 18th to the 20th. HHD is the largest hotel refurbishment and design event in the southern hemisphere, bringing together the best in the hospitality industry over three days.

Returning again to the show is the successful Dulux-sponsored Refurbishment Stage with top industry designers demonstrating how to effectively refurb your establishment working with a particular budget, along with a large networking area for visitors. HOT (Hotel Operations Technology) will also be running a 5-star conference in conjuction with the show. http://www.hhdexpo.com.au/

Adele, Someone Like You

When I was in uni it was trés de rigueur to dig the arthouse flick, Betty Blue. I recall being press-ganged into attending a midnight showing at the Carlton Movie House, and instantly not knowing where to look as a pretty graphic scene of rumpy-pumpy ensued.

playing (presumably that of a crazed convict).

Trouble was, after vouching for crazy rapist dude, and helping him to be released for ‘good behaviour’, she was almost instantly calling the cops to her flat because he was threatening to kill her.

I had to Google her name, but I think the actress Beatrice Dalle’s boobs were the

Feeling depressed yet?

Googling ‘Betty Blue Actress’ proved more illuminating than I could ever have suspected.

My young daughter was given a picture book by a well-meaning acquaintance called When I’m Feeling Sad. It’s about a rabbit that’s down in the dumps. And one line talks about feeling ‘so sad, it’s like all the colour has been sucked out of the world’. I mean, really. Whatever happened to a happy-go-

main allure, more so than the inevitability of her descent into French loopiness.

Apparently after starring in Betty Blue she played a cannibal in Trouble Every Day and a particularly cruel psychopath in a film called À l’intérieur – which I think is French for ‘type-cast nutball’. There’s no mention of any rom-coms opposite John Cusack, or panto appearances… although she did star in an A-ha pop video. Apart from the odd conviction for drugs possession, stealing jewelry and an assault on a traffic warden (and let’s face it, who hasn’t thought about smacking a meter man?) Beatrice was leading a largely anonymous life. That was until she married a convicted rapist who she met while doing a spot of prison research for a role she was

Well, a word to the wise, don’t watch Someone Like You. I’m miserable even thinking about it.

lucky childhood books about odd folk living in a rather odd tree, or a kamikaze caterpillar on a junk food spree?

Well, I now know exactly what our poor depressed rabbit was talking about.

Adele has sucked all the colour out of the world with this little number. And all the people. Paris is absolutely vacant. Presumably they spotted Adele’s lip dragging on the

Left Bank pavement and decided to cross the street or throw themselves into the Seine.

Adele plods morosely over Pont Neuf and you get the feeling it’ll need a structural engineer to check it over afterwards – she’s got the weight of the world on her shoulders and everything is irredeemably dire.

In fact, Adele is so utterly bereft in this video that she spends half the time not singing, and simply looking blankly at the camera as if to

“you know the chorus, you sing it if you’re so bloody cheery.” Oh, and there’s

say:

a good chunk of the video where she doesn’t face the camera at all.

If the mission was to make Beatrice Dalle look like Julie Andrews, then mission accomplished. But please, spare yourself the agony.

This video should come with a health warning… or complimentary Prozac. – CH.

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Jamie’s Italian has arrived in Sydney. It’s only the second of the naked chef’s chain to appear outside of the UK, where he has over 20 locations. The restaurants are no less mission oriented than his Ministry of Food operation, except this time the push is to make quality Italian food accessible to anyone. And although the fitouts are particular to each area, this time by peckvonhartel, the food largely remains the same, having drilled the experience right down to the timing of the food to ensure seamless service.

Bar100, on The Rocks, is a multi-level entertainment precinct in the old Mariner’s Chapel building. The precinct offers multiple bars, dining, DJs, bands and private function areas — all with a touch of Sydney class. But even more impressive than the 12m-long brass bar and 5m-long onyx table are the stained glass windows and cathedral ceilings of the original building.

13 Ruby Rabbit has changed her outfit once more.

Never straying too far from whimsy, the Sydney hot spot has donned a multi-tiered dress that is more accessible down low, goes Dr Seuss-y at her mid section and tops off the look with a Baroque-style cocktail bar. “Each level takes one step beyond reality,” said Sue Lombos of Sydney Nightclub about the evolving identity. It’s the first mark on the map for Sydney Nightclubs, helped along by Rodney Surwasky and Katrina Rhodes of Artnow Studios, who dreamt up the interior.

Manny Spinola’s decision to dig up disused heritage buildings and army barracks around the perimeter of Sydney, and turn them into events space has had a spinoff effect. His careful location selection has turned these derelict gems into destinations. So much so that Dunbar House has now opened a café. Just 30m from the shores of Watsons Bay, the 1830s building is now open to casual diners Wednesday to Sunday, with spots out on the deck or inside one of two rooms covered in William Morris wallpaper, custom furniture upholstered with Missoni fabrics and Wedgewood china tea cups.

When you let Hemingway drunkenly scrawl on the walls of your establishment, you get history. In the case of La Bodeguita Del Medio in Havana, you get ‘My mojito in La Bodeguita’ and a claim to fame as home of the mojito. But when you resurrect the practise in a Sydney offshoot, the results are guaranteed to be less memorable. For the most part, Design Clarity’s rendition of Havana on York Street in Sydney is note perfect. The barrels along the wall, the raw brick archways, the hanging ceiling fans, and the rum locker. But unfortunately you can’t give blokes license to write on your wall and not get a few dicks and balls.

From chapels to garages, this time the revived space is a little more humble. Lil Darlin’ still shows the signs of its days as a mechanic’s garage, but spruced up a little to ensure both men and women feel at home. Giant Design converted the space from a restaurant to a bar with tapas, splitting the central marble table in two for better access, softening the walls with custom wallpaper and reusing some old sandstone to clad the bar face.

Seamless CIMA 60-Inch Displays

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If you’re looking for a seamless multi-screen system, you won’t find much better than CIMA Digitec. CIMA’s 60-inch expandable plasma solution reduces the seam size between pictures to under 3mm. The bezel size of each screen is an incredibly low 1.4mm, that’s the thickness of a credit card.

The CP-60VMH model can be expanded to any size tile formation. CIMA’s solution also boasts a way of coping with image retention by memorising the location and brightness of the area, and compensating images to display a clear picture. The screens also quote 600Hz operation and a 0.001ms response time to reduce any motion judder effects. What’s more, the CP-60VMH has great green credentials – it’s a very low consumer of energy.

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CIMA Digitec Australia: (02) 9438 3913 or info@cimadigitec.com.au

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NEC V651

Hitachi Shortens Throw

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The 65-inch V651 commercial grade LCD from NEC is plump for service as digital signage. It has a digital loop through, Tilematrix software inbuilt that allows video walls of 10 by 10 screens, Ethernet and RS-232 control and communication for easy remote monitoring, and an expansion slot for connection to NEC and third party components. The panel is full 1080p high definition and has built-in low-profile 10W speakers.

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Hitachi has focused in on the short throw projector market, and the iPJ-AW250N continues that trend.

The projector has 1280 x 800 resolution, and can project an 80-inch image only 56cm from the wall. It’s easily maintainable with a topside lamp door, and filter accessible from the rear. It has a 2000:1 contrast ratio, HDMI, USB and Ethernet inputs as well as analogue video and audio inputs. And can also be purchased with an optional wall mount unit, that can perfectly position the projector with two major adjustments and six fine controls.

NEC: 131 632 or contactus@nec.com.au

Hitachi: www.hitachi.com.au

Finding Your Room Match

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Panasonic Powers Down

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As the name suggests, the array (based on 15 different modules, plus a sub, of various dispersion characteristics) will match the shape of the room as best it can. In effect you have a PA that’s made for your space.

With home AV big screen prices getting smaller all the time, Panasonic has introduced a couple of new plasma displays that keep cost and power down. The 42-inch (TH-42PH30W) and 50-inch (TH-50PH30W) are available for $1199 and $1799 respectively. The panels also use 35% less power than their predecessors, while still delivering a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio, a 100,000-hour life span, and a colour range that exceeds the HDTV standard. For digital signage wall displays, the Multi-Display function can enlarge images up to five times their original size while retaining uniform brightness, with other simple multi-display features accessible via remote.

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Last issue venue featured a piece on the new Longrain cocktail bar in the building’s basement. It’s a pared back affair, with camouflage upholstery, exposed brickwork, and… well actually most things are exposed. It looks great, is plenty moody and for designing an interior with camo as the only colourway, George Livissianis should be applauded. With so many exposed surfaces, the audio system had to be controlled, but remain punchy to handle the DJs. Dave Carnovale of Lifetime Audio Design was the best person for the task, having been a resident DJ at Longrain for years. “I have a great relationship with the owners who know that I also have an installation company,” he explained. “The owners had a couple of sub woofers that they wanted to re-use and they’re not particularly high-powered but I’ve given them a lot of amplification. I needed a speaker that would complement them and the JBL Control25AV was perfect. There are enough of the Control25AV boxes to give the coverage required.”

In all, eight Control25AV boxes were used, driven by four Crown XLS amplifiers, which have DSP onboard to eliminate buying an extra processor. Carnovale also updated the record players with Shure M44-7 cartridges. There are a few vinylcentric DJs at Longrain, and the high-output cartridges help them better balance between louder and quieter vinyl pressings.

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Woodstock Euphoria

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Runway Designs

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The Eu/phoria monocoque chair uses Woodstock to form the seat. Typically the realm of the automotive industry, Woodstock is a combination of wood dust and polypropylene that comes in hardwearing thermoformable sheets, that can be coupled with several kinds of fabrics during the moulding phase. It results in a tough unit that comes in eight different colours, supported by a painted steel base, with self-adjusting glides and a handle for easy manoeuvrability.

Runway is an ottoman furniture concept for public waiting areas. The idea is you piece together your own geometric system, with at minimum, a 3m base piece and one additional component. You can either upholster it in a single colour, patterned fabric or two-tone.

The pieces are bolted together, but with numerous configurations available (there are 15 standard configurations alone), the system will work within most contemporary architecture.

Form + Function: 0438 378 335 or info@form-function.com.au

Interstudio: 1300 785 199 or info@interstudio.com.au

The Fable Table

Stereo Wood

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Ross Didier has designed the next big thing. Wait for it. Ok, here it is. The Fable Table! Just pull it up over your legs to immerse yourself smack bang in your own fairytale. Get the whole setting, including the wooden bowl and spoon, boil up some porridge and you’ll have a nosy blond teenager knocking on your door before you can say ‘Jack Robinson’. Didier wanted the pieces to look like a woodsman had stepped out for minute, chopped down an oak tree, and lovingly fashioned simple furniture for his cottage.

It’s a long way from Didier’s work for the new Vue de Monde, but simply beautiful.

Ross Didier: (03) 9383 3444 or mail@rossdidier.com

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Casamania has updated its Stereo seating system with a new wooden leg version. It brings a new warmth and comfort to the previously metal-based series, while still retaining the polypropylene seat with a gloss back and matt front. The wood is solid oak, and the chair can also be upholstered in fabric or leather.

Insitu Furniture: (03) 9428 9622 or insitu@insitufurniture.com.au

Searler

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Searl is modern guest chair, featuring an upholstered seat over high density soft pile foam. It’s available in a range of colours and fabrics, and comes with a strong steel rod base and a five-year guarantee.

Konfurb: 1300 857 287 or seating@konfurb.com.au

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Spilling Down

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Spilli is a high gloss polished white or black, suspension or ceiling lamp designed by Carlo Columbo.

Price: $1442.

Artemide: 1300 135 709 or info@artemide.com.au

Light Cage

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Shed 17 is a new industrial light fixture. It is 450mm in diameter, has a single ES lamp holder, chain and 2m-black/red cloth covered flex cable. Perfect for that warehouse look.

Satelight: www.satelight.com.au

Plenty Of Space

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Space has added American lighting brand Roll & Hill to its family. Interior designer Jason Miller founded the company in 2010. He used his experience to create a brand around the tenets of elegance, versatility and wit. His Superordinate Antler lamp, which was a smash in 2003, exemplifies the brand’s character, which has now expanded to include other talented designers. Recent work includes the pointy Agnes and round globe Modo chandeliers.

Space Furniture: (02) 8339 7588 or www.spacefurniture.com.au

Connections Drops Balls For Sparkle

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Choice Of Your Desire

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WA’s premiere gay and lesbian nightspot, Connections, has had some extra bling installed courtesy of Lux Events. Alex Moffat, Operations Manager for Lux, was asked to go for something completely different to the previous LED balls installation. Connections now has 12 Martin MX10s, eight Pro Shop LED Fusion bars, eight GLP Volkslicht LED yoke fixtures, a Look Solutions Unique hazer, and six Pro Shop LED Flex in rainbow colours. The MX10s were used in the previous design, and again here, as the club prefers their fast mirror design over moving heads. The Pro Shop LED Fusion bars eliminate any nasty chromatic shadowing that can occur with LEDs, and instead renders an even spread of the desired colour. The GLP Volkslicht fixtures are compact, lightweight, and have a tight beam. Moffat said they add, “to the design for production shows as well as to use in the normal club environment.”

When ETC set out to design their new LED Par range, they wanted to offer choice: Choice of colour palette, colour temperature, power level, and a range of control options to suit any skill level or operating style. The Desire range can pretty much do anything. You can choose between 40 and 60 LEDs, an x7 colour system for a uniform spectrum and natural white light, seven control methods for colour calibration, and an XT series fixture for outdoors operation. The XT is sealed with waterproof connectors, an IP65 rating, and onboard power regulation to prevent overheating when used constantly. You can pick a range of round or oblong fields, and the lens can be inserted into the model at the factory, retaining its seal and IP65 rating.

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CHINATOWN CONNECTION Barrio Chino: 28-30 Bayswater Road, Kings Cross NSW (02) 8021 9750 or www.barriochino.com.au Story: Heather Barton

Barrio Chino means Chinatown in Spanish, which is a curious name for a Mexican Restaurant in Sydney. There’s nothing Asian about it. It’s not some kind of Canto-Mex fusion. It’s not even anywhere near Chinatown in Sydney’s Haymarket. There is a Chinatown in Mexicali, Baja, which early in the 20th century was more Chinese than Mexican but the Barrio Chino in question is on Bayswater Road in King Cross.

It’s billed as a Mexican Taqueria and Tequileria. That means modern Mexican street food and lots of tequila.

Lots and lots of tequila, 70-odd options in fact, from pure blanco to aged reposado, and extra anejo in a bar set up by Naren Young of Locanda Verde in New York, with Robbie Stowe behind the bar mixing margaritas and pouring South American and Spanish wines.

If there is a flavour of the month in hospitality, it’s currently Mexican. Barrio Chino distinguishes itself from the pack with high-quality produce and considered design.

Patrons can sit at the bar, tuck themselves away in the booths set down a little hallway or take the air in the lantern-lit open courtyard. Rough timber ceilings, rendered

walls and soft illumination despite bare-bulb lighting contribute to the atmosphere that gets louder as it gets later while the tequila does what it does best and loosens anything stitched up.

Barrio Chino, which in a past life was the location for Darley Street Thai, is the latest venture from accountant Peter Lew and Nicole Galloway formerly of Hugo’s, the pair behind Potts Point’s Fei Jai (Cantonese for Fat Boy… so there’s a tenuous Chinatown connection perhaps). A stronger Chinese connection though is Lew himself, who is the nephew of Gilbert Lau, the renowned Melbourne Cantonese restaurateur of Flower Drum fame (which kind of makes Lew Chinese restaurant royalty).

But the real Chinatown connection is in the approach to food. We expect Mexican food, like Chinese food, to be spicy and feature complex sauces, but here the approach is simple, natural flavours similar to Cantonese cuisine. Interestingly, most Chinatowns in Mexico were populated by those from Guongdong (Canton) province and now include those of mixed Chinese-Latino heritage.

Barrio Chino all makes sense now.

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IN THE TRENCHES Burberry Store Sydney: 343 George Street, Sydney NSW (02) 8296 8588 or www.burberry.com Story: Joanna Lowry

CONTACTS Samsung (displays): 1300 362 603 or www.samsung.com.au Bose (Speakers): 1800 173 371 or www.bose.com.au Orion Integration (LED Video Walls): 1300 656 756 or www.orionintegration.com.au Apple (iPod Docks & iPads): 1300 321 456 or www.apple.com.au

I thought Burberry made raincoats. And scarves. And other luxury apparel drawing on a fixed set of reference points from a British sartorial and military tailoring past. Well, according to Christopher Bailey, Burberry’s Creative Director, Burberry makes ‘content’: “We are now as much a media-content company as we are a design company, because it’s all part of the overall experience.” Hear that? Burberry’s a media company. Which is why two giant, flat-screen LED video walls lie at each end of Burberry’s Sydney flagship store — and, during fashion week, you can watch the runway show in highdefinition, broadcast live from the brand’s London headquarters. It’s also why you’ll find touch-capable screens, iPod docks and iPads nestled in amongst swathes of clothes. It’s a highly interactive retail environment — you can play your own music, peruse digital look-books and log on to clever websites like Burberry’s Art of the Trench, a social media venture where trenchcoat enthusiasts submit photos of themselves rugged up in their Sunday best.

Despite all the fancy technological flourishes, the store doesn’t lose sight of the brand’s heritage. It occupies a 1920s National Trust-protected building that was originally home to the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney. It’s 820sqm of marbled resplendence, complete with brass fixtures, massive columns and sky-high ceilings. And Burberry has refashioned the original detailing into merchandising virtues; using deposit desks to display scarves, reupholstering seating and preserving a wartime honour roll.

The end result is an impressive mélange of the old and the new, a physical manifestation of Burberry’s merging of history and digital initiatives. It’s bricks and mortar — and more.

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24

CORNER HOUSE: WELLROUNDED The Corner House: 281 Bondi Road, Bondi NSW (02) 8020 6698 or www.thecornerhouse.com.au Story: Heather Barton

The Californication of Bondi continues: for better or worse.

The ‘worse’ encompasses the tourist traps on Campbell Parade. The ‘better’ are places like The Corner House on Fletcher and Bondi Roads, once a stop for the Bondi tram.

The tram is an almost lost memory, as is what people refer to as ‘the old Bondi’ (code for ‘working class’). What’s left of it is probably still to be found around Bondi Rd in the viewless, unfashionable, south-west of the suburb where the demographic is now an assorted bunch of bogans, bohemians and increasingly, the bourgeoisie.

Bondi Rd’s hipster venues catering to this melting pot are vaguely surf-noir in sensibility, with places like the Flying Squirrel, the Rum Diaries and Katipo creating a bar and café crawl up the hill from The Corner House.

The Corner House owner and manager, Anthony Kaplan said, “Surf culture is deep in the DNA of the area but there is a burgeoning affluent sector of the community, particularly around Tamarama on the fringe of Bondi. Our vision for The Corner House was to create a venue that would have something for everyone that was high quality but low key. We wanted an understated aesthetic and service that was unobtrusive but knowledgeable.”

They achieved this by eschewing recruitment agencies and hand picking staff based on personality and proof of knowledge. They also burned through two other ar-

chitects before finding the right fit with Sergio Azevedo.

Kaplan said, “Sergio was able to support our ambitions.

We didn’t want to fall victim to fads or trends or cycles. It’s important not to conform to what others think. We had a very clear vision and concept and Sergio got it.”

Inspired by Stanton Social and Smith & Mills in New York, Azevedo restored the building’s original character, using reconditioned elements like salvaged railway tracks, wooden ferry pews and acid treated steel flooring, and a materials palette of copper, leather, zinc and iron throughout the fitout.

The results are evident in the ground floor, living and dining rooms where rustic Italian food, slow-cooked roasts, seasonal specials and classic wood-fire pizzas are served courtesy of chef and co-owner Brent Mills, formerly of Brooklyn NYC’s Sweetwater Tavern. Upstairs the cocktail bar, sprawling balcony and function room cater for more casual encounters and private events.

Kaplan said the success of The Corner House like his other venture The Shop in nearby Curlewis Street was down to being realistic: “Hospitality is not a dream industry and it’s very easy to over-estimate the financial gains. You have to be realistic about costs, time, energy, risks and the negatives as well as the positives, but most importantly have a clear vision and not waiver from it.”

Tell Us Your Vision “Tony (Lewis, of Visual Builders) and I have

worked together on five or six different Sand Hill Road projects now. We’ve developed a way of working, a shorthand, that’s priceless.”

— Matt Mullins

Richmond Club Hotel

1-3 February 2012

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SMOOTH OPERATOR Can you be too popular for your own good?

Just wait a minute and you’ll see.

Matt Mullins is a partner in Sand Hill Road hospitality group

Wanna know what our biggest problem is right now? Well, apart from desperately trying to finish our fifth reno in this one calendar year. And not quite understanding Twitter. And never having enough chefs. Apart from all that, our biggest problem right now is the queue of people waiting to get into our pub. I feel ungrateful saying it. Sounds crazy right?

What could possibly be wrong with crowds waiting to get into our pub?

Plenty, I’m telling you — it’s a nightmare.

We’ve owned the Richmond Club for five years and it’s always been a busy pub. On a busy strip, among other busy venues, close to the busiest sports precinct on earth. And several times a year, after a Collingwood match, or during the Boxing Day Test, or on one of those extraordinary occasions when there’s a One-Dayer at the G, the Victory at AAMI stadium, Pink at Rod Laver and an Amway conference at Vodafone, we were known to have queues. But not every Friday and Saturday. Not from 5.30 onwards. And certainly not two queues! Yep. Two queues.

QUEUE FIREWORKS Here’s how it works: like most pubs, we’ve got a legal capacity. A limit.

We’re allowed a certain number of people in the venue. When we hit that number, we can’t let anyone else in. That’s where the queue comes in. Pretty simple. But here’s where it gets complicated: we also have a limit per level. Once the top floor, or the middle floor, reaches its limit, we can’t let anyone else upstairs. So we end up with a second queue, inside the pub, at the bottom of the stairs. And here’s the really complicated part of it: our legal capacity is much less than our actual capacity, so even when we’re full, we don’t look full.

Now are you seeing the problem? Everyone hates a queue. How do you reckon they feel about two queues? Especially when the place doesn’t even look full?

When I was a uni student, we’d join the crowd moving from cool new club to cool new club. We’d line up if we had to, try to get our name on the door, lie about who we knew, and do everything we could to charm the door bitch (oblivious that if she was actually charm-able she probably wouldn’t have earned the title ‘bitch’). Anyway, when you’re young, you’re programmed somehow to tolerate a bit of time in the queue before you’re allowed to enter your nirvana for the evening.

SILVER LINING Looking back now, I can’t believe how happily we endured it. Sure, great things can happen in a line. Momentous things. I know three couples for instance, who married after meeting in various lines around town in the late ’90s. One couple is even still together. (Rather inconveniently, the other two retrospectively cite their meeting in a line out the front of a club as obvious evidence their love was compromised from the outset. ‘After all,’ they argue. ‘Who the hell meets the love of their life in a queue?!’) But despite the range of love stories that open with a good line — I’m buggered if I’d ever let myself stand in one again. And I’m shocked every time I see a long snaking collection of scantily clad kids doing it at my place. No amount of logic will ever work on them either. We tell ’em it’s an hour wait. They stay in line.

We tell ’em even when they get in, there’s a second queue inside. They stay in line. We tell ’em there are great bars just down the road that are busy but not full, and we can get them in there. Still they stay. Most unbelievable of all, we remind them the wait is an hour, but we’re closing in half an hour… and for some unknown reason that defies all sense and reason, they stay in line!

“Nothing says ‘what the f**k happened to my pub?!’ like a hundred kids in a line sucking free Chupa-Chups”

CRACKING THE FAULT LINE But they don’t stay there quietly. Oh no. Because all that spare time standing around waiting, gives them plenty of time to tweet and post on Facebook.

And what do you think they tweet about while waiting in line? Yep, you guessed it: they tweet about how angry they are to be in line — how it’s my fault they’re in a line, not theirs.

And looking back I recall having thought the same thing. Remember that? Those stories of venues who’d keep you outside to maintain a line, giving the impression they were busy, popular and cool. I’ve got no idea how that business model made it past the accountant. Why you’d prefer a punter and his wallet standing outside, getting angry, making you look busy, rather than inside, buying drinks, making you actually busy, is beyond me. We’ve owned pubs, bars and nightclubs, they’ve all experienced lines at peak times, and I can promise you we’ve never ever considered maintaining a line for the look of it.

So how to deal with it? Well it all depends how you feel about your punters. We’ve always maintained the view that our punters are our business.

That they give us our living, that the pub exists to serve them, and that any inconvenience to them is something we regret. So we start by saying sorry. Our managers and security walk the line and apologise. They carry a big bucket of Chupa-Chups. They hand them out and let people know how long the wait will be. We have a sign that goes up at the front of the line that says: “If you’re in line and reading this we’re sorry. We want you to be inside too. But we have a limit on our license, and we have to stick to the rules. Promise we’ll get you in as soon as we can.”

We’re even developing an iPad app that will enable us to take the name and mobile number of groups wanting to go upstairs. They can then go to the public bar, order a drink, and wait for an automated text letting them know their number’s come up.

Then there’s another problem — we’re a pub. Not a club. Not a restaurant. Not a bar. Just a simple, friendly, local’s pub. If you’re a nightclub, or one of those uber-restaurants, which trade on being the newest and hippest and coolest place in town; your shelf-life limited to a year or two, your business model built around wringing the most out of that narrow window of time, burning bright before burning out, a line out the front is ideal — it’s an important part of the story you wanna tell.

But we wanna tell a very different story. Our place is all about regulars, locals, family and friends. And we lose a little piece of that every time a regular turns up and sees a line. Now, regulars always walk straight in.

It’s their pub, no matter how big the line. But still — nothing says ‘what the f**k happened to my pub?!’ like a hundred kids in a line sucking free Chupa-Chups.

We have our fingers crossed we’ll slow down soon, the kids will move on to the next cool place, and we’ll get our old pub back.

We just have to wait.

Ironically.

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SLICE OF LIFE Komeyui: 396 Bay Street, Port Melbourne VIC (03) 9646 2296 Photos: Nicole England

CONTACTS Baenziger Coles Architects & Interior Designers: (03) 9696 6899 or www.baenzigercoles.com.au The Dinnage Group Builders: (03) 9555 7111 or www.dinnagegroup.com.au Laser Lighting: (03) 9543 9922 or info@laserlighting.com.au Bristol Taubmans (Paint): 131 686 or info@taubmans.com.au

It’s a beautiful thing, watching sushi chef Motomu Kumano sliver perfect cuts of kingfish and salmon. The finesse and dexterity of that single cut is more than enough ‘theatre’ for the average restaurant goer. So it’s a surprise when Motomu says that at previous restaurants (across Japan and in Melbourne at Kenzan) he was always tucked away in the bowels of the kitchen.

When Baenziger Coles Architects & Interiors took the job to design his maiden restaurant, the first thing he handed over was a slip of paper with a simple sketch of his proposed layout for Komeyui.

The chief design feature was a counter stretching down one side of the layout that Motomu now presides over every day.

It has nothing to do with theatre, or being dramatic. For Motomu, the reason for positioning himself out on the floor was so he could see his customers, not the other way round. Koyemui is Motomu’s dream, owning his own restaurant: a simple, humble, honest space that reflects his personality and food. Baenziger Coles has turned the Port Melbourne venue, previously a French restaurant, into a wood haven. It’s a very minimal design, with simple LED fixtures highlighting wooden countertops, a few pendants over the window-side tables, and a miniature garden outdoors — almost a mandatory requirement for Japanese restaurants, explains Motomu with a grin — which he designed and tends.

Lead designer Sue Coles said it was a pleasure to envelop an obviously passionate chef in simple surroundings that would work in the slim budget of his and partner Queenie’s startup. Stripping out the false ceiling and painting the brick walls dark grey to let the American oak stand out. The door, which looked like a prison portal according to Coles has been replaced with a heavy wooden number with Japanese screen detailing.

Motomu uses a lot of local ingredients, which he says have developed a following in Japan. There are a few things he brought in though, including plenty of sake and traditional cast iron Hagama pots to cook up his sushi rice. Although the pots have been used with open flame for centuries in Japan, they had to be converted to gas to line up with Australian standards. Still tastes great.

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George Calombaris teams up with Shane Delia to continue his exploration in simple, authentic cuisine. This time the Ottoman Empire invades the Melbourne suburb of Kew, and Calombaris launches his first events space‌ on TV. Story: Mark Davie St Katherine’s: 26 Cotham Road, Kew VIC (03) 9207 7477 or www.stkatherines.com.au

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Salt & Pepper has picked pieces of Greek plates and smashed together a custom St Katherine's collection

e thought we’d spoil ourselves this time,” said George Calombaris as venue guffaws over the size of St Katherine’s kitchens. If you break it down, which Calombaris has, there are in all three mini-kitchens downstairs and a standalone demo kitchen upstairs at his and Shane Delia’s new Ottoman eatery in Melbourne’s leafy suburb of Kew. DIVIDE & CONQUER The main kitchen is divvied up into three distinct areas: The Turkish Grill, which at its most basic is a long pit similar to what the Ottomans used to dig into the ground, but brought up to 21st century specs by WA-based equipment manufacturer Zesti with refractories and hot air blowing into the coals to fine-tune the cooking temperature. “All meat and fish gets cooked over that,” said George.

The second division he has dubbed The Flour Kitchen for “spanakopita, börek… anything to do with flour and water.” And “the little back kitchen does anything from crushed fava bean dip, to taramosalata with chips, and shanklish and iceberg salads,” said George. “All the knicks and knacks that make up the snacks part of the menu.”

Each area can export dishes at will, and with

more chefs than front of house staff, the divisions are almost a logistical requirement to keep the chefs out of each other’s pockets. “It’s hard to do 300 covers,” said George. “The question was, how do you do that with consistency and get it out quickly? You divide the kitchen and conquer it.”

Other than the workflow, Craig Gorman of Mills Gorman Architects, said there were some simple practical reasons for the kitchen divisions: “The idea of having grilled meat as a central focal point came up as George and Shane were developing their food ideas. The fact that [The Turkish Grill] is purely wood fired, and the complexities that go with that, like heat output, meant that it seemed logical that it be removed from the working kitchen and be placed as a noticeable part of the interior.”

WALK THE TALK Running off 300 covers is a different experience for George, a self-declared “soft little chef” that’s used to having 21 chefs running around him plating up Press Club dishes with tweezers at his flagship 100-seater. George: “Having chefs like Paul Dunlop [head chef] run the kitchen is nice because you realise how hard it is to do big numbers.

“Two weeks ago, I introduced walkie talkies to go between all the kitchens. Before that

they would run and talk to each other. When I brought them in, they were all laughing and playing jokes on each other. But now it’s serious, they love it because they don’t have to move, they can just press a button on the walkie talkie and tell each other, ‘I’m up in three minutes on a grilled barramundi, I need that cracked wheat salad.’ They’re communicating. It’s a constant learning curve for all of us.”

KEW & A St Katherine’s continues Calombaris’ current trajectory back to his roots. While Hellenic Republic at first felt like he was wrenching a U-turn on a getaway from the experimental cuisine he built his reputation on, St Katherine’s is a steadying landmark on the voyage through the waters of his homeland. Similarly, while Hellenic Republic made a clean departure by stripping the food back to its simplest — chanting the mantra ‘honest and clean’ every time lemon juice was squeezed and olive oil drizzled over a fillet of grilled fish — St Katherine’s marks the arrival of a liberated Calombaris and Delia able to step the flavour profile up a notch. “It’s a lot more spice driven,” said George of the Ottoman cuisine, influenced by places like Greece, Cypress, Turkey, Lebanon, Egypt. “The food is heavy on things like coriander seeds and star anise. There’s guts and flavour.”

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DESIGN: A CLEAN PLATE Mills Gorman has played a key role in assisting Calombaris’ exploration of authentic cuisine over the years.

As Calombaris focuses more on simplicity and what he’s deciding to leave off the plate, Craig Gorman and the team have had to follow his lead and take a similar journey. Craig Gorman explains how the design of St Katherine’s achieves authenticity without creating a time warp to the Ottoman Empire or overemphasising aesthetics.

lenge. We really do look hard at all the materials. For instance, all the ‘breeze blocks’ are a simple building block that would typically be used in Malta.

Craig Gorman: “We want to create spaces where the experience feels real and not just another fancy restaurant. The result of the interaction between our crew and their crew are restaurants that have hopefully grown out of something real. There is a storyline to the food, and in the end the architecture is a backdrop to the food.

The food and service is why the restaurant is there. But trying to build up a story from scratch is always a chal-

“We try to make it a place that may have evolved over time, as opposed to one that has just appeared overnight, which obviously it just has. We try not to make it shiny and glossy, but have a matteness to the materials.

There are also not many materials in there.

“We don’t reference other restaurants when we build a restaurant. We try and build up a story from first principles. And then the trick is to balance all those different, important opinions from all sides of the project so it doesn’t look like a mish mash in the end, and has some continuity to it.

“The St Katherine’s venue was a really complex building, because it was an ex bank in one half, as well as offices, and retail. The levels were everywhere. We had

to really clean up the building, and there was a lot of work done just to make the building stand out in its raw form. From there we had a volume to work with and fit everything within.

“Where there is real red brick, in some cases we’ve worked hard to either expose that or reinstate it so that it was in some level presentable. The ceilings are part given and part new, with raw concrete deliberately left as the ceiling in the western dining room. Even though we would have drawn an acoustic or plasterboard ceiling in there, as the building unfolds we’re not shy about beign there, and with George, changing our mind. Sitting on a drawing board is one thing, but good results come out of the accidents that are delivered on site. Our approach is that even if we’ve drawn it 10 times, which often we have, we try and work with those changes that happen, and look at them as opportunities as opposed to pain.”

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“There’s still that essence of sharing, which I think is very important to the way I eat, and the way my family eats,” said George. “And that’s what we wanted to do — transport people into our homes.” It runs both ways on that last point.

Because Calombaris has also been transporting his cuisine closer to people’s homes. The launch location for Hellenic Republic, not in the city but in then unfashionable East Brunswick, was a notable departure. And docking in middle-class Kew for St Katherine’s is a bearing marker on the circumnavigation of the city perimeter. The final stop, for now, will be the impending Mama Baba, which will be a homecoming of Greek mega proportions with a South Yarra location that completes the triangulation of the city.

Before breaking ground at St Katherine’s, Calombaris and Delia were out and about in Kew familiarising themselves with the suburb and its people. Here’s what they found out. George: “There are a lot of families. Our idea of opening up at five o’clock was great because parents could pick up their kids from school, do a bit of shopping, come in, have a bite to eat and be home by 6 to 6:30. That’s important. Everyone says, ‘why did you pick that spot for Hellenic Republic?’

And I don’t know. I stood out the front, and I felt good. Sometimes it’s not about someone standing there with a clicker counting how many cars go by. It’s about the feeling, about the secret that I can’t really explain. We spent two and a half years building [St Katherine’s], there were many drives out here, sitting on the corner, just looking around and getting the feel. We’re two and a half to three months old now, and I’m still constantly changing stuff. It will settle down when it feels right. We offered a takeaway menu but within two weeks we had to stop the takeaway because it was so busy and putting everything in jeopardy.

We’re constantly learning.”

BEHIND THE SCENES TV has been wrapped into the every day of George Calombaris. For nine to 10 months of the year, he’s shooting one Masterchef after another, four days on set up in Sydney, then three days back in Melbourne. And when it’s not Masterchef, there’s Junior Masterchef and potentially Celebrity Masterchef, though more doubtful to return. It’s a lot of face time with the cameras, but Calombaris doesn’t seem too bothered by them.

So much so, that he’s installed some in St Katherine’s events space.

It’s the first time Calombaris has opened an events space (the top level of the Kew restaurant), and strangely enough, the surrounding TV and cameras potentially make the move less alien for the celebrity chef.

The idea is pretty simple. People have always enjoyed watching other people cook on TV, then seeing laypeople like the Julies and the Chris’s on Masterchef gave everyone a taste for TV dinners.

Taking the next logical step, the team behind St Katherine’s commissioned Richard Hallam of Your Sound Investment to not only install audio systems throughout both levels, but to also hook up a system of digital cameras that can stream footage from the demo kitchen onto screens in the main event space.

“We’ve got all the technology up there, with flat

screen TVs that pop out of the ceiling if you want to get up real close and see the detail of us plating up a dish,” said George. “It’s a bit more like a dining room than a boring old function room, which I don’t like.”

In some ways it’s an exercise in excess. The events space seats 100, and the demo kitchen sits off to one side. So it’s not exactly a necessity, but it does save you craning your neck. But for George, it seems to be more about the fun, a local masterclass where guests get to beat the eggs and plate up on the same side of the bench as a culinary icon while their friends or colleagues watch on in high definition.

“People these days want a bit more than sitting in a white room with chairs that have cloth covers over them, and entrée, main, dessert,” said George. “They’re not interested. They want excitement. So why not? There’s nothing to hide.

That’s why all of my kitchens are open, in every restaurant. Show them off, let people see what we do. It doesn’t matter. Even during the bad parts of service, they love to see that as well. You know, sometimes Uncle George gets a bit angry about something. I never yell, I just tell.” As for the set design, architect Craig Gorman of Mills Gorman, said that besides the obvious cameras and mirrors the demo kitchen is actually a fairly normal kitchen with a centrepiece island bench: “It was about that central island bench becoming a focal point and dressing it up in quality materials beyond the average back of house kitchen.

The rest of it is normal, but the central island lets it become part of the room and blur the boundary between the dining room and the kitchen.”

PLAIN INVENTION Although there’s not much time between Masterchefs, George still finds time to try out new recipes away from the limelight. And the new demo kitchen is his current testing base. venue asked him what’s the latest to come out of his experiments.

George: “Well, let’s be quite honest. I’ve never invented anything. I’m always taking influences.

I say it all the time. The minute I stop learning is the minute I should retire and become a tram driver. Life is too short to be naïve and not look at what others do. What’s lovely about Masterchef is I’ve got a network of chefs around the world that I can email, chat to, find out what they’re doing with stuff, and take ideas and make them my own.

“At the moment, it’s all about taking very clean, very crisp, great ingredients and seeing ways that we can present that in a beautiful fashion. It’s about taking great tuna and presenting it beautifully with a little bit of smartness. I think my days are gone where I’m cooking food that’s crazy. I think I’ve matured, and for me it’s all about what I’m taking off the plate, not putting on. That’s where I am in terms of my passion and my food direction. And that’s about growth. I look at one of my young chefs, Josh, who was up in Sydney as one of the finalists for Lexus Young Chef of the Year. He did very well. We talk about his food and the dishes that he’s done, and it’s all about, ‘mate, remove stuff off the plate, rather than putting it on’. It’s a bit like Chanel, before they walk out on the catwalk, they take something off.”

CONTACTS Mills Gorman Architects: (03) 9650 1607 or www.millsgorman.com.au Built-rite Group (Builders): (03) 9397 8004 or info@built-ritegroup.com.au Anne Angel Designs (Graphic Design): (03) 9803 7474 or www.angeldesigns.com.au Technigraf (External Signage): (03) 9429 4002 or info@technigraf.com.au Sabrina Shopfitting (Joinery): (03) 9794 8399 or info@sabrinashopfitting.com.au 1

Zesti: (Custom-made Turkish Grill, 14-Spike Rotisserie & Wood-fired Oven) (08) 9209 3103 or zestiovens@iprimus.com.au

2 Metz (Bluestone-inspired Carreaux Ceramic Tile): (02) 9671 1311 or www.metz.net.au The Gibbon Group (Tretford Carpet): (07) 3881 1777 or www.gibbongroup.com.au RMS Natural Stone & Ceramic (Granite Wall Tile): (02) 9316 9677 or www.rmsmarble.com Hufcor (Operable Walls): (03) 9330 3733 or www.hufcor.com.au 3 De Fazio Tiles (Bizazza Mosaic Tile): (03) 9387 2300 or www.defazio.com.au Mark Tuckey (Bar Stool): (03) 9419 3418 or www.marktuckey.com.au KFive (Pedrali Gilda Chair): (03) 9646 8611 or www.kfive.com.au Thonet (Furniture): 1800 800 777 or www.thonet.com.au

3

“I introduced walkie talkies to go between all the kitchens … ‘I’m up in three minutes on a grilled barramundi, I need that cracked wheat salad.’

They’re communicating”

33

“There’s nothing to hide …

Even during the bad parts of service, they love to see that as well. You know, sometimes Uncle George gets a bit angry about something”

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St Katherine’s Vision…With Sound With one chef partner hosting Masterchef, and the other regularly appearing on daytime TV, the decision to broadcast St Katherine’s vision wasn’t taken lightly. Richard Hallam of Your Sound Investment designed and installed both the visual and audio systems for St Katherine’s, including the live camera setup. Hallam rigged up a three-camera system at the Hilton about 20 years ago, so is no stranger to the task, but worked hard to create a simple solution that looks as good as the food it’s filming.

Images from a Canon HF S20 are sent over three 47-inch Sony commercial screens, one in Private Dining Room 2 (PDR2, closest to the demo kitchen), and two in PDR1. RTI touchscreens communicate with two Kramer presentation boxes (one for each room), allowing selection of camera, set top box, laptops, etc.

When selected on the touchscreen, the screens swing down on motorised Ultralift brackets, switch on and revert to the last input. The roving camera is operated by a couple of film-savvy managers, and can broadcast and record kitchen antics as well as what’s happening in the events space.

Cable runs are between 30 and 70m from the equipment rack at the back of the building. Wanting to retain the highest resolution, YSI ran Cat6 around the building, which the Kramers deliver the images on, and converted back at the screen end. The system reproduces hues accurately over long distances and through multiple devices, without suffering the range limitations of HDMI. The audio system on both levels comprises Bose FreeSpace speakers, controlled by a Bose ControlSpace system with Bose CC64 and CC16 wall panel controls. Audio inputs include a general iPod in the office, as well as a local iPod for ‘Happy Birthday’ renditions. Upstairs there are also wireless handheld and headset microphones (for George’s demos) patched into the Bose wall panels, while all the video and its requisite audio are controlled via the RTI touchpanels. It means MCs can narrate over video presentations, and keeps everything simple. “In hospitality,” said Hallam. “We have to keep it really simple, with so many staff, we have to ensure it can be picked up fast.”

CONTACTS Your Sound Investment: 0419 577 572 or www.ysi.com.au Sony: 1800 017 669 or pro.sony.com.au Ultralift: (03) 9459 0873 or www.ultralift.com.au Bose: 1800 173 371 or www.bose.com.au Kramer Electronics: (07) 3806 4290 or sales@krameraustralia.com.au Avation (RTI touchpanels): (07) 5580 3300 or info@avation.com.au

Black

by Ezard.

At The Star, Paul Kelly Design has developed a truly international dining experience.

Contact

+61 2 9660 8299 paulkellydesign.com.au

Black by Ezard is the first of three new signature restaurants going into The Star.

Story: Heather Barton Black by Ezard: The Star 80 Pyrmont Street, Pyrmont NSW (02) 9777 9000 or www.star.com.au

CONTACTS Paul Kelly Design: (02) 9660 8299 or paul@paulkellydesign.com.au Inlite (Lighting): (02) 9699 3900 or www.inlite.com.au Di Emme Creative Solutions (Booth Feature Pendants): (02) 9550 0811 or www.diemme.com.au Hughes Commercial Furniture (Lounge & PDR Chairs): 1800 242 479 or sales@hughescf.com.au Ke-zu (Andreu World Dining Chair & Side Table): (02) 9669 1788 or www.kezu.com.au James Richardson (Dining Tables & Barstools): (02) 9310 7155 or www.jamesrichardson.com.au Mark Tuckey (PDR Circular Table): (02) 9997 4222 or www.marktuckey.com.au

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lack, at The Star, is a radical departure for Melbourne restaurateur and chef, Teage Ezard. His eponymous, two-hatted Ezard in Flinders Lane, in Melbourne’s CBD, is renowned for Asian cuisine, as are his other Melbourne ventures, Ginger Boy and Upstairs along with his Hong Kong ventures, Opia and Y’s.

Conversely, at Black he’s offering seafood and American grills with grass and grain-fed, wet and dry-aged beef, specifically sourced for woodfired grills and sous vide cooking.

For those that don’t know, sous vide is the term on food aficionados’ lips these days. French for ‘under vacuum’, it is a method of cooking food sealed in airtight plastic bags in a water bath for up to 72 hours at an accurately determined, much lower than normal, temperature. The intention is to keep the food succulent while cooking it evenly, not overdoing the outside and keeping the inside at the same ‘doneness’ throughout.

First described by physicist Sir Benjamin Thompson (Count Rumford, for those that care) in 1799 and rediscovered by French and American engineers in the mid-’60s as an industrial food preservation method, Ezard’s take on sous vide includes ocean water sourced from Hawaii for the seafood dishes: “It comes from 300 feet under the Pacific, is untouched by UV rays, and very similar to glacier water,” he said. “It makes such a difference and is likened to putting the fish back into seawater.

“At Black we are going from the most traditional, rustic way of cooking with a philosophy of wood and fire to the most innovative, contemporary cooking techniques. With the steaks, for instance, we sous vide rare and then they are finished quickly in the wood grill.”

This makes not only good food sense but also good business sense, because the results offer consistency and speed, as well as exceptional flavour and texture.

MOVING QUICKLY Speaking of speed, Ezard said the concept for Black evolved over a lightning six-month period and that, “It’s been an adventure getting there.”

After being introduced to Victor Tiffany, the Las Vegas Head of Hospitality for Echo (the entertainment company that bought Tabcorp, former owner of the casino), who gave him a ‘leg up’ on the concept and then finding chef, Michael Tripp, everything came together apace.

Ezard is well aware it may be seen as a gamble going from stand-alone, fine-dining restaurants specialising in a completely different cuisine to a casino restaurant, which is a very particular kind of beast, but he’s confident, not only because his classical training allows him to straddle styles but because he clearly understands the difference between the ‘genres’ he’s dealing with.

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38 “With a stand-alone restaurant, you are establishing your own identity and brand,” he said. “You are dealing with a wider competitive network and aiming at a limited, niche market. A casino restaurant, on the other hand, has access to various markets, including players, guests, retail shoppers as well as foodies. A casino restaurant has to be friendly, fun and fast. It’s got to be relaxed. You cannot be pretentious; ego is left at the door. Every successful casino has an Italian, Chinese, Japanese and a steak restaurant. We chose to do the steak restaurant because of the floor space. It was a bigger site and it looked out to the harbour.”

STEAKS ARE HIGH? The cooking at Black may be low and slow but the financial stakes are high. When asked if it were to fail would he be looking forward to retirement on the pension, Ezard laughs, saying only, “We have exceeded our expectations to date and we have a solid financial package in place but we are putting everything behind it.”

The confidence to take risks one suspects comes from knowing that if all else fails he ‘can always catch crab and cray’. Ezard comes from a ‘food family’. His father Kevin Ezard, as well as being a wine broker who set the first Victorian Wine exhibition, was in partnership with Hermann Schneider at Melbourne’s legendary Two Faces. He had his two sons eating frogs legs, fish eyes and cocks combs before they were 12 years old and would take them to San Remo on Port Philip Bay to catch live crabs and crayfish that they cook and, of course, eat themselves.

On whether Ezard’s wife Tina, who does PR and Marketing and was a Brand Manager at San Pellegrino when they met, before having their children, Sienna, 4 and Kingston, 2, would be as sanguine about the calculated risk, he simple says, “Tina’s strength is in

managing relationships. Mine is as a perfectionist.”

But there is little risk Ezard would have gone into something he thought might fail. He knows perhaps more than others why they do.

His brother, despite the cock’s combs and frogs legs didn’t go into the family business and became a forensic accountant instead. Perhaps not coincidentally he is often called upon to investigate bad hospitality ventures and prevails upon Teage to help dissect why a restaurant fails.

As Ezard said, “Tricky business, restaurants, if you don’t get the mix right. You have to get the correct combination of people, products and place.”

RIGHT COMBINATION In getting the mix right at Black in terms of people he said: “Hiring in Sydney is different to hiring in Melbourne. The structure is often bigger, certainly in this case with the casino, which is more corporatised, so you need people accustomed to systems and structures, with knowledge that is more hotelbased. But the guy at the top has to be a restaurant guy. In our case, it’s Craig Hemmings, who came to us from Bennelong. For the other staff we went through recruitment firm, Benchmark.

The product is innovative and in demand and the place he left to the designer, Paul Kelly. Kelly is a hospitality specialist and as Ezard said, “I wanted someone on the ground, with local knowledge of the market place. The design brief was one that had to meet international standards and be compatible with the casino design.”

I wondered if it was a commercial decision to venture into Black, having achieved critical acclaim, did he want bigger financial rewards that a casino restaurant might offer? All he would say was, “I’ve never made a decision, in my life, based on money.”

BLACK DESIGN PHILOSOPHY Paul Kelly: The restaurant is designed to take you on a series of journeys. You arrive at the front counter and to your right is a bar area for about 20 people. There are 5000 bottles of wine on display, a selection of ultra high-end spirits and smart-looking cocktail waiters. It’s a nice zone. You can also look into the kitchen and see the flames as the steaks are cooking. So instantly you’re understanding Black, it’s about steaks and wine.

Look straight ahead and you see amazing views of the city.

The restaurant peels away around the corner. As you journey into the restaurant and the main dining area you’ll spot a large two-tonne timber table. As you continue your journey you’ll encounter a semi-private dining space with steel mesh curtains and a big feature table, and more private dining as you journey further. There are plenty of options. You can have a meal in Black and think, “I can come back with my family, or my colleagues, or for a Christmas party.”

The joinery accounted for 30 percent of the build package — so it’s all very high-end custom work and when you touch something there’s complexity and texture.

See overleaf for our full Paul Kelly interview.

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CASINO MAN The Star is a casino complex reborn. Paul Kelly is keeping things fresh.

Story: Christopher Holder Portrait: Sharrin Rees

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or years now, the Star City Casino has largely been a bastion of committed punters. Compared to the likes of Crown in Melbourne or casinos in other regional hubs like Macau or Singapore, Star City has been daggy and provincial.

It was a view shared by new owners Echo. Echo’s Head of Hospitality, Victor Tiffany and his management team recognised the potential and opened the coffers.

A hefty $1b was made available to bury Star City Casino and for ‘The Star’ to shine in its place.

Echo quickly set about putting in place the key pieces of a modern casino complex puzzle. This has meant a vastly expanded entertainment and F&B offering. A new 5000-capacity venue goes upstairs and a 3000-capacity nightclub joins the Lyric Theatre, along with 20 bars and three signature restaurants. The Star is fast becoming a true entertainment precinct; a genuine destination for Sydney-siders and international visitors alike.

But Echo also had the insight to realise that for The Star to truly shine it needed an edge – there was no point playing it safe.

Which goes some way to explaining why Paul Kelly Design was given the responsibility for Black by Ezard, Sokyo restaurant & bar, as well as Antidote – raising plenty of eyebrows in the design community as a result.

ENTER THE MAVERICK Paul Kelly is a venue regular and an accomplished designer of hos-

pitality venues, but he’s not part of the established architectural/design elite. He’s a maverick.

“We were competing against firms I thought would have been a shooin for this job, including a couple of guys who were undertaking international design projects. Saying that, we threw the kitchen sink at our submission — we produced a massive design and fully animated fly-throughs — and we won.

I think management recognised that we were hungry and had the capacity to surprise. Were we the ‘safe’ option? No, it was a gamble.”

Before winning the tender, a briefing was given by Victor Tiffany. Victor holds the distinction of establishing global fine-dining monolith Nobu with Robert DeNiro. Victor is also a casino man through and through.

His brief for Black was: “a steakhouse concept with a twist”. In the meeting a number of benchmark restaurants were referenced — for example, Rockpool was cited as a local market leader — and it was Paul Kelly’s job to sequence the DNA of these vanguard establishments: “The Black design had to have a European charm because Teage Ezard is from Melbourne. So it couldn’t be too heavy on the glitz — couldn’t be too ‘Sydney’. It’s called Black, so there are lots of dark tones, timbers, metallics, screens, leathers — all very approachable. But it’s also glamorous and ‘Vegas’ at the same time.”

Others might describe the look as almost ‘overwhelming’, or on the verge of ‘over the top’. Paul Kelly accepts all these as compliments.

GAME ON? But being a casino restaurant, ultimately it all boils down to the gaming, right? “You might think that, but gaming wasn’t men-

tioned once,” noted Paul. “If the casino can make a million dollars a day out of gaming, it can also make a huge amount of money out of restaurants. The Star doesn’t have a problem attracting punters — those people aren’t going away.

But the people who are spending $2000 a pop on wine aren’t the ones pushing money through pokies. The new clients are the bigger spenders because The Star is now a destination.”

Attracting cashed-up clientele requires some genuine refinement.

To quote The Star PR: ‘Every one of our restaurants has been meticulously planned, from the menu to the wine list to the ambience, to create a unique dining experience that is bound to impress and surprise.’ For once, the hype matches the reality.

SIX MILLION DOLLAR MAN “It’s a $6m interior fitout,” said Paul. “It’s one of the most expensive restaurant fitouts in the country and I doubt if you’ll find another that’s more detailed. And it’s not easy to get that level of quality. People think, ‘oh the bigger the budget, the easier your life is’. Wrong — the stakes are just higher and you need to be far more vigilant. And it’s risky… for us, as much as it is for Echo. For example, right now we’ve got our guys installing 7km of black rope we imported from India — it’s hanging from the ceiling in Sokyo. It’s a gamble for me because if it looks like s**t they won’t give me another job. So I’m taking a gamble. But it’s a case of putting your balls on the line — now isn’t the time to play it safe.”

It’s a high-wire act without a net — can’t afford to be safe; can’t afford to screw up.

“I can tell you right now, if Black did not look good, management would have taken action immediately. That’s the nature of casinos. They’re investing such large amounts of money they wouldn’t hesitate to pull something out immediately. It’s a bit terrifying from our side but that’s the nature of the beast.”

“It’s one of the most expensive restaurant fitouts in the country and I doubt if you’ll find another that’s more detailed”

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Crumpler successfully packs its bags into tight spaces.

Story: Mark Davie

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Crumpler Melbourne Central: Shop 246, Melbourne Central, 211 Latrobe Street, Melbourne VIC (03) 9639 3668 Crumpler Sydney City: Shop 26, The Strand Arcade, 412-414 George St, Sydney NSW (02) 9222 1300 Crumpler Westfield Doncaster: Level G, Shop G131, 619 Doncaster Rd, Doncaster VIC (03) 9855 9164 Crumpler Perth City: Shop T11, Wesley Quarter, cnr Willam St & Hay St, Perth WA (08) 9321 0333

CONTACTS Russell & George Architects: (03) 9038 3240 or info@russellandgeorge.com Dulux (Paint): 13 23 77 or www.dulux.com.au Laminex (Black Laminate): 132 136 or www.laminex.com.au Viridian (Mirror): 1800 810 403 or www.viridianglass.com

etail in Australia is all doom and gloom. And with the clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing sector copping the biggest hit (down 7.5% on last year), bag manufacturers and retailers like Crumpler should be shutting up shop, not opening them. But the messenger bag maker missed that memo, and has just unveiled its 11th store, with plans to open two more in time for the Christmas rush.

The most recent is a high street-sized shopfront wedged in among a gang of hip retailers in the newest part of Melbourne Central called The Corner. It’s a whole new face for the shopping mall, with a relocated escalator shuttling shoppers into the jaws of blue-chip style retailers like Nike, Glue and Hype DC. As if to say, ‘look, retail isn’t dead, shopping is cooler than ever’.

The detail is not lost on Crumpler Creative Director Sam Davy. “We like the neighbours,” he says. And who wouldn’t. For a brand that has exploded from a couple of couriers filling a niche in their own industry, to making a case for almost every other industry. It’s exactly the kind of crowd they want to be hanging around with. It’s in step with the recent push of new stores located in premier shopping destinations like The Strand in Sydney and Westfield Doncaster in Victoria. Having come off six years rolling out a retail presence for Apple as the Creative Director in Cupertino, you can see a lot of similarities between Davy’s Apple and Crumpler store designs: simple central counters, flexible merchandising options, and it’s all about the product.

CREATIVE ARRANGEMENT To help fashion Crumpler’s retail presence Davy has partnered with architect Ryan Russell of Russell & George in a fluid creative relationship. For Russell, the non-traditional working relationship means the process begins quite simply by walking on site and “developing a sketch while we’re in a blank shell, then it gets documented and built.

Sam and I tend to bounce ideas off each other, then just run with it and see what happens.” From there the process gets a little more intricate, with every single Crumpler product computer-modelled to test its fit in the store. “The fixturing is made to be as flexible as humanly possible,” said Russell. “But with different sizes, types of product and colours, which change quite frequently, we went with a combination of three different display methods. One is the grandstand, which allows us to display larger products as a suite, but then also intersperse some of the smaller products. The two flexible wall units allow us to display the messenger bags, and photography bags and straps. It’s a combination of dealing with the smaller and larger products, then breaking it down by category and creating objects that give merchandising flexibility as the ranges change.”

The Melbourne Central store is a modest 35sqm, sitting somewhere between a lower end footprint like The Strand’s 22sqm and the more generous 80sqm at Doncaster. And although it’s half the size of Doncaster, they’ve managed to pack most of the Crumpler range into the new store, minus a few colour/size combinations. “It’s amazing what you can fit into 35sqm,” said Davy. It’s a lot of product, and the use of simple display methods helps it take centre stage. The two wall units are comprised of the webbing Crumpler uses on most of its bag straps.

And for those who are well acquainted with the brand know how tough that stuff is, perfect for carrying 100 times its weight in bags.

The webbing is put to good use at the other shopfronts too, the store at Doncaster “has got a completely woven shopfront,” said Russell. “The product material is at the first touch point. The mall is also very narrow, so when you approach down the long walkways from either end, it allows the shopfront to look like a solid big red block, but as you approach the shop you can see into the store itself. Some of the moves we’ve made to the shopfront are about commanding attention depending on the location.”

For Melbourne Central it was about conveying a sense of Melbourne – grey and overcast. This time the shopfront is made up of vertical aluminium louvres covered with a grey streetscape. It’s similar to an articulating road sign, and when the time comes to shut up shop, it’s great for full lock down. Russell said it’s about “creating an identity for the stores themselves, but not allowing that identity to detract from the product.”

“It’s amazing what you can fit into 35sqm”

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What’s In A Name?

Although Crumpler is savvy about making retail straightforward for the customer, all Crumpler’s bags have odd, sometimes bonkers names — like choosing between anywhere from the '1 Million' up to ‘8 Million Dollar Home’ for your camera, shoving your laptop in a ‘C List Celebrity’ or toting around the ‘Considerable Embarassment’. Here are some of the stories behind the names from Sam Davy.

And the other guy got really irate, leapt off his seat, chair flying, shakes his finger and says, “You’re a disgrace to our industry.”

Then storms out of the breakfast room. We were laughing our heads off saying, ‘there’s a bag name in that.’”

The Seedy Three: “Literally came from ‘Crumpler Design Three’ (CD3), which was the third bag that they made. Over time it’s changed to S-E-E-D-Y.”

The Captain’s Till: “We’ve got new wallets coming out, that we’re prototyping at the moment. When Will and Dave had their messenger business on Flinders Lane, opposite them was a tiny little newspaper and cigarette shop with this guy in there who called himself ‘The Captain’, and he wore a Captain’s hat… the whole thing. And every time Will and Dave would pass by the store, he would yell out, “you should see the amount of money that’s going through my till.” He was obsessed with how much money was going through his till. They’ve been sitting on that name for years just waiting for the right time to use it.”

The Industry Disgrace: “The name for one of our best selling camera straps comes from sitting in a hotel in Vegas at a trade show. There was a big insurance conference there, and a couple of insurance salesmen were sitting at a table discussing the merits of a new calculator. One of them said to the other, “I don’t really subscribe to this new calculator. I don’t think it’s all that.”

Even the ‘serious’ bags have a story behind them. Sam: “When we were developing the business range, there were all these art heists going on. The heist of the Banksy that got ripped off the wall here; the 20th anniversary of the largest art heist in the world, which was in Boston. In the office we just became obsessed with art heists. The big bag is called The Boston Heist.”

The Barney Rustle Blanket: “The name is that of an old school friend of the founder’s, Will and Dave, who was called Barney.

He used to do a lot of rustling under his blanket when they had sleepovers.”

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FEEL “A THE BURN When a fire ripped through its justcompleted renovation, rather than give up, Richmond Club Hotel levelled up.

Story: Mark Davie Photos: Shannon McGrath Richmond Club Hotel: 100 Swan St, Richmond VIC (03) 9428 6722 or www.richmondclubhotel.com.au

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CONTACTS Techne Architects: (03) 9600 0222 or info@techne.com.au Visual Builders: (03) 9533 5860 or www.visualbuilders.com.au H&L (Point of Sale): (03) 9644 4666 or www.hlaustralia.com.au Eymac (Stainless Steel & Bar Refrigeration): (03) 9874 8800 or www.eymac.com.au RTR Productions (Audio): (03) 9381 0530 or www.rtrproductions.com.au Moorabin Cabinets (Joinery): (03) 9555 7571 Vogue Upholstery: 0412 356 535 Easy Blinds (Blinds and Awnings): 0419 334 837 Urbis (Planning Consultants): (03) 8663 4888 or www.urbis.com.au 1

Tait (Outdoor Furniture): (03) 9419 7484 or www.tait.biz Radium Lighting (Pendant Lighting): (03) 9401 3777 Ambience (LED Strips): (03) 9486 3699 Michael Seeley (Landscaping): 0412 207 577 Moreland Glass: (03) 9354 4468 Melsteel (Structural Steel): (03) 9796 3090 or www.melsteel.com.au Potter Cool Rooms: (03) 9762 6743 or info@pottercoolrooms.com.au

rrive onsite to find a small army of railway officials standing round the crane. Tony [Visual Builders] explains: apparently the train drivers have gone on strike. Turns out a 12-tonne steel beam looks pretty scary when it’s swinging 50 feet in the air at the top of a crane and you’re travelling towards it at about 80kmh in the driver’s compartment of a commuter train.”

In case you missed it, that was an excerpt from Matt Mullins’ flyby-the-seat-of-your-pants run-through of Richmond Club Hotel’s eventful rebuild (Smooth Operator, Issue 45). It’s just one anecdote in a long list of sometimes hilarious, but mostly frustrating setbacks and delays that involved a Brook Shields impersonation, two AFL Grand Finals, and a VCAT objection from a guy who couldn’t rightly put a finger on why he objected.

It was far from a rosy experience, and to top it all off, it was the second time round that Matt and the rest of the team at Sand Hill Road had renovated the site. They had just finished a major renovation of the first floor in November 2008, when the whole thing went up in smoke. After a head count to make sure everyone was alright, the boys took a deep breath and got to work again. “We’d just finished a complete reno of the place, upstairs and down, inside and out,” said Matt Mullins. “And it had been so well received.

The business had never been stronger.”

The other problem was that the boys’ architect, Justin Northrop of Techne Architects — the guy that knew the building more intimately than anyone — had just skived off to New York to live.

“That was a curveball,” admits Mullins. “Justin knew the hotel inside and out. He was clearly the man to rebuild it. But the architectural process we employ is highly collaborative. My partners and I spend long hours face to face with the architect, locking in a brief, discussing ideas, drawing and redrawing plans. Doing that from halfway across the globe just didn’t seem possible. But then we thought: hold on, New York’s the coolest city on earth, with the coolest bars on earth. And it’s rooftop nirvana. The whole bloody city is rooftop after rooftop. A New-York based architect is exactly what we need!”

Although it might be über-cool to contract an architect situated in a creative melting pot like New York, it doesn’t make for easy meetings. The solution: enter the modern age of e-architecture.

All day, every day, one computer in the Sand Hill Road office was dedicated to screen watching Justin’s progress, while another was re-commissioned as a Skype video conferencing portal to New York. “Because of the time difference,” said Mullins. “We’d often have these meetings at the end of the day New York time, when Justin was just getting home from some new bar or rooftop he’d discovered. He’d upload to our screen a photo he’d just taken at some flash new place, which would start a whole new design chat, and away we’d go.”

RAISING THE ROOF As devastating as the fire was, the Richmond Club Hotel did benefit from the destruction. The roof, which had previously been a capping point for any extensions was now entirely gone allowing the hotel breathing room for a third level. Likewise, the original Level One floor plan — a brick wall layout of old accommodation rooms that had remained from the original 19th century hotel design — had been exhumed. In a way the fire took it upon itself to do what had always been in the ‘too hard’ basket. Paving the way for a carte blanche, new hotel.

A blank canvas is a good place to start, but with a bar-hopping architect in New York, the temptation to mimic Big Apple bars wholesale could have spelt disaster for a died-in-the-wool local

“New York’s the coolest city on earth. And it’s rooftop nirvana. A NewYork based architect is exactly what we need!”

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crowd. “We’re a community hotel,” said Mullins.

“We’ve owned this place for over five years now, and we’ve owned other venues on this street for a decade. I live two streets away. This is very much our community. In designing the new Richmond Club we were determined to maintain all the character that made it such a locals’ favourite for so long. But we also wanted to make sure we were building something our neighbours would be happy with. In particular, we wanted to ensure we didn’t affect the amenity of the neighbourhood.”

Although the objection that dragged the process through VCAT ended up being a bogus protest from some guy who didn’t even live on the map of the area, Sand Hill Road still takes its neighbour’s peace and quiet very seriously. That’s why the orientation of the hotel is directed at the nine-line Richmond railway viaduct lining the back of the property and not the Swan Street frontage. An inner-city urban aspect that would perfectly suit any New York design influences.

The charred remains of the hotel inspired a lot of the design: with the brick walls now exposed, the towering brick chimneys and blackened and charred steel. The remnants had an industrial quality that is amplified by an internal staircase lined with raw steel mesh like a warehouse elevator shaft, a bar hob supported by a heavy steel beam, a corrugated iron rear fascia, and fluorescents lighting the rear deck. The rustic charm is offset by bold and bright lights and upholstery, just steering the whole interior clear of feeling overly similar to a warehouse.

THE VIEW THROUGH The chance to rebuild the internal structure of the hotel paved the way for some handy architectural solutions. The levels of the Richmond Club aren’t merely separate floors linked by a staircase.

There are levels within levels that are as interconnected by sightlines as by steps. There are private areas, or at least simple seating arrangements that allow groups to form their own circle.

But the public bar influence is never turned off at the Richmond Club Hotel. Even the most removed areas tap into the broader social scene. At one end of the upper level, a generous circular banquette sits proud on a plinth. But a square cutout in the adjoining brickwork prevents even this enclosed circle from becoming exclusive.

There are a couple of ways to move up and down the layers of the hotel, the interior staircase and the back stairway from the beer garden. Spinning off both paths are a collection of balconies, alcoves and booths where patrons can get cosy for the night, but best of all are the birdcages on Level Two. Five individual pods cantilevered off the side of the building provide the premier destination for the view. Like static cars on a ferris wheel, lit up by coloured string lights and taking in everything across the railway line from the Dimmeys and Nylex clocks to the East and South, through to the twinkling light show of AAMI stadium and the mountains of Melbourne’s sporting precinct looming beyond it. It’s Melbourne in a single glance, from the comfort of a glasswrapped, individually-heated pod with retractable roofing, separate bar and bathroom.

Easy to say now but Richmond locals should be grateful for the fire —The Richmond Club Hotel has just got a whole lot better.

Building A Working Relationship Visual Builders built the new look Richmond Club Hotel. It’s one of many the company has completed for Sand Hill Road, having developed a working relationship that works. “Tony (Lewis, of Visual Builders), Justin and I have worked together on five or six different Sand Hill Road projects now,” says Mullins. “We’ve developed a way of working, a shorthand, that’s priceless. We find we can cut time from our schedule, and cash from our budget, by streamlining the design and documentation process, and by retaining some flexibility right through from concept to completion. We don’t draw anything Tony hasn’t already told us he can build efficiently and cost-effectively.

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SPITTING IMAGE OF ITALY SJB helps Alessandro Pavoni transport Westfield shoppers to his Italian homeland.

Story: Jessica Black Spiedo: Level 6, Westfield Sydney, 188 Pitt St, Sydney NSW (02) 8072 9999

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“It was quite a long process… acclimatising the tree so that it wouldn’t go into shock when it arrived on site”

W

estfield Sydney’s chic new dining precinct is worlds away from a suburban shopping centre food court. But breaking Alessandro Pavoni’s new restaurant away from any residual shopping mall preconceptions still proved a defining design challenge. To solve the problem, SJB Interiors looked to life outside of retail.

“We used a mature fig tree as a central element to the Stuzzi bar as a simple tool to bring in a sense of the outdoor. At the moment there is still quite a lot of construction work going on above, but when this is completed in a few months, the open glazed roof will be exposed and so the level of natural daylight will increase dramatically, giving the space an even fresher atmosphere,’’ said Kirsten Stanisich, Director of SJB Interiors.

As it happens, propping an adult fig tree behind a bar requires a substantial amount of babying. To adapt the mature tree to artificial light, it had to undergo doing of UV light showers between sun bathing. “It was quite a long process in the end from selecting the species to acclimatising the tree so that it wouldn’t go into shock when it arrived on site,” said Nikki Johns, project leader for SJB. “Which meant it would drop all of its leaves until it was used to the light levels.”

OH, FOR LOMBARDIA You might recognise chef Alessandro Pavoni’s one-hatted restaurant Ormeggio at The Spit, but fewer perhaps would know the cuisine of his native Lombardy (except for those making certain annual trips to Milan of course). The name is also a slice of the Italian region, taking after Alessandro’s favourite local dish, Spiedo Bresciano — a slow roasted spit of quail, duck and pork served with Storo polenta.

“Spiedo was created by Alessandro, Fulvio and myself to be a true and modern representation of Lombardian cuisine,” said Managing Director of Spiedo, Jeremy Milner. “People didn’t even know Lombardy had its own style of food and they are willing to try something a bit different like our snails, slow braised tripe or ox tongue.”

The question of how to evoke Lombardy led SJB to make the kitchen a central focus of the space, letting the food do the talking. Patrons have the option of sitting at the kitchen counter, like cuddling up to the bar at your local, and watch their meal come together at close quarters.

“Alessandro is so passionate about his food and the experience of preparation,” said Stanisich. “This concept helped open up the kitchen to the diners, who are able to almost sit right inside the kitchen or alternatively sit back and view the preparation as a backdrop to their dining experience.”

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2

1

The Spiedo countertop is made from solid Messmate timber with a lime-wash finish topped with clear polyurethane. The curved bar counter is one of four pieces made by Bindi Furniture, who also made three feature bar-height tables and one feature dining table.

Bindi Furniture: (02) 9773 4042 or www.bindifurniture.com.au

52 CONTACTS SJB Architects & Interiors: (02) 9380 9911 or www.sjb.com.au Euroluce (Lighting): (02) 9380 6222 or www.euroluce.com.au Arcon Australia (Builder): (02) 9389 4100 or arcon@arcon-nsw.com.au 1

Corporate Culture (Magis Steelwood chair): (02) 9690 0077 or www.corporateculture.com.au

2

Kezu (Emu stools): (02) 9669 1788 or www.kezu.com.au Royale Upholstery: (02) 9555 7888 or www.royaleupholstery.com Myles Baldwin Landscape Design (Tree): (02) 9332 4088 or mylesbaldwin.com.au

SPIEDY BUILD Arcon has a few words to say about speedily constructing Spiedo, the challenges, and the warm feeling afterwards.

“From the outset we were very excited at the proposed plans and to work with the Spiedo team and SJB. The initial concept of a restaurant open from breakfast till late at night and the use of earthy warm materials were followed through for a fantastic looking and operating venue.

“The most challenging aspect of the project was to achieve the terracotta ceiling; this was achieved with mechanical fixings and has warmed the whole tenancy. Another challenge was to achieve a balustrade that complied with Australian Standards and the even more stringent Westfield standards whilst giving the restaurant an identity and a feel that was individual. SJB’s Nikki Johns was able to achieve this with the combination of glass louvers, steel frames and timber cladding, all highlighted with a soft light, a component of the restaurant that is functional and now a feature of the restaurant.

“The unique hexagonal tiles patterns made up of individual mosaics, and the use of feature grade messmate timber achieve depth and character within the furniture, bar top and flooring of the premises.

“The project was completed in a tight time frame of 40 days, just in time for Westfield’s official opening of level 6, a credit to the site team and design team and owners for achieving this ambitious goal.”

Lombardy is nearer to Switzerland than Rome and has developed quite a different taste to the capital. Likewise, the dishes you find at Spiedo will most likely differ from typical Aussie-Italian fare. And most of them, you won’t find available anywhere else in Australia.

“The cuisine uses lots of ‘forest’ meats such as wild boar and quail plus freshwater fish (usually from Lake Garda in Italy, but Murray Cod suffices here) and plenty of butter. It showcases specific dishes from around Brescia, like Casoncelli (handmade pasta pillows filled with veal and pork, topped with crispy pancetta, sage and burnt butter) and Sciatt Bitto (buckwheat and grappa batter-coated Bitto cheese on radicchio with a watercress mayonnaise),” said Jeremy.

DRAMATIC OUTDOORS The drama of the space proved a little too lofty for practical purposes, however the SJB and Spiedo team, practiced problem solvers, found a way to bring a sense of comfort to contrast the ceiling’s cathedral height. “We managed this by having a suspended ceiling over a section of the dining area, bar and kitchen finished with terracotta floor tiles. This brought 50% of the space’s ceiling height down to just over 3m and has made the dining space both open and more intimate,” said Jeremy.

Another feature bringing in the outdoors is a set of louvers that let in a flood of natural light and give diners a bird’s eye view of Castlereigh Street. However, as with the ceiling, the sense of alfresco wasn’t always practical. “The only downfall is the louvers open every time the fire alarm is triggered — which is daily!” said Jeremy. “And we get gusts of cold air blowing over our guests.”

While the problem of the erratic louvers is a work in progress, the division of the floor between intimate and more open plan dining works well, and is a distinction SJB designed to mirror the two-part menu. “We were inspired by Alessandro’s menu, which is made up of a main menu and a lighter grazing ‘Stuzzi’ menu,” said Stanisich. “So it seemed natural to design a restaurant with different spaces to reflect this. This is primarily why we explored the idea of the inside and outside spaces.”

Now Alessandro has extended Sydney’s palate, the hurdle to educate punters of extended hours remains. “Our biggest issue is that after the normal retail trading hours the whole centre only has two entry points and one exit point, meaning the place looks closed, however there are up to eight restaurants trading until late,” said Jeremy. “This is an issue the Westfield team are working on.”

Half Moon: 120 Church Street, Brighton VIC (03) 9591 0611 or www.halfmoon.com.au

CONTACTS Projects of Imagination: (03) 9533 9991 or info@projectsofimagination.com Leeda Projects (Construction & Project Management): (03) 9357 6320 or www.leeda.com.au Aeria Tiles: (03) 9690 9292 or www.aeria.com.au Classic Ceramics (Tiles): (02) 9560 6555 or www.classicceramics.com.au Rogerseller (Sanitaryware): (03) 9429 8888 or www.rogerseller.com.au Eco Timber (Timber Flooring): (03) 9421 6866 or www.ecotimbergroup.com.au United Refrigeration (Kitchen & Refrigeration): (03) 9357 1401 or www.unitedrefrig.com.au Icon Creations (Signage): (03) 9587 5055 or www.iconcreations.com.au

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Thonet Furniture: (03) 9417 0077 or www.thonet.com.au Cotswold Furniture: 1800 677 047 or www.cotswoldfurniture.com.au Living Edge Furniture: (03) 9009 3940 or www.livingedge.com.au Rugs Carpet & Design (Carpet): (03) 9428 6223 or www.rc-d.com.au Ayus (Landscaping): (03) 9376 9311 or info@ayus.com.au Guilfoyles (Demolition): (03) 9399 2222 or www.guilfoyle.com.au Clearview (Awnings): (03) 9819 1144 or www.clearviewsuncontrol.com.au

A

lways considered somewhat of a sister venue to The Botanical while chef Paul Wilson was heading both ships, Brighton’s Half Moon pub is really quite distinct. In full view of the railway station, on a street lined with European cars, Half Moon is open, breezy and exactly the sort of sun-soaked, sophisticated pub you would expect for the seaside town. Colonial Leisure Group drafted Projects of Imagination to design the new pub, which features six drinking and dining spaces over two levels interconnected by a timber batten staircase and walkway that provides a vantage point over the entire venue. The courtyard features a Celmec air mist cooling system and landscape by Greg Palmer, the Molina room, named after the brothers who originally owned the pub, seats 20, and upstairs, the Henry room is a cocktail-style bar with DJ booth, open fireplace, and a terrace. Digital Living designed and installed the audio system, opting for a similar Martin Audio and control system they created for the Botanical.

Switching between Half Moon’s multiplicity of indoor and outdoor spaces is mostly seamless. Palmer’s landscaping combined with the sun streaming through generous glass windows give the indoor lounges a degree of natural warmth. It’s more like sun and shade than out and indoors. At the same time, Half Moon doesn’t rely solely on light-filled ambience, the Molina room is sufficiently moody, and Projects of Imagination has a knack for instilling designs with a sense of authenticity. Vintage wine posters, brass lights and mesh bar racking, cement tiles in nautical graphic patterns, and little touches like coat and bag hooks under each timber ledge all augment the intricate and prolific use of timber joinery.

Leeda Projects were the project managers and builders for the almost complete overhaul of the existing Half Moon structure. It was a tight timescale, and when you consider the time-consuming task of the individually fixed and cut timber battens on the staircase vial, and over 160 hours spent on detailing the dovetail featured ground floor bar top alone, it’s a remarkable effort.

COOL TEMPERATURE SYSTEM Keeping the balance between indoors and out are Celmec International’s heating and cooling solutions. Celmec Heatray gas-fired infrared radiant heaters, specifically the Heatray model IRH114, regulate the temperature of the courtyard in Winter. The heaters had to operate from the lofty decorative beams of the courtyard, which is where radiant heaters have the advantage, heating only objects they hit and not the air in between. The heaters are operated in pairs, to give staff full control over coverage. In the summer, when things naturally heat up, Celmec’s Celmist evaporative cooling system takes over. Celmist sprays an ultra-fine mist into the air at high level, and when the mist evaporates, the exchange of energy lowers the overall ambient air temperature. The problem with mist systems in the past is the damp environment they created, which Celmist avoids completely. The system monitors the temperature and humidity to gauge when it needs to release a fresh dose of cooling mist, providing an automated, energy efficient, silent way of cooling down Brighton locals on their way to and from the beach.

Celmec (Outdoor Heaters & Cool Misting System): (03) 9555 3667 or www.celmec-international.com

55

AV — Not By Half Digital Living designed, supplied and installed the AV system at Half Moon. The main system comprises Martin Audio OmniLine speakers throughout the main bar and courtyard areas and Martin Audio subwoofers that really liven up and easily fill the complex rooms with sound.

In the dining room, QSC AD-S32 speakers and a matching Acoustic Design series subwoofer blend well into the surrounds to provide a more discreet look when dining while still able to produce more than enough power when required.

The Central room has two Martin Audio AQ8 loud speakers and a Martin AQ210 subwoofer built discreetly into the wall. It can accommodate everyone from DJs, to private parties using customer controlled iPods, and corporate events using laptop displayed using both a fixed screen and mobile trolley.

The Henry room is a larger private function space and uses a number of QSC AD-S52 loudspeakers and AD-S28Tw subwoofers.

With built-in screens and strategically laid out DJ, microphone and iPod points around the room make the space versatile for events as well as provide an over flow for the facilities downstairs.

The Molina private dining room takes advantage of the mobile AV trolley allowing for wireless laptop presentation, Foxtel/TV and DVD. When not in use the mobile AV trolley can then be moved to a number of different locations around the venue or simply packed away.

Digital Living’s custom-designed Venue Controller controls the whole facility. Allen & Heath IDr8 handles DSP processing with RTI touchscreens placed throughout the venue to control the displays and audio levels as well as set up different room scenarios with pre-programmed presets.

56

Corporate customers are catered for with wireless VGA senders to allow laptop presentations to be sent to the installed plasma screens and mobile trolleys. Internal signage, events promotions and social media feedback facilities are all conveniently routed from either the main bar or the manager’s office.

CONTACTS Digital Living: 1300 336 257 or info@digitalliving.com.au TAG (Martin, QSC, Allen & Heath): (03) 9350 4002 or info@tag.com.au Avation (RTI touchpanels): (07) 5580 3300 or info@avation.com.au

NEW

LM-8000 — PX-8000 —

RM-8000 —

PX-8000 _Unlimited expansion of output area in link with Main System _ RS-422 full duplex communication with remote stations _ 5-stage priority control for audio outputs _ Built-in digital record and playback module _ 2-band HF/LF equalization on each channel _ 8 sets of dry contacts for triggering emergency announcements _ May be connected to the LM-8000 remote stations (up to 8 units) _ 1 paging microphone input channel (with phantom power switch) for local paging RM-8000 Remote Microphone Station _ 8 zones with individual zone and ‘all zone’ selection switches _ Audio output level LED display _ 8 inputs by 8 outputs matrix _ Built-in pre-announce chime _ Monitor speaker level control _ Audio output level control _ The audio program input channels of PX-8000 are shown on the alphanumeric indicator _ LM-8000 provides for local inputs for audio program and MIC PAC-5000 —

PAC-5000 _ Integrated digital PA combination system (all in one system) _ Simultaneous 2 group different broadcasting _ Digital processing & digital amplifier _ CD copy (extend life-time of cd mechanism) Distributed in Australia by: Magna Systems and Engineering, Unit 2, 28 Smith Street, Chatswood, NSW 2067 Australia Tel: (02) 9417 1111 Fax: (02) 9417 2394

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC Melbourne’s Darcy Group is the first independent operator to open up a venue on the river side of South Wharf. And it looks like getting in early with the Melbourne public is paying off.

Story: Matt Caton Melbourne Public: 11 Dukes Walk, South Wharf VIC (03) 9268 7600 or www.melbournepublic.com.au

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A

t times, Melbourne can look a lot like SimCity. In the game, if you clicked and dragged over an industrial zoned area, and flipped it to a commercial zone in the right location, businesses would start popping up like daisies on a spring afternoon. Melbourne’s latest waterfront development, the South Wharf Boardwalk Precinct, is proving this concept is pretty accurate in real life as well.

Jumping in early, The Darcy Group chose this emerging entertainment hot spot for their latest venture, Melbourne Public. Nestled under the shadow of the Melbourne Convention and Entertainment Centre with close proximity to the Hilton Hotel, the iconic Polly Woodside, the DFO shopping hub and a surprisingly short 900m walk to Etihad stadium, Melbourne Public currently sits pride of place in what has all hope of becoming one of Melbourne’s premiere nightlife districts.

Exposing Character After the successful, but somewhat safe development of Richmond’s Precinct Hotel (which, because the Darcy’s never stray too far from footy, is a short 900m walk from the MCG) the group called up flavour of the month designers Projects of Imagination to give one of Melbourne’s oldest shipping areas a fresh face.

The 8m-high ceilings of the former Titan Wire Factory would initially seem rather daunting. But instead of fighting it, one of the group’s partners and Head of New Business, Matt Darcy, wanted to embrace the building’s feel and create a 1920’s industrial inspired look, that still managed to remain contemporary.

“We didn’t want people to feel like they were walking into an airplane hangar,” explained Matt, when asked about the non-structural exposed H-beams that sit above the main bar floor. While primarily bringing the eye line to a manageable level, the beams double as a hanging point for replica gas light fixtures throughout the bar that form the basis of the heritage recreation. “Most of the design items were pretty custom, with the bar made out of custom-made NX Blackbutt Timber, to even the carpet which displays a Melbourne Public log,” said Matt.

Tasmanian Oak floors and walls continue the ‘past and present’ theme, which is rounded out by internal walls that include Daniel Robertson Scott System brick snaps, old black and white photography and 1920s newspaper prints.

Good Citizen Adjacent to, and connected by an interior walkway to Melbourne Public is Citizen Cafe. Also under the Darcy Group banner, the cafe compliments the main venue both in style and substance, catering to the morning coffee, lunch and light-dining brigade. Breaking the long tenancy into two venues works well, saving the open factory for the main event, and utilising the remaining thin corner slice for daytime trade spilling out onto the concourse.

“We didn’t want people to feel like they were walking into an airplane hangar”

59

Inside Melbourne Public itself, you’d struggle to go hungry or thirsty. “We wanted a venue that could cater for corporates or local residents who wanted an intimate sit down meal with table service, but also have available the traditional pub fare out in the main bar,” explained Matt. This has resulted in an ‘almost’ hidden 120-seat restaurant, that while sits raised behind the main bar, still manages to not totally exclude itself from the action. “I got the idea from a place I saw in New York, where the restaurant was raised behind the main bar and felt very intimate, but I was astounded that it still didn’t feel like a separate or different space.” It’s quite realistic to imagine the pre-footy crowd ordering Parmas and Kievs in the bar area while swish international convention-types dine and talk turkey merely metres away.

60

Fully Decked Out When it gets late and the drinks have been flowing, punters want music and they want it loud.

Charlie Kopa of Commercial AV had the job of designing and installing the audio system, which considering a myriad of factors, needed to be precise. “We wanted to create a fairly even dispersion across the entire venue both inside and out, even in the restaurant,” remarked Charlie.

“But we still had to be mindful of the surrounding residents and the hotel.” Commercial AV installed a full QSC sound package throughout Melbourne Public’s various spaces. A careful mixture of five-inch and eight-inch speakers spaced cleverly around the H beams, with ceiling-mounted fill speakers above the restaurant, creates solid coverage that points back into the venue while limiting leakage outdoors.

Charlie, with the help of Tony Cimino of TC Industries, used a Crestron control system that interfaces with the QSC amps, and allows for easy one-touch on/off, and up/down settings, because really, who wants to rely on the casual bar guy, who ‘once mixed sound for a pub band in the 90’s’, to turn your sound on? The control extends to several Samsung plasmas that can all potentially run different inputs. The system has been fully programmed to turn on and off without anybody even doing anything, as well as adjust level as the night goes on, which always seems to be the surest and safest way to do things. The lighting is controlled by a Philips Dynalite lighting control system, which even integrates control of the old-style industrial pendants into the modern colour LCD touchscreen on the wall.

Finished Look Visualising a large project on computer is a good indicator, but nothing like running your hand across a benchtop in the finished space. The end result has pleased Matt Darcy and the entire group a great deal, “You spend two years looking at 3D renders, to finally see and touch the end result. And having it turn out even better than I thought is very satisfying.”

CONTACTS Projects of Imagination (Interior Design): (03) 9533 9991 or www.projectsofimagination.com Isis (Builder): (03) 9690 9555 or www.isis.com.au Direct Architects: (03) 9099 1375 Commercial AV (AV Install): (03) 9687 8811 or www.commercialav.com.au 1

Tarlo and Graham (Light Fixtures): (03) 9521 2221 or www.tarloandgraham.com Lightmoves (Philips Dynalite Lighting Control): (03) 9701 2500 or www.lightmoves.com.au

1

61

BYRON BY NAME &

BY NATURE There are plenty of ways to lose and find yourself at Byron’s rainforest retreat.

Story: Mark Davie 62

The Byron at Byron: 77-97 Broken Head Road, Byron Bay 1300 554 362 or www.thebyronatbyron.com.au

“Even the noise of the drawstring stopper rapping against the venetians mimics the calming melody of wooden chimes”

“J

ust pick up the phone and dial ‘hash’.” It’s a punch line that John Pache, who manages The Byron at Byron Resort & Spa with his wife Lyn, has probably used at least 100 times before. But it goes off a treat one more time as his wide-eyed guests chuckle at the cultured proprietor’s dig at Byron’s hippy culture. Many things are taken very seriously at the Byron at Byron, like food, spa treatments and local ecology. But as John demonstrates on arrival, sometimes you need to relax a little — it is a resort after all.

The Byron at Byron is a Gerry Harvey-owned paradise escape set in 45 acres of prime Byron rainforest, of which the actual buildings only occupy a small footprint. The rest is left to its devices, even the odd bush turkey foraging its way through the foliage might unwittingly find its way onto the pool deck. At first, you can easily get lost at the Byron at Byron.

The rainforest is immersive, you can walk along most of the boardwalks and have absolutely no landmarks or idea of where you’re going. It’s part of the charm I guess, losing a bit of control.

The entire resort experience has a sense of serenity. Even on arrival, the rainforest vista, flanked on either side by reception and the restaurant, is enough to wing away any woes. This central area also features a pool, sauna, spa treatment facilities, and an ample conference centre with a large space divisible into three rooms; the larger Tallow Creek Room that can hold up to 80 delegates, and the Wild Orchid and Scribbly Gum Rooms that are half the size. It’s the perfect place for corporate brainstorms, but you might have to close the louvers to get any work done.

Conferencing doesn’t need to be restrictive though, and at the Byron at Byron, meetings can happen anywhere. The whole resort can be hired if need be. In which case, the lawn, the poolside deck, marquees, the rainforest huts, Bolli Point and the serene Lotus Gardens, anything and everything is at your disposal for some sort of gathering.

ROOM TO MOVE The rooms are a short walk from the main hub and set in mini blocks of four apartments stemming from a central walkway. The rooms themselves are spacious and perfectly suit the rainforest environment. Even the noise of the drawstring stopper rapping against the venetians mimics the calming melody of wooden chimes.

There are three types of rooms, from standard to deluxe spa suites — but other than missing a bedroom TV (there’s still one in the lounge) and venetians in the entry level offering, and gaining better fixtures and finishes, spa jets in your bath, and a more secluded location at the top end, not much divides them. All the room layouts are basically the same, which is generous to the say the least. The rooms are well-appointed without being ostentatious. It’s by and large open plan, with separate sliding doors to section off the bedroom and bathroom from the main living area.

There are sliding screens of translucent panels set in wooden frames everywhere, and can be used for equal effect to divide the room into a comfortable floor plan, or to remove any delineations altogether.

It becomes about not just how the space is set out in the design, but how you use the space. The bedroom is perhaps one of the more cosy areas of the design, but the dividing screen makes way for instant connection with the lounge and bathroom. And best of all, with everything opened up you can view the rainforest from any point in the room. In fact, if you weren’t happy lounging on the bed, you can lounge on any one of two decks, the bay window daybed in the bedroom or even from the leisurely chaise in the lounge. Just relax — it is a resort after all.

LOCAL PRODUCE The rooms are all self-contained, so if the inspiration strikes to rustle up a meal from local farmer’s market produce, the kit is all there. For those not in the know, Byron has a wealth of quality local producers.

You can find everything from macadamias, to cacao, traditionally crafted sourdough bread, cheeses and more. The rich red soil, abundant rainfall and temperate climate make for great growing conditions, and the local farmers markets are constantly brimming with fresh produce.

It’s a honey pot for head chef Gavin Hughes, who sources a lot of his ingredients from local farmers, and prefers to let the produce speak for itself in his cooking.

Of course, food isn’t the only local product Byron has to offer. Tallow beach is only a 10-minute walk away, through the resort and rainforest.

There’s also a local industrial estate nearby, which in typical Byron fashion houses artists, circus troupes and craftsmen instead of panel beaters and mechanics. It’s a wealth of experiences to mine for offsite team building activities. The Byron at Byron itself hosts a complimentary yoga session held by a local each morning at eight. Then there are the more ‘active’ activities, like mountain bike riding, surfing, diving, and hot-air ballooning — all of which the resort can organise for intrepid explorers or groups eager to stretch their legs.

But most of all, the Byron at Byron lives up to the area’s reputation as a relaxed seaside town — all you have to do is pick up the phone.

63

Carpet Is Your Canvas

How Important Is Comfort?

Gaming imagery has become a bit of a focus for Whitecliffe clients lately, this HTW carpet shows the almost limitless ability of its design system, allowing any imagery, gaming or otherwise to be set underfoot. Similar HTW Arcade 360 carpet was used in the ANZ Stadium, Suncorp Stadium and Auckland International Airport. It’s available in both carpet tile and broadloom format, with a 5-week delivery. It’s a flexible and cost effective floorcovering for venue owners and commercial fitouts.

Aesthetics are important but comfort is the number one priority for gaming rooms. Poker machine bases aren’t exactly obvious revenue spinners, but if the machine, gaming stool and base are not in proportion the player’s ergonomics could be right out. Getting the game right is only part of the equation, it’s the whole package that will ensure the success of your gaming room — the chair, the base, the game, and how they relate to one another. The height of your machine will depend on the base, and the player must be in the right position to feel comfortable playing, which is where the height of the stool comes in. It’s also important to give a level of privacy for the player and this is achieved with the correct spacing between machines. Capital Design Works offers expertise in gaming room furniture. The products are made to the highest standard built for comfort and lasting quality.

Whitecliffe: (02) 8595 1111 or sales@whitecliffe.com.au

Capital Design Works: contact Nicole Thomas on 0438 528 066 or (02) 9771 2885.

64

commercial edge

Classico Fudge

RBA’s Water Saving Tapware

Five new designs have been added to the Caesarstone Classico collection.

Ocean Foam is a whiter white on a blended fine quartz structure. Crème Brule and Wild Rice both use a gentle mix of varying quartz sizes to delicately integrate colours, Shitake is a blend of white and darker mushroom tones, and Cocoa Fudge (above) is a rich chocolate brown colour.

RBA’s Water Saving Tapware line embodies our goal to be efficient and environmentally friendly. Every model in the RBA Water Saving Tapware line has the highest possible Water Efficiency Rating of 6 stars. The tapware comes in a variety of aesthetically pleasing and useful designs including stainless steel and disabled compliant models. It’s perfect for a variety of different applications such as offices, schools, shopping centers, stadiums, airports, public washrooms, or any infrastructure being built with the goal to be water efficient and environmentally friendly. RBA’s Water Saving Tapware line features a pre-set timed flow of seven seconds. A number of RBA’s Water Saving Taps are also vandal resistant, making them suitable for public areas. Benefits also include simple installation, easy operation and low maintenance.

Caesarstone: 1300 119 119 or www.caesarstone.com.au

RBA: 1300 788 778 or www.rba.com.au

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issue forty six

2011 S t K at h e r i n e ' s Black By Ezard

TV Dinners Masterchef in the 'burbs Paul Kelly Goes All in at The Star

page 36

BETTING ON BLACK Crumpler’s Bag of Retail Tricks page 42

+

Spiedo Byron At Byron Half Moon Melbourne Public Richmond Club Hotel

+ More

$9.95 inc gst

46

9 771832 143005 46

of Retail Tricks Crumpler’s Bag

$9.95 inc gst

page 42

Paul Kelly Goes All in at The Star 63 egap

BETTING ON BLACK

TV Dinners Masterchef in the 'burbs

+ More

Richmond Club Hotel Melbourne Public Half Moon Byron At Byron Spiedo

The Beach Hotel - Albert Park Mansions - Adelaide Woolshed - Docklands.

Gilligans - Cairns Burswood Casino - Perth Dust Till Dawn – Hong Kong PJ O’ Briens - Cairns Envy – Surfers Paradise Felix Bar – Melbourne Sky City Casino - Darwin Stamford Grand Hotel - Adelaide Cypress Lakes – NSW Boracay Regency - Manilla The Doutta Gala Hotel - Melbourne African Club - Tokyo Curly’s Bar - Tasmania The Queenslander Hotel - Bundaberg A Bar Called Barry – Balcony Bar O Malleys Irish Tavern - Mildura The Australian Hotel - Canberra The Loft - Melbourne Court House Hotel – Port Douglas Station 59 - Melbourne Pastoral Hotel - Dubbo The George Hotel - Ballarat Bullion Bar – Outdoor Nightclub Lamana – Port Moresby Moorebank Sports - NSW Campbelltown RSL - NSW Felix Bar - St Kilda

problem solved

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drazE yB kcalB s'enirehtaK tS

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