venue people

people

people

» Cover: George Calombaris, Hellenic Republic » Photo: Corey Sleap

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Interviews i of the Dragon — 04 Clive Morely — 09 Sky Room — 14 Cutler & Co. — 04 Cloudland — 04 Hellenic Republic — 04 Spice Market — 04 Vernon Chalker — 04 Fifteen — 04 Neil Perry — 04 Will & Toby — 04 Blue Diamond — 04 Longrain — 04 Crown Entertainment — 04 Paul Mathis — 04

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 © 2009 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.

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venue is all about people. Sure, the magazine is full of great-looking spaces and we love cool design and architecture… but it’s the venue owners and operators that are the real heroes.

We’re really pleased with the way the venu-e-zines have come up — they’re easy to leaf through and the much of the picture quality has been preserved. Indeed, we were so satisfied it got me thinking about packaging up web-exclusive versions of venue. And here we are, venue people, a compilation of our best owner/ manager interviews.

Enjoy!

Christopher Holder Editorial Director

»

transit

i

of the Dragon

When it comes to Hong Kong nightlife, Gilbert Yeung is ‘big man on campus’. venue drops by his Dragon-i club for some pearls of wisdom.

D

ragon-i is arguably the most famous, the most successful, the best run, most glamourous club in Hong Kong. At its helm is Gilbert Yeung. Gilbert is the scion of a fabulously wealthy property developer.

His privileged upbringing brought plenty of swanky party invitations, which… hang on, I’ll let Gilbert tell the story: Gilbert Yeung: Back in 1999, me and Gordon Lam, a club promoter, met up. He’s a Chinese guy who was brought up in London and when he returned to Hong Kong we started to hang out and go to all these parties — y’know, launch events — where we’d see the same old thing over and over again. We were amazed: if you’re going to invest enormous amounts of money and invite guests to come to your brand party you want to leave people with a good impression, otherwise, why do it? venue: But these were formulaic?

GY: Exactly. You go there and then the next day you’re like, “What did you do last night Gilbert?” “Oh I went to some party.” “What was it?” And in most cases you’d hardly remember it was so boring.

Gordon and I thought that if we got a chance we’d do something really crazy, really edgy. As it happened, I was having my haircut and my hairdresser said, “I’m opening a new place called Ken Qi Hair Salon,” which was a really hip salon in those days. He said, “Gilbert, I’d like to invite you.” “Is it like a cocktail thing?” “No, I want to throw a hip party, y’know because it’s a hip salon.” And I said, “Who’s

doing it for you?” He said, “I have this PR company.” I said, “Me and my partner, we want to do something like this.

Give me a chance and I’ll give you a proposal.”

I rang Gordon, he came over, we opened a couple of bottles of whiskey, and we came up with some ideas, a format, and gave it to him. The Ken Qi guy said: “Yeah Gilbert, I’m not sure I should be doing this, but I’m gonna give you a chance.”

So we did the party and ‘Boom!’ it was an instant success.

Then after that Moschino, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, all these brands started to approach us.

venue: I guess the biggest challenge is to get the right people to these events… getting them to open the invitation envelope.

GY: Yes, exactly, the first impression for your party is the invitation. We did a beach party once for Carlsberg and I rang the Coppertone distributor in Hong Kong. We bought 1000 bottles of Coppertone, we ripped off the Coppertone label and put on a label of our own. A twist like that can mean everything.

Join the Club venue: Am I right in saying your Dad was running a nightclub at the time you started staging these parties?

GY: That’s right. Our success didn’t go unnoticed by my father who had a nightclub called Pink Mao Mao. Initially, the club was very successful but it was in the wrong part of town and after the honeymoon period it began to suffer.

Dad said, “Look Gilbert, I want you to run the club for me.”

I said “no thanks”, because the club was in Happy Valley, and I’m a Central boy — I hang out in Lan Kwai Fong and Central, I don’t come to Happy Valley.

He said, “I’m sorry. You’re my son, you have to do what I tell you.” I said, “You know what? I’ll do one night for you!” So we took on Wednesday for him. We came up with the idea of making the night free to fashion models.

Then with the models on board we changed aspects of the lighting, the décor, we finessed the atmosphere, the

music, everything, and at that time no clubs had a door bitch, so we hired a supercool door bitch. She was an Australian woman. She was six feet tall and covered in tattoos. And we said to her, “We don’t care that it’s winter, we need you to show all your tattoos.” She was amazing.

When you go to a party and you see a door bitch like that you’re like, ‘Wow, I want to come to this party.’

Within five or six weeks we built up the club. A lot of operators phoned us: “Gilbert, how do you do it? You’re in the middle of nowhere and everybody goes to your place.” Yes, because when people need an apple, you give them an apple. It’s a simple formula. My team,

we’re party people, and we’ve been partying for years, so we know what people need. And, most importantly, we do it out of passion; we don’t do it for the money. We want to throw a good party, and people can smell that, they know if you’re just making a cynical grab for cash. venue: And this drew you into running your own club?

GY: I always wanted to do a club and I always wanted to learn how to do a club. Then I found this dream venue where we are now: a beautiful terrace with a high ceiling and big floor plan — in Hong Kong it’s very difficult to find a big floor plan with a high ceiling. Then we start pitching the idea, and I had to get finance from my family, I had to sign a loan from my own father. venue: No free ride then?

GY: No, no. He said, “this is not a cheque for you to play around with, so you can sit there and have your cigar and your bottle of champagne with 50 blonde girls sitting next to you”. venue: Was it instantly successful?

GY: It took us a long time to make our money back. But I like to run the business differently to other operators... my partners are always challenging my theories about running a business. venue: What theories?

GY: For example, our maintenance bills for Dragon-i are enormous. For the first two and a half years I’d go in the club at about 2 or 3pm everyday, and I’m like a sniffer dog trying to find scratches on the furniture and upholstery: “What is this? Come on, I told you, we have to keep this place immaculate. [clicks fingers]. Replace it right away.” venue: It’s the detail that people pick up on then?

GY: Yes. You think people don’t notice the details, but they do. And that’s what the whole concept of Dragon-i is about — you can feel it. What do I mean? If you go to a restaurant you can feel it right away; whether the people who run it are really paying attention to every detail — to the uniform, to the lighting, to the candles, where they put the ashtrays, what kind of music is being played, when to dim the lights. Us? At 11 o’clock sharp, boom, we dim down the lights and then all the tables are lowered four inches. venue: I beg your pardon?

GY: Dragon-i is a multi-functional place — we do lunch, we do dinner, we do happy hour, we do lounge, we do clubbing. After dinner, at 11 o’clock, we start up a separate sound system and we remove about four inches from the dining tables. So at 11 o’clock the staff will ask you to hold onto your drink, take off the top, and the table will be four inches shorter. Why? Because after dinner if you’re partying, you need more room to dance and move around. venue: Was that an easy proposal to get past your partners?

GY: No. They said, “but Gilbert, that will disturb the guests. A waitress will need to clean the table top, take the dishes away and ask the guest to hold their drink for a second — it would disturb the guest for at least two or three minutes!” You know what? The guests will really appreciate it, because it shows that you thought about their comfort. venue: And your decision has been vindicated?

GY: Yes. Because it demonstrates to the guest that they’re the most important person to us. We’re not thinking about our pockets; we’re not thinking about how much we can charge for drinks; we’re thinking about their comfort.

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» inside & out: Dragon-i’s interior is perennially spotless and pristine thanks to Gilbert’s keen eye for imperfections. Come 11pm an entirely separate PA is sparked up and four inches of table top are removed for greater room to groove. The terrace area (below) is a rare luxury in Hong Kong, and may revert to public space in a recent move by the authorities. Pity, the cages are amazing.

So we did the party and ‘Boom!’ it was an instant success.

Then after that Moschino, Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, all these brands started to approach us.

brit ÂŤ

The Fixer

Renowned DJ, Clive Morley, has been remixing venues that have a poor track record.

Text: Mark Davie

B

orn and raised in London, international DJ turned venue strategist Clive Morley would regularly make the trip around the globe to Australia for a sunny holiday. One ‘summer’ day, London’s trademark gloomy skies convinced Morley he should turn his holiday destination into something more permanent. So, recently he moved to Australia with a view to using his marketing company, Deconstructed, and considerable dance music experience to help a few venues get a leg up on the competition. venue delves deep into his past and finds out why venues are asking more of Morley.

Getting The Boot, Eeek!

The story begins with Morley sitting pretty as a resident DJ at renowned underground club Fabric in London. At the time, he was also running his own Platform 12 night on the side.

It was picking up lots of credible dance music press and turning into a successful underground event in its own right. For a DJ with not a musical bone in his body he’d reached the pinnacle of where his talents could take him. This level of notoriety and success was all Morley could have expected and all he’d ever wanted. But when Fabric wanted to expand, they wanted Morley to expand with them, which took more than a little convincing.

Clive Morley: One of the founders of Fabric wanted to start a chain of boutique pubs, and the head of promotions at Fabric, the guy that used to book me, wanted me to be the Marketing Manager for their first club. It was called The Old Queen’s Head, a horrendous, pokey, old man’s pub on a North London back street that had absolutely no chance. They didn’t really have a vision, and I declined. So he bribed me [some might call it blackmail!

— Ed.]. He said, “I’m going to do you a favour

“a multi-faceted venue is a safer option and gives you greater scope for creativity” Clive, you don’t really have much of a career, but I think you’d be really good at this. So if you don’t take this on, then I’m never going to book you at Fabric again.” I was mortified; it was my absolute dream to be a Fabric resident. But he obviously had the foresight. Fast forward a year and I loved my hands-on role in running the venue; seeing how people would react to different areas, what people would like about the toilets, and dead areas that we could look at and try and improve.

I eventually became the Columbo Group

Marketing Manager to a group of boutique pubs that had quite a high profile with bigname DJs. Which was quite a good ‘in’ for me in the industry. In my final years before I came out to Australia I left the Columbo Group, and became the in-house Marketing Manager for The White House, a proper 700-capacity club, at the start of their refurbishment and redevelopment strategy.

The Morley Difference Morley has already been hard at work on a few venues around Australia, including the Shelbourne Hotel in Sydney, so venue cut to the chase and asked him exactly what he has to offer, and why venues need someone like him.

CM: Most people have a fair idea of what they want to achieve but not necessarily the tools or the knowledge to make that happen. We named our company Deconstructed because we tend to work backwards, identifying what venues want to achieve with their target market and demographic and going from there.

The pubs that the Columbo Group took over were basically holes, doing 1000 pounds a week in revenue, which is why we managed to take them off the brewery. After our improvements it’d go from 1000 pounds a week to 30,000 pounds a week, for a venue that’s got a capacity of 200. The White House achieved around a 25 percent increase year on year. And with the Shelbourne, there are areas that have improved and areas that haven’t; certainly the areas that we’ve been mostly working on are corporate trade and event bookings, which are 25 percent up on last year. venue: How does a pub dig itself into such a financial hole?

CM: A lot of the time a venue has operated a certain way for a number of years, and employees there have done the same job year in, year out and seem a bit flat. And people don’t react quickly enough to industry trends. When the Shelbourne opened seven or eight years ago it was a phenomenal business in a really great position. Though with the resurgence of the Darling Harbour area and Ivy opening just down the road, there’s greater competition that the Shelbourne hasn’t reacted to. Being objective about a business, you can look into things that need a bit of freshening up; staff, music program… I’ve been able to put my stamp on venues in the past because I come from a strong dance music background. I’ve usually had some fairly good contacts and am able to pull in favours from bigger agents and brands because that history is there. venue: So what’s the process; how does Deconstructed work?

CM: It’s very different for every venue, and the Shelbourne is a venue that not only requires marketing, but new systems and staff training,

musical programming, brand development, the whole thing. venue: It sounds like you’re altering a fair chunk of a venue’s operational side, how does the owner and/or operator fit into the picture?

CM: It’s a partnership with a certain amount of crossover. At the Shelbourne the owners are a bit hands off, but the General Manager is quite hands on. So the owners and I have weekly meetings to devise some strategies and then hand them down to the GM to implement.

“If you have an ultracheesy playlist, you tend to attract a trashy crowd like hen’s nights and bogans” venue: Do you help with the implementation of those strategies?

CM: Absolutely, it’s not ideal to be honest, I don’t really want to get involved too much with the daily grind; you become 100 percent reactive then. But in some cases it’s necessary, especially if there’s a sufficient body of work to get through.

Bring The Net Work To You When Morley came to Australia he brought with him an impressive list of dance music contacts, but wasn’t well connected in the corporate events world. So he got to work building his own relationships at network event functions, making a point of meeting the right people.

Morley stands by the saying ‘you have to be in it to win it’. He even went so far as to host his own high-profile industry networking events at the Shelbourne to bring contacts to him. venue: Do venues need to be multi-faceted nowadays to attract not only people, but entertainment?

CM: I think the days of the superclub are gone. Like anything, tastes evolve and people don’t want to go out and dance all night in a warehouse-style venue. I think people appreciate different spaces and certainly social trends indicate bars, and smaller venues are on the rise, and bigger clubs less so. Also with multi-faceted venues there are multiple sources of revenue, so if maybe one area is not performing perhaps another is improving. If it was just a nightclub and that wasn’t performing, then you’ve got an unsuccessful business. It also means you’ve got to make more connections in different areas, and do more research. But a multi-faceted venue is a safer option and gives you greater scope for creativity.

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CLIVE in ACTION The White House, London — Getting In Early Clive Morley: The White House would only fill up fairly late — people used to turn up at midnight or one in the morning. To address this we introduced a basic pan-Asian food concept, things like dim sum and spring rolls that could be put in a steaming basket without needing a qualified head chef. The idea was to encourage people to come down early, book some tables, have some food, and order cocktails at eight or nine o’clock, rather than going to a restaurant for food and coming in later on. Because people came down earlier, it looked busier earlier and drove trade earlier. And when there was demand for bookings and tables we’d make the requirement even earlier, we’d tell them if they wanted a table they needed to be in by eight otherwise it wasn’t going to happen. It meant we’d have 100–150 people in the building that wouldn’t normally be there. It significantly impacts your revenue, especially when you multiply that by 104 days a year.

Secondly, prior to me starting, they had an inhouse marketing manager that essentially booked in other club promoters and other brands on Fridays and Saturdays, and it was really up to that outsourced promoter to drive the trade — very hit and miss. The idea was to do the nights inhouse and create an event budget, and through our dance music connections book in some big-name DJs. We weren’t losing door revenue and had a consistency that was missing before. Once it was consistent, more people started coming down, because people generally stay away from venues when they’re not sure if it will be hit or miss.

CLIVE in ACTION Shelbourne Hotel, Sydney — Playing With The Playlist Clive Morley: I remember having one of my first meetings down here with a press contact of mine and over the system came Luther Vandross, followed by Take That, followed by Shania Twain. I was so embarrassed. I think the Shelbourne is always going to be a relatively commercial venue in regards to music, but I think there are other ways to go about it. They’ve got a jukebox with every single track imaginable, from country through to pop and dance, and it just so happens that the planets aligned to create the worst playlist possible on that particular occasion. We got someone in that was music savvy and created lots of different kinds of playlists for different times or occasions. If you have an ultra-cheesy playlist, you tend to attract a trashy crowd like hen’s nights and bogans. It’s really helped to change the demographic of the venue, attracting a lot more corporates during the week, which is a massive improvement.

The Shelbourne’s been around for eight years, and the General Manager’s been here for two. The owner used to have a number of venues, but over the years he’s sold them off. Now the Shelbourne is his only hotel and even then he’s been tempted to sell it off and get another business entirely. The staff here were in bit of a rut — the GM and owner would be the first to admit it — and that obviously had an impact on everything from the music through to the menus. Staffing a bar is a transient business, so it requires more effort to keep on top of things — training, standards and the like. But it’s amazing how some of the smallest changes can make such a big difference to customer perceptions. A trained, fresh pair of eyes like mine can quickly notice areas that need improvement — I’ll address any major issues immediately while also maximising the venue’s strengths. Some of it is just coming in and injecting a new sense of optimism and enthusiasm.

And because I’m on site, the owner said I’m not only making positive changes to the venue, but developing the staff as well. Everyone’s motivated again, and seeing the new direction has renewed everyone’s enthusiasm for the hotel.

Buffalo Club & Sky Room Owners of The Bowery reveal their split personalities.

Text: Mark Davie

Photo: Corey E Sleap

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he Bowery is a bar as committed to classic cocktails as an old New York, pre-prohibition speakeasy.

Manhattans on the menu and Miles Davis drifting as lazily as a haze of Lucky Strike exhalations in the background make it the sensible choice for Fortitude Valley’s drinking elite. This timeless cocktail of, well, cocktails and jazz, has earned the bar a mantlepiece of accolades, but owners Cameron Birt and Stephanie Canfell aren’t resting on their laurels.

Recently, the pair leased an entire three-storey building with an original plan to open a fine dining restaurant on the first floor, Buffalo Club, while keeping the power to screen for suitable tenants. Food is a new arena for the drinks maestros, but if anything, fine dining seems to complement The Bowery blueprint: classic and refined. But any modicum of control was gazumped by the chance to open a bar that went against everything the Bowery stood for, and the second floor Sky Room was born – the spoilt stepchild of the brand lounging about on lime-upholstered Danish furniture guzzling fruity drinks from hollowed out pineapples. It’s kitsch and surprising for anyone even close to a background involving The Bowery but it’s not out of place in Fortitude Valley, fine dining however is.

for the sake of our creativity, we wanted to take a step away from classics and start doing this fun stuff — Cameron Birt

venue: Fine dining is a fair departure from bars, how have you been finding the pursuit of food?

Cameron Birt: It’s new to me. My background has been in bars so it’s been different. But I love it; I’m a big foodie. It’s a challenge because I’ve never had a restaurant before. We did have food at The Bowery for a while but it became obvious that it was too successful as a bar to justify keeping that space as a kitchen. After about 18 months, we ripped out the kitchen and turned it into a lounge area. Restaurants are a totally different ball game to bars. It poses a whole new range of challenges. venue: What areas are you finding most challenging?

CB: Food requires heavier staffing and I’m used to doing things a certain way.

venue: Was it hard not to turn Buffalo Club into a bar-cum-restaurant?

CB: It started off that way but, in the same way the clients dictated the kitchen be ripped out at the Bowery, they’ve been treating Buffalo Club more as a restaurant. There’s still a focus on the drinks; there’s some mixed drink matching going on and the quality of the bartenders is still up there, but the bulk of the menu is primarily matched with wines. venue: What was the reasoning behind opening two separate venues on top of each other?

CB: We wanted control of the building so we could determine who went in on the ground level. To some extent it didn’t work out as best we planned it anyway on the ground floor, but we had some say, which is better than having a Hungry Jacks below.

Birt didn’t have to ‘hunt’ long to find inspiration for the Buffalo Club name.

He’s into using the whole animal.

Sky High While Buffalo Club has a familiar feel to The Bowery, Sky Room is a whole other story. The name dates to the 1950s, pilfered from a bar that once lurked in the Honolulu Airport, the kind of tourist trap you could imagine decked out with the same teak panelling and collection of original midcentury lime green and orange Danish sofas. Birt and Canfell pulled together most of the design, with help from architect David Cohen to tie the space together. Birt is dedicated to his vision, and Sky Room’s staggering devotion to ‘retro’ has the perfect accompaniment of ‘60s titty-bar music, as Birt describes it, “Las Vegas Grind they call it. It’s a genre Tarantino uses a lot. Surfy guitar sounds, like that ’70s film, Vampiros Lesbos, that upbeat Hammond organ, pre-’70s funk”. Right. venue: The Buffalo Club has a fairly warm palette, similar to The Bowery, but the upstairs Sky Room jumps right out at you, did you get a little bored?

CB: Design-wise it’s mid-century; John Lautner-inspired with lots of concrete, timber, and Danish furniture. I guess we wanted to step back a little bit from our classic background. We were always very focussed on classic drinks at The Bowery, and we wanted to have a bit more fun up here and take the piss out of ourselves.

Seasonality is the big key for both up and downstairs, the menu changes daily for the Buffalo Club restaurant and up here is very much a seasonal list. The Bowery sticks with citrus-based drinks because that was very much what was going on with classics, but at the Sky Room if something goes out of season then the menu changes. venue: Are punters welcoming Sky Room’s radical drinks menu?

CB: Yeah. Although it’s hard to get the word out there, because by the time everyone expects a certain drink it’s no longer on the list. But it keeps it interesting and it keeps it fresh. The ability to get good produce in Queensland is amazing. We get great fruit so easily and if it’s in season it’s going to have the best flavour, which translates into the drinks as well.

So there’s lots of fresh pineapple, and plenty of silly things going on with hollowed-out pineapples and pots — just taking the piss basically.

The Bowery is five and a half years old now and Brisbane’s changed a lot since then. I guess it was right for Brisbane then and still is, and it’s doing really well. But for the sake of our creativity, we wanted to take a step away from classics and start doing this fun stuff. venue: How has Brisbane changed?

CB: I guess it’s not just Brisbane, but nationally cocktails are experiencing a renaissance and there’s certainly a lot more cocktail bars that are doing great things, aided largely by the availability of back bar products nowadays. When we opened The Bowery, the list of products you could get was only a quarter of what’s available now — that’s been a big change. The quality of bartenders has also gone up with a lot of ideas bouncing around between different venues and bartenders up here, so it’s a good little community for drinks. venue: So has The Bowery changed as well?

CB: No, is the short answer. It keeps trucking along. It’s become a lot busier in the last five years. It’s an old mate in Brisbane. Even staff turnover is very low, so it’s been relatively consistent since we opened. venue: What do you think has given The Bowery concept its longevity?

CB: I think it’s the result of just doing it consistently for so long, and when The Bowery opened Brisbane was very different. There were lots of stick drinks and muddle drinks, not many people were looking to the classics and that’s the sort of the bar we wanted. There was a lot of dance music playing in bars, and the idea of a jazz-focussed cocktail bar where you could hold a conversation was a new concept at the time.

And all the bartenders that we’ve ever had have been career bartenders, so it’s not necessarily a job to get you through uni, it’s people really dedicated to what they do. In that respect it was pretty easy to maintain that level of quality without losing anything along the way.

Keeping It Quiet venue: Is it hard to maintain a loyal clientele in Fortitude Valley, a place that seems to be dominated by scores of young people and überclubs?

CB: Well, the Bickle’s (owners of Cloudland, Empire, Press Club and Family) venues combined is a monolith that probably serves 25,000 people, whereas The Bowery is a 100-seater venue, so our demographic is a little older. And offering classics, well, maybe the drinks aren’t quite as accessible; there’s not a great deal of sweet, fruity drinks. I think at the Sky Room it’s slightly different again. It’s not necessarily more sophisticated but it’s a different experience to drinking in a 1000-person venue. We’ve got the luxury of being able to focus, and quality control is a lot easier in a small venue. venue: And was the decision to offer fine dining at Buffalo Club partly made to align yourself with that demographic?

CB: The restaurant’s demographic is probably a little older still. I mean, with Ryan’s (Squire, chef) food and the quality of the products used, it’s not a cheap dining experience. It’s not necessarily expensive for what you get, but it won’t be a drop-in eatery for students. Whereas they can come up to the Sky Room and have a drink, and we’ve got some amazing rums and whiskeys that other clubs probably won’t have.

Room mid-week where there’s a bit more space. We never wanted to poach Bowery customers per se, that’s why Sky Room looks so different and the drinks are so different. We’ve got a much bigger wine range and champagne list and the beer list is much smaller and more boutique.

We wanted to create a space for someone who liked what we did but wanted to change it up a bit.

venue: Are you getting much cross-over between your venues?

» Buffalo Club & Sky Room: Level 1 and 2, Cnr Wickham & Brunswick St,

CB: Yeah there is. There’s always going to be that curiosity — people coming to see what we’re doing outside of The Bowery. And The Bowery gets incredibly busy on Fridays and Saturdays, so people that would normally steer clear of it on those nights are coming down to the Sky

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Fortitude Valley QLD (07) 3216 1323 or info@thebuffaloclub.com.au » Great Dane Furniture (Imported Original Furniture): (07) 3254 0527 or www.greatdanefurniture.com

three’s company Andrew McConnell has found a new place to stow his cutlery.

Text: Mark Davie Portrait: Corey Sleap

G

ertrude St in Fitzroy has been the talk of the (Melbourne) town lately. Not sure if it runs along some ancient ley line, or if a quirk of transport and planning is responsible, but all hospitality roads would appear to lead to Gertrude Street at the moment. Rumours of new establishments abound; with whispers about fresh faces breezing in and a couple of old hands getting back to their roots. Ah, old hands. It was about a decade ago that Andrew McConnell and Pascale Gomes-McNabb struck out on their own at 211 Brunswick Street, a venture that opened many doors to them, including their recently sold Carlton restaurant Three One Two. And, for now at least, the roundabout journey has brought them home to roost just around the corner with their new restaurant and bar, Cutler & Co. Cutler & Co gathers together some interesting momentoes from the Andrew and Pascale’s journey down roads less travelled. With reasonably priced a la carte dining and a fullyfledged bar (available to anyone dropping in anytime), it’s a more accessible experience than purely fine dining. Frank Van Haandel, of Circa the Prince, has reunited with McConnell to offer his wealth of expertise to the operation as a not-so-silent, silent partner. But with

The new view from Gertrude Street, and [Opposite] Andrew McConnell and Pascale Gomes-McNabb with their extremely silent partner.

It was very difficult to make a living off a 40-seater restaurant in this country

Top Draw Audio Richard Hallam of YSI installed the background music sound system for four zones, utilising two Bose Acoustimass Freespace subs and four cubes per zone, and two Bose DS16B loudspeakers in the toilets with amplifiers to suit. A Cloud Control System controls volume and selection for the four zones. Âť YSI: 0419 577 572 or richard@soundinvestment.com.au Âť Bose: 1800 173 371 or www.bose.com.au

Gomes-McNabb designing the entire fitout, and McConnell in the kitchen, it’s definitely their baby and it sounds like they’ll be sticking around to nurture it.

Stick it Where it Fitz venue: By all accounts, Three One Two was a successful venture, why the move?

Andrew McConnell: We started in Fitzroy and the opportunity to come back to Fitzroy was very attractive. Not that there was anything wrong with Three One Two; we’d just outgrown the site. A terrace house size has its limitations as far as operations are concerned. The dining room was broken up into four small rooms, and the kitchen was broken up across three rooms, making it difficult. I’m not saying running a bigger restaurant is any easier, but it’s far more cost-efficient having everyone working in the same rooms. We really enjoy the space here and having room to install a bar adds a different dynamic to what we do and complements the dining space. venue: So what do you love about Gertrude Street?

AM: Gertrude Street is a pretty dynamic street; contrasts, tangible quirks, great operators and restaurants, fantastic retail… importantly, on top of that, it really still contains a lot of community services like the old barber shops — it’s a fantastic juxtaposition of the old and new. venue: With the benefit of not being spread over three rooms, did you take the time to get the kitchen spot on?

AM: It’s pretty dreamy compared to the last one, which was 80 years old. We had to do it up when we went in, but when you inherit somebody else’s kitchen, ultimately everything is the wrong way around. Here, everything is in the right place. There’s flow, there’s modern technology, and it’s the right shape and size for our menu structure. venue: Did you have the space before you closed Three One Two? AM: Pascale and I have been working on this site for 18 months and Frank came on board last year as a third party. He’s not involved in operations, and the design and concept are Pascale’s and mine. venue: Does he bring a bit more security to the partnership?

AM: To a certain degree, yes. Obviously it’s a huge investment and with the climate becoming a little bit wobbly last year we realised we’d move forward through the project as costs escalated. And Frank brings a whole range of experience, knowledge and ideas. Frank’s a great operator.

Pascale Gomes-McNabb: He’s a sounding board, he’s been in the industry a long time and he does bring a lot.

More Than Just Numbers venue: You’ve moved a lot over the last few years...

AM: We started at 211, which was about 45 seats, went to Three One Two, which was about 75 seats, and now here, which is 80–90 seats. So it’s been a progression. It was four years at Three One Two, and six years at Drummond Street [having had Mrs Jones prior to converting it to Three One Two], so we have moved a few times, and we’ve opened a bar as well in between. venue: Are you constantly looking for that ‘next big thing’, or does this fit the bill?

PGM: 211 was our first restaurant together and it was the perfect size to learn how to run a restaurant and, ultimately, we wanted something of this size.

AM: Over the years the industry has changed, and on top of that costs have changed drastically. Purchases, beverages, operation costs, GST; it’s all changed with the economies of scale. It was very difficult to make a living off a 40-seater restaurant in this country. venue: What does the bar do for your numbers?

PGM: The bar works well as a holding area, which we never had before. Instead of sending people to a bar down the street for a pre-dinner drink, they can come here check it out or wait for a table. venue: I guess it would improve your turnover too?

PGM: That’s the whole idea. Sometimes when Andrew and I go out we want to have a few drinks and sit at the bar, we don’t want to have a full-scale meal. But at the same time, if you have a few drinks you might want to progress to a meal. venue: Did you pinch any bar ideas from Cumulus?

PGM: I actually designed this before Cumulus, and I haven’t changed the design much. venue: Will there be a next step?

» Cutler & Co: 55 – 57 Gertrude St, Fitzroy, VIC (03) 9419 4888 or www.cutlerandco.com.au

AM: No, this is it. It’s a good-sized model for us. We’ve found that this is a very comfortable place, with the bar and the size of the dining space giving us flexibility for functions as well as other people here.

PGM: If we’d started out with something this size, we probably would have managed it, but at the same time, starting off with something small we could understand the machinations of how to respond.

«

Under the Knife — The Fitout Pascale Gomes-McNabb designed the fitout, with Liquid Lines taking care of the build. GomesMcNabb has kept the palette to a minimum of shades. Taking direction from the venue’s previous life as a metal joiner’s workshop and having fallen in love with metalwork, she pulled in Robert Hooks who’d done a number on the Cumulus bar to work his black sculptural magic again. His technique involves coating and treating the surface, which, unlike stainless steel, makes it tactile and feels warm to the touch. There’s also a sense of the building’s 80-year heritage: brick walls exposed; original metal pillars coated in black and white finding their way into the middle of the bar area; classic furniture to match; and light fittings from New York reminiscent of old gas lanterns. It’s not all reinvented vintage: sheer cloud light coverings (designed by Gomes-McNabb and made by Julian Featherstone) populate the dining space, and strategically-placed mirrors give patrons a sneak peek across the room. But peaking in from the outer during the day is a much harder affair. A vinyl layer on the glass keeps prying eyes at bay under the midday sun, slowly revealing the drama as the day turns to night. » Liquid Lines: 1300 547 843 or info@liquidlines.com.au

Text: Mark Davie Portrait: Corey Sleap

W

ater rushes down a façade — streaming and fluid like the glazing beneath it. A pool forms, dominated by a steel messiah — a sculpture, arms outstretched, neck craned, mouth agape as it accepts streams of living water. Luscious gardens flank the figure — a vertical Babylon. Trees dapple the ground, and thrust imperiously into the heavens.

A Garden of Eden? Well, maybe, but wait until you see the toilets!

Here we are in Cloudland, the crown jewel amid a collection of venues owned by the Bickle family in Fortitude Valley.

And like all crown jewels, it’s the biggest, shiniest and most impressive gem set among others that aren’t half bad in their own right.

Cloudland is audaciously grand in scale and ambition. The attention to detail is nothing short of extraordinary and the unique combination of materials and plantings gives Cloudland the heady feeling that light and oxygen are being sucked into its vortex. It’s a special place. And yes, the toilets are especially fancy – it’s not every day you take a whiz and gaze at your reflection in a mirror of gold leaf scales.

The destination already has the capacity to hold 1000 punters over the first two floors, with two grand bars, a three-storey atrium with retractable roof, and a dining area with themed booths. There’s a third-floor function space (yet to be finished), as well as a basement wine bar on the cards.

Such dedication to a vision comes at a cost — $10m and 10 years, to be precise. Owner Rafael Bickle and his family had been sitting on the vacant loading dock in prime location for much of that time.

Six years went into planning and about as many building. Even after such a lengthy lead-time, Cloudland is a year overdue. venue caught up with a relieved and hoary-eyed Raf Bickle the ‘day after the long night before’ of Cloudland’s official opening. venue: Cloudland eclipses every club in the Valley for sheer magnitude of capacity and vision, but there is also a restaurant and plans for a day trade, are you concerned that everyone may just label it as ‘just another club’ in The Valley?

Raphael Bickle: The Valley, particularly on Saturday nights, attracts a young demographic and we wanted to appeal to an older demographic and get an older crowd. The older crowd in Brisbane always whinge that there’s never anywhere to go, so I really wanted to do something that appealed to my age group and, indeed, to me. That appealed to my friends as somewhere that wasn’t just a restaurant, it was also a bar where you could have a few drinks and relax. venue: So what have you put in place to differentiate Cloudland from your other venues?

RB: First of all, food has never been a big part of our other venues, whereas we’ve had a chef, Michael Muir, working on the food and the menu for six months, and we’ve done lots of tastings to get the food right. We didn’t want a menu that was complicated or a fancy a la carte menu, but something that is priced well, good value and people would come to regularly. That’s the major difference.

Secondly,

Design Note The ground floor bar was carved in China from white crystalline marble and the 13–14 tonnes of marble was shipped over from China in sections. “Nothing ever fits together quite right. China has a way of doing that, a way of testing you — ‘was it really worth the saving?’” Nic Brunner.

Design Note Brunner loves to put moving parts in his designs, this time he commissioned a sculpture to stand front and centre. “His arms stretch out, his head tilts back and water pours into his mouth, and then it all comes out of the wings. That might just happen once or twice a night. All these things are random, so they might not happen one night, and then the next time you visit, you think ‘that wasn’t there before’.”

I suppose, is the openness of the venue. It’s got a really nice outdoors feel to the whole place. venue: I’m sure you would know the history of The Valley better than most; how has it developed over the last decade and how have tastes changed?

RB: Going back 10 years ago to ‘98, the Press Club was our first bar, and The Valley was a completely different place. It was nowhere near as populated as it is now. On a Saturday night it’s ridiculous how many young people are around, but going back 10 years ago it was still a bit seedy, grittier, and a bit more left of centre. It’s become more mainstream, the whole Valley was always considered a little bit alternative, but in the last few years that’s really changed and now when people go out they don’t really go into the city — the nightspot of Brisbane is Fortitude Valley. Over the years new bars have opened, some for the good and some for the not so good. But The Bowery opened and now The Sky Lounge, and The Lychee Lounge is moving in down the road. Which is good, it’s evolving, and it still has

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a long way to go. And there’s still plenty of room down here for more interesting things to happen. I can only see it getting better. venue: You must have spotted a ‘niche’ for a 1000-capacity venue for the 30-plus crowd?

RB: Sure, we want to bring that older demographic back into the Valley. A lot of the restaurants haven’t done so well down here, for whatever reason, and there’s not a great deal of food options. Hopefully now, if we can get that different demographic in The Valley, it will encourage people to do more restaurants. venue: You’ve been sitting on this site for quite a while, why the delay?

RB: The site was attached to the Sun Apartments.

We bought this, together with the building that Family is in, with plans to turn this into a club. We had a Sydney architect come up and lodged a Development Application that had been approved at around the time The Press Club opened. But the

it’s easy to sketch some of these things but to build them is a whole other story — Raphael Bickle

Design Note Despite its size and cost, some of the materials came fortuitously: “A truck hit the front veranda of the Empire hotel [also owned by the Bickle’s], moving it nearly a metre, and we had to take it all down. So we used all the 100-year old pine, milled it into two shapes at three different thicknesses, and put it into a pattern on the wall above the ground-floor bar. Apparently it doesn’t repeat.” Nic Brunner.

Sun Apartments had problems with sound issues, and we went through a horrible period of noise complaints and being threatened to have our music shut off. We were in the Family building and thought, “this building is on its own and not going to have the acoustic issues”, so we moved the club into Family. We didn’t feel comfortable spending the money building something from the ground up if we were going to have the same noise issues. This was the loading dock for the Sunday Sun newspapers, we started working on it after Family.

people could smoke but, as it evolved, and smoking has become quite unpopular, it was then just about the whole outdoors and people really enjoy it.

Just Another Beer Garden?

venue: How would you describe your relationship with designer Nic Brunner? Do you give him free rein to pursue his vision?

venue: The three-storey atrium is a central and defining feature of Cloudland, and the retractable roof the icing on the cake. Was it intended to be the perfect venue for the Brisbane climate?

RB: Initially, when the smoking laws came in, we thought it’d be good to have an area where

The whole appeal was for the roof to open and have the outdoor atmosphere, and then if the weather’s inclement you can shut the roof and still operate. It only takes about 90 seconds to open or close. Also, we’ve got to be considerate of the neighbours, so we close the roof when its really heaving. But the whole idea was to have the roof open as much as we can.

RB: Pretty much. We sit down and come up with a broad brief of what we’re trying to achieve. Interior design-wise I let he and [interior designer] Alexa Nice go, a lot of it is ‘on the run’ and custom built. Nic will do a sketch and I’ll

take it to the steel fabricators or the foreman.

We don’t outsource; we employ people on-site to do everything. And our on-site people have really embraced the process and enjoyed the challenge of making some of these things — it’s easy to sketch some of these things but to build them is a whole other story. Nic’s very practical, he doesn’t want to draw something you can’t build, but it’s been challenging. There’s been a lot of trial and error, so if we don’t get it right the first time we’ll throw it away and start again.

I don’t think you could build something like this and expect to get it right the first time. venue: Nic designed The Press Club and Family as well. Was there always an implicit trust between the two of you?

RB: I’ve always loved his work and the way he operates. We’re also good friends and we travel.

He’s someone who loves going out, loves going to bars and restaurants — he understands hospitality

Design Note The first-floor bar is made of a whopping 15,000 glass balls threaded on piping and constructed using 700 splines.

and how people like to interact. When we were fitting out The Press Club someone would look at the walls and say, “That looks bloody dreadful!”

And I’d say, “Listen, just wait ‘til it’s all finished!” I just believe in what he does. venue: Sounds like his design vision is inextricably wrapped up in your legacy as an operator.

RB: Oh definitely. But something like this is very draining so I think he’ll probably run away for a few years, it’s more a passion for him than a job.

He does it because he enjoys doing it, which is why the results are so incredible. I had someone say to me last night, “We went to The Press Club for the first time in a long time and I just can’t believe how well it’s stood the test of time — it looks fantastic!”

That’s why Cloudland has run over time by about 12 months. I’d rather let it run over and get it right than be pulling or re-fitting bars in two or three years because they’re stale. I think it’s important to get it right the first time and have the place a little bit longer. Fortunately, we’ve been able to have that luxury over time and getting it right.

Cloud Nine venue: It’s unusual to have such an influential empire all within a single suburb. Does your family now dictate the tone or style of The Valley?

RB: Not at all. We concern ourselves with what we’re doing and don't worry too much about what anyone else is doing. We welcome anyone who wants to come down here, and never object to new licences or try to block new development.

We’ve always had the philosophy of ‘the more the merrier’, but sometimes it’s disappointing when people just open up — trying to capitalise on the volume of people and just getting kids pissed. We work closely with the police and a group of local licensees that meet to discuss those sorts of issues. venue: Right. Almost like a group of local sherrifs.

Sounds like an exclusive club.

RB: In the last couple of months the group has actually become compulsory — if you’ve got a license, you’re in. The group convenes once every eight weeks and police come along to it and table certain issues; Council comes along to

it; the licensing people come along and update everyone about what they’d like to see or what people could be doing better.

It’s a good initiative and demonstrates just how far Brisbane has come in the last few years. You don’t see two-dollar drinks anymore and the discount venues are disappearing, which is good to see because they don't contribute; they only give the industry a bad name. venue: You’re talking about wanting to attract an older crowd. How do you do that? And do you actively discourage the younger crowd?

RB: We won’t be stopping any of the younger crowd coming in but we won’t be trying to market or appeal to them. I think just by having that older demographic in here discourages the young people. And I think with the alcohol offering, the level of the music, the entertainment, the whole area of the food and drink is probably going to appeal more to the older market.

Responsible Service venue: How do you keep consistent levels of service and quality of drinks with so many staff?

RB: Through training — having good people working here and making it something we consistently work on. It’s hard to retain staff, particularly in hospitality. About 12 months ago we made a commitment to doing a lot more staff education and training, so every week there’s a training program being run — whether it’s for people picking up glasses or bartenders, there’s always some training. We also send our managers away to management courses. venue: Is the family business centrally managed?

RB: We set up a management company a few years ago called Katarzyna — it’s my mother’s Christian name, she’s Polish. My brother is involved, as well as Danny Blair, our General Manager. We sit down as a group for three or four hours on a Wednesday afternoon and run through the previous week — we thrash out any issues and problems. Then every venue has a manager and there’s a marketing team. Chris Wilson does the music for all the venues, so there’s someone in charge of every aspect of the group. It’s that communication that’s vital to making sure that they consistently run well. venue: Were you a child of a hospitality family?

RB: Kind of. Fifteen years ago my father bought the pub across the road, The Royal George, and on uni holidays I was working there, labouring when they renovated. I had just

Design Note The façade is a staggering introduction to Cloudland.

Monstrous, lit circles made up of nearly 5000 lighting channels attract attention at night, while by day spheres filled with planters and glass balls mimic the interior garden. The combination of glass and sun wasn’t without its issues. “The facade really cops the western sun and the traffic, in that sense it’s a really hard life out there for a plant. When we first put it up all the dirt started catching on fire, because the glass balls acted like lenses under the afternoon sun. We had to take them all out and sandblast one side of them.

Things like that you don’t anticipate.” Nic Brunner.

AV & Lighting Production Manager for Cloudland, Matthew Smith, contracted Norwest Productions to provide system control and audio tuning of the system supplied by IJS that included: AMX Modero touch screens AMX NI – 4100 Netlinx Integrated Controller Symnet ARC 2 Adaptive Remote Control Symnet 8x8 DSP System Processor Symnet Break In 12 analogue input unit Symnet Break out 12 analogue output unit.

Symnet Cobralink ARC PS Remote Power Supply d&b Audiotechnik D12 amplifiers d&b CI 60 2-Way fullrange speakers

got back from overseas and had no interest in hospitality at all – I enjoyed being on the other side of the bar too much. Then I started booking the entertainment because I had some mates who were musicians. One thing led to another and I ended up managing The Empire, and then I bought my father’s other two partners out of the hotel and it all went from there. venue: What’s next for the Katarzyna Group?

RB: I’m going to have a break. We’ve got two more floors to finish here, so we’ll get the top level open by July, and a wine bar downstairs open by October. Then we want to renovate and clean out all the other venues — just give them a tidy up. I’d like to build a boutique

hotel of sorts, not necessarily in the Valley but we’re looking for a site somewhere, whether in the city, The Valley or somewhere else, but we haven’t found the site yet. venue: And you’re committed to Brisbane; you’re not looking at other cities?

RB: No, it’s too hard, particularly with what we do. When you run them remotely from other cities they don’t get the attention.

You’ve got to be here and keep an eye on them. No one watches them as closely as the person that owns them. So I can’t see us moving outside of Brisbane.

«

» Cloudland: 641 Ann Street, Fortitude Valley, QLD (07) 3872 6600 or www.cloudland.tv

d&b E12 Sub Bass cabinets d&b E3 2-Way fullrange speakers RCF TT-08A self powered speakers (DJ monitors) 1 Emstream 5 Output Hard Disk Music System The considerable task of sympathetically lighting Brunner and Nice’s exquisite fitout was headed up by Heath Williamson of Firefly, taking his cues from a film background, Williamson wanted the venue to feel like “when you walk through the door, you want to leave reality.”

» IJS Audio: (02) 9938 6603 or www.ijs.com.au » Norwest Productions: (02) 9737 8522 or www.norwestproductions.com.au

Hellenic Republic George Calombaris has got Greece up to his elbows.

Text: Mark Davie Portrait: Corey Sleap

G

eorge Calombaris is Greek. That much is certain. But wander past his first (and flagship) restaurant, Press Club, and you’d hardly know it. Press Club is unapologetically modern. Designed by Buro Architects, it’s a showpiece fine dining landmark in Melbourne, much favoured by cashed up city workers… that just happens to serve contemporary Greek cuisine.

Hellenic Republic is very different. Here George Calombaris completely immerses himself and everyone around him in ‘Greek-ness’. On the menu is reasonably-priced comfort food — his grandmother’s moussaka, for example; the décor is full of Greek touches and the atmosphere is intentionally raucous, like a taverna in full swing — just mind the flying plates!

And the name? Hellenic Republic (the official international title of Greece) is a definite statement. George Calombaris is a standard bearer, he’s taken on the mantle of upholding Greek culinary tradition in this country — an onerous responsibility but one he gladly bears.

I’m not saying I’m going to roll out a Greek sandwich bar next, but I’ve got ideas Grecian Earn venue: How is the traditional Greek of Hellenic Republic different to the Greek of the Press Club?

George Calombaris: The Press Club is, I would have to say, Australia’s first modern Greek eatery, and there was always an idea to do a down-scale reflection of that. To show what the Greeks do well, and that’s fantastic taverns. And when I say ‘do well’, I mean in Greece, not here. venue: You weren’t interested in joining Melbourne’s Greek precinct on Lonsdale Street then?

GC: No, it’s not that I’m not interested; I’m kind of embarrassed by that street. I just don’t think it’s a reflection of what Greece is right now.

Greece is this amazing European country — it’s got so much history, so much detail, so much passion and love of food, service and wine and that’s something I wanted to bring here.

I did a lot of research and really dug deep for the little references I wanted to have in the space. I wanted to have elements that represented the coastal environment, like the cray-pots. There’s a beautiful little spice shop in Athens that a Turkish guy runs, I took a picture of one of his walls and replicated it here. So rather than having all the herbs and spices in the back of the kitchen, the chefs actually cook from the spice cabinet on the wall. Typical tavern chairs are quite small but similar to the ones we have here, although we’ve tried to make them a bit bigger and more comfortable.

The position was important as well, I love this end of Lygon Street; I think it’s quite quirky, colourful and interesting. And as you’re driving up the street the first thing you see is all the graffiti of King Leonidas and the 300 Spartans [down one exterior wall]. Then when you enter into the venue you come into a little Greek oasis where you can smell the aromas of the wood-fire char-grill — it’s absolutely gorgeous. People are eating and drinking, and the music’s in your face; it’s out there. venue: It’s raucous.

GC: That’s what we wanted it to be, we never wanted to have a barrier between the front and back of house — you can literally touch the chefs. Meanwhile, the Press Club is very formal: there’s linen, the waiters are all very proper; here it’s a bit grungier. One of the waiters, Arthur, has designed all the uniforms and he’s nailed it — it’s a cross between a Greek police officer and a fisherman — so they’re wearing white Dunlop Volleys, navy blue King Gee pants and an amazing shirt that he designed with a big army belt. It looks fantastic.

It’s funny because we don’t have any Greeks working at The Press Club except for Angie

our restaurant manager. But we said from day one, just like everyone can say ‘prosciutto’ and ‘bocconcini’ and all those Italian words, they’re going to have to say Greek words. So we have Greek classes every two weeks at The Press Club and staff have really embraced it.

Here we’ve actually picked up five or six young Greek kids that are fantastic. They plonk the water bottle on the table and you help yourself, it’s that casual atmosphere. I don’t want people to come in here and expect Press Club service in a different environment.

Detail for me is very important — the food should be fantastic, affordable and flavoursome regardless — but there should be more, there should be substance. I think dining is an experience. A customer said to me the other night she feels very emotional. I told her you should feel emotional everytime you eat; if you’re not emotional, you’re eating rubbish, and life is too short to eat rubbish. venue: Has the Greek community taken Hellenic Republic to their bosom?

GC: So far… yes! At The Press Club it’s the opposite — 90 percent of our clientele are non-Greek — whereas I can already see there are going to be a lot of Greeks coming here. venue: Nostalgia must have something to do with that?

GC: We all love to relive happy childhood memories. Press Club doesn’t really give too many people memories in terms of its fitout — it’s sleek and contemporary — whereas here there are lots of little reference points that jog the memory.

Fit For Nostalgia venue: Did you direct the fitout to make sure it evoked those nostalgic feelings?

GC: Mills Gorman was our architect. My partner George works with the builders, whereas I spend a lot of time with Craig Gorman shoving photos in front of him. I told him I wanted as many rounded edges on corners as possible and he did it in the courtyard really well. If you look at architecture in Greece everything has rounded corners.

The cray-pots are absolutely fantastic, the communal table, the spice rack, all these instances we spent time together running through and developing. The chair took so long to get right, but I like to spend a lot of time on getting those details perfect. Another example: I tried to find the woggiest cutlery possible, so when a Greek customer picks it up they’re saying, “Oh you remember that, that was at grandmothers’ house” — that’s what it’s all about. venue: Do you need to have obsessivecompulsive tendencies to be a good chef/ proprietor?

GC: I’m not obsessive-compulsive, I just want

things to be right. There’s got to be a point where there’s a balance, but I’m obsessive about detail. To me detail is everything, which sometimes consumes my broader view, but that’s okay because I’ve got a partner that’s the big picture person, so we work well together. We’d probably be failures otherwise.

You look at some fitouts and they’re spending millions of dollars... it’s incredible! I think there are better ways to do things — more thinking and research is required. The good thing about Craig is he actually listens to what we want and understands our theory… and he’s not Greek! venue: How important is it to feel like you own the design, that there’s that comfort in knowing that it’s not built around you, but it is you?

GC: It feels great, and it’s like my fishmonger.

I’ve had him for years, it’s more than just supplying fish, it’s this common denominator, it’s this connection. Don’t get me wrong, Buro Architects did a great thing with The Press Club, I think it’s a beautiful design, but it was my first restaurant and there’s not that much of my influence there. Whereas here and at Maha [Bar & Grill, Calombaris’ Middle Easterninfused restaurant] we’ve had a chance to express ourselves, and there really haven’t been many points where we’ve butted heads. And sometimes butting heads is good because it triggers something better. We were talking about doilies and I told Craig “It’d be great to hang a doily up.” And he responded, “George, leave it to me.” If you look in the courtyard at the rusted inserts where the windows are; it’s a pattern from a doily! So it’s good he didn’t just write off my crazy idea, he thought about it and came back with a reinterpretation. I’m really happy.

Not Very Reserved venue: You’ve explored a very different path since Reserve. What happened, what changed?

GC: Reserve was an amazing experience for me, I wasn’t the owner there, I was just the chef. That little restaurant will go down in history. Once Reserve closed I had six months to think and that was a really important bridge. It allowed me to think about my plans to do modern Greek — if I launched into Hellenic Republic before Press Club, I reckon I would have failed.

The Press Club was really clinically thought out, and I was fortunate to be in the position where I’m Greek but there was not one decent Greek restaurant. I know how to cook Greek, I know the flavours because I grew up with them. Translating that into a modern approach took a lot of thought, but it was easily achievable.

if I launched into Hellenic Republic before Press Club, I reckon I would have failed

The Spice Rack: A pinch of salt and a touch of Athens; the restaurant is crammed with evocative touches.

A Sign of the Times Calombaris has made Hellenic Republic a family affair. Crafting the eatery around memories of Greece including snippets and clippings from his own relatives: there’s pickled fruit prepared by his mother in the display case, poems from his grandfather and a $24 version of his Yia Yia’s (grandma’s) moussaka — likely only costing Calombaris a kiss when he was younger. It’s this familiarity that saves it being a showy move to shore-up his credentials; rather, it’s an affectionate gesture to remind the Greek community what it feels like to come home again. venue: You’re one of a handful of people who

have got fine dining restaurants that are also rolling out a casual, cheaper experience. Is that a trend, a coincidence, or a sign of the times?

didn’t want to be too close to the city, I wanted to have a little bit of a drive to get to the next venue, but not be too far either.

GC: It’s perfect timing right now, what with all the reported doom and gloom. I think this will do really well because people still want to go out and have an experience; they want to be waited on, made to feel good and not spend $120 a head, like they would at The Press Club.

They’ll come here and spend $50-60 a head and feel nourished. Guy Grossi did it, who else has opened something downscale?

venue: It certainly adds an air of authenticity about it not being in the city and not being in a fashionable restaurant precinct.

venue: Teague Ezard...

venue: Has this always been on the cards or a recent idea?

GC: Andrew McConnell… so my only thing was I

GC: Everyone asks me where I opened up and when I say Lygon Street, East Brunswick, they ask, “What’s out there?” Just wait and see. I’ve tried to spend as much time as I can out here talking to people, and the people that live here are really excited.

GC: When I wrote the business plan for The Press Club, I always intended to do this. My progression plan was never to do Maha [Bar & Grill] that just happened by coincidence, whereas this was definitely in the plan. I look at people like Maurizio [Terzini] and he inspires me with what he’s done for Italian food over the years. He’s done everything from Caffé e Cucina to fine dining Icebergs, to Bondi Italian… he’s done every level that you could think of.

I’m not saying I’m going to roll out a Greek sandwich bar next, but I’ve got ideas. Greek produce is another thing that still hasn’t been tapped into and I’d love to do something in that vein, with the influence of a little mezze bar. I think about that progression, and that’s what’s so beautiful about Melbourne: you’re allowed to do things like that and people will embrace it. But you’ve got to back it up with the service because if you don’t give them that they’ll crucify you.

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1. Inspiration for the security screen came from the traditional doily. 2. George laboured long and hard with the designers to get the modest taverna-style chairs exactly right. 3.

The courtyard screams Greece, right down to the olive oil tin herbage.

2.

3.

Ab-Zorba-ing Sound — Hellenic Republic Audio Richard Hallam: A lot of time and energy was put into the acoustic feel of the room. The ceiling in particular is very special and is basically an acoustic baffle.

The audio system consists of four zones of audio managed by a Cloud Venue 4 control system. Volume and source selection is taken care of with controls mounted at the service counter at the entrance. The main dining area has eight Bose DS100F flush-mounted ceiling loudspeakers. There is a private dining room utilising a Bose Freespace Loudspeaker system. Outside, the area surrounding the spit has two Bose Model 32 SE Environmental loudspeakers. The toilets have Australian Monitor QF8s and an amplifier to suit. The feel of the place is great and it sounds great too. In addition, the smells from the kitchen mean that I’ll have to go back even if the sound never needs adjusting! » YSI Concepts: 0419 577 572 or richard@soundinvestment.com.au

1.

Spice Market The Spice Boys reunite and they’re bigger and better than ever.

Text: Mark Davie Portrait: Corey Sleap

W

hen Jamie Oliver sauntered into Melbourne back in 2006, his people turned the town upside down searching for the perfect place to accommodate Fifteen’s reality TV show.

Their first space had construction issues, so the team knocked on the door of Dean and Geremy Lucas’ MoMo restaurant.

The basement level, laneway space on George St ticked all the right boxes, and, with scarcely a couple of months to get the show off the ground, Fifteen made the Lucas brothers and offer they couldn’t refuse. Which just goes to show, when a TV network comes knocking, committed to their next instalment of a successful TV program… shoot high! MoMo was sold as a going concern, meaning every piece of the restaurant, down to the napkin rings and the goodwill, was sold. The only thing the brothers kept was the name.

You’d be forgiven for thinking the Lucas brothers are sell-outs, handing over their high-profile stake in Melbourne’s gastro

culture to a glad-handing TV franchise, but the fact of the matter is they already had a plan — one that after eight years was almost finalised and would soon enough become the second instalment of MoMo… right next door.

Dean Lucas: We started negotiating on this space with the owners of The Grand Hyatt eight years ago. Where the original MoMo ended, is the adjoining wall to where the new MoMo begins. The original concept was to extend MoMo through this space by putting an opening in between the buildings. As we were simultaneously finalising the lease here, Adam Garrison and the Jamie Oliver people approached us and they were on a deadline to get this TV program done. The premises they were hoping to use had a construction issue, so they needed something quickly and it needed to be a basement restaurant in the top end of town. They couldn’t start it from scratch, they only had six weeks to get it ready, and so they knocked on our

door. The day that we signed to sell the original premises to Adam and the Jamie Oliver people, we signed the lease to take over here.

Geremy Lucas: Technically, for about four hours of that day we didn’t have anywhere to go because the lease hadn’t been signed yet. It could have gone wrong.

Uniquely Antique Over two years later, everyone is happy, and the Lucas brothers have just opened their vast 800sqm ultra-chic basement bar, Spice Market, below the newly refurbished Grand Hyatt. With the finishing touches being put on the new MoMo restaurant, the Lucas brothers gave venue the full guided tour of Spice Market.

To fully appreciate the Spice Market décor you need to appreciate the museumgrade collection of antiquities picked up along the Spice Route from Asia Minor to the Far East. Gold-leaf columns out of a palace in the Middle East, a gargantuan

copper pot that would have fed a whole village and a pair of 350-year-old handcarved Indian temple stones found in Tibet now mounted to a North Africaninspired mud brick wall are just some of the expansive collection found at Spice Market.

GL: Well the temple was standing where it was for 150–200 years out in the elements, so we figure it’s well protected in here.

People who have been through the venue are very respectful and can appreciate being up close and personal with such beautiful art pieces.

venue: Are you buying at auction or finding these pieces?

Biggest & Best

GL: We find them all on our travels. We arrive somewhere and hear about a place where someone’s got this or that and then search it out and talk to locals about the history of the item. Then we go back to make them feel comfortable that it’s going to be looked after and respected in its new home.

DL: We have the columns from an anteroom of a temple outside of Kandy in the tea country of Sri Lanka. We had the whole thing dismantled and rebuilt over here. venue: Are you precious about trying to protect your collection?

venue: Spice Market doesn’t seem like the most obvious way that MoMo might expand. Why did you invest in such a large undertaking?

DL: There are a lot of small, great bars in Melbourne. They do fantastic cocktails, they’re intimate, but the problem is once there are 30 people, you can’t get in and they don’t cater for large groups. We also wanted to bring a higher standard of entertainment to the bar industry to Melbourne. If you travel through Europe, or New York, or go to the south of France, whether it be the busiest bar in Vegas or in the meat-packing district, if you want to

sit down and be comfortable you can do that and not have people crowding you — but you have to pay for the privilege.

Here you have the option: you can reserve an area, and there aren’t many places in Melbourne that give you that flexibility.

GL: Also from a design and visual perspective, there’s a lot more you can create to excite people. When you walk in here it’s like, “This is just unbelievable!”

Whereas even though you can have beautifully designed, intimate bars in Melbourne that people think are really lovely, it’s never, “Look at this!”

More Herbs venue: Is there a point where you say enough is enough, or do you keep going until it’s done?

GL: It’s finished, but it’s never finished, because there’ll always be other beautiful things to introduce to the space. It’s a living, breathing thing, so it’s never completely finished. But what you see here now is

When you walk in here it’s like, ‘This is just unbelievable!’

‘practical completion’, where people enjoy it and from now until whenever, it will continue to evolve.

through the door. You need a very rigid maintenance program because your guests will notice.

venue: With so much investment in the design and collection of artefacts, do you worry about the design dating?

GL: At the moment we have a team of painters come through once a month just to touch up, we have doubles of every cushion so if one gets soiled, it gets replaced with a spare and then it gets taken care of, and no-one would ever notice because it all happens when noone is here.

DL: One of the advantages of our design is that it is quite classical — it’s not contemporary, which assists in the longevity. I think 10 years wouldn’t be unreasonable, but the important thing is maintaining the quality, as we have thousands of people a week coming

DL: The other way to achieve longevity is keep the venue and its service evolving.

When you introduce new elements — and they only have to be subtle — your guests notice, and that way you’re not just doing what you were doing two years ago.

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» Spice Market: Beaney Lane, Melbourne (03) 9660 3777 or www.spicemarket.net.au

» The Flaming Beacon (Lighting): (03) 9606 0255 or www.tfb.com.au

That’s not an ashtray!: Geremy and Dean Lucas take a seat in the centre of their bar cum museum.

CHALKING IT UP The Vernon Chalker Interview

Think: tucked-away, groovy Melbourne bar.

Think: Vernon Chalker.

Interview: Christopher Holder Photos: Zeljko Batricevic

I

t was a 9am interview and Vernon Chalker was in his pre-gym flannels. I must confess to feeling just a little deflated. The long-time owner of the Gin Palace and one of Melbourne’s favourite bon vivants has every right to hit the morning treadmills and can’t spend his whole life looking like he’s on the way to the set of an Agatha Christie movie… but, dunno, it felt a little like catching Ralph Lauren in a pair of stubbies and a ‘wife beater’.

First impressions aside, Vernon Chalker is a man in great demand. In fact, in many ways he’s the very embodiment of Melbourne’s groovy bar culture.

When Sydney looks wistfully south and then accusingly at its own sterile laneways… they’re subconsciously sending an SOS message: Vernon, come save us. And here’s why: Gin Palace — Just the Tonic Some 10 years ago the Gin Palace did the seemingly impossible: take a “dungeon” tenancy and turn it into a hip gin joint. Apparently the Gin Palace has been getting through more Bombay Sapphire than any other venue in town… by a good margin. Then, when the 2007 smoking laws were announced, Vernon Chalker quickly apprehended the ramifications and immediately started scouting for rooftop courtyards. Come 2007 — like some Fred Perry-era Wimbledon picnic — Madame Brussels was born, welcoming the waves of nicotine refugees to her ample bosom. And then — egad — the scandal! It came out that Vernon had entered into some Faustian contract with ‘Big Tobacco’… was Madame Brussels being secretly bankrolled? Was it a subsidised smokers’ day spa?

Vernon Chalker: It was such a beat up. All product suppliers do what they can to increase market share — soft drink, beer, cigarettes… they’re all legal products. We just wanted a limited number of cigarette brands available that suited the style of Madame Brussels. As it turned out Davidoff market an ultra-thin cigarette that suits, so we struck a deal. venue: Did you take money for the Madam Brussels fitout?

Vernon Chalker: They didn’t contribute any money to our renovations. They paid for our menu cover printing. Our relationship was that of a supplier and a retailer. We’re not selling cigarettes any more cheaply… I hardly think we’re ‘peddling cancer’. In fact, I contacted Quit Victoria at the time. I told Quit that I was happy to work with them and direct some form of marketing toward my patrons. I didn’t get a response from Quit. venue: Are you a smoker?

Vernon Chalker: Occasionally. But I like to smoke indoors — I don’t like ducking out for a fag! I’m not a habitual smoker but I don’t mind a cigar or a late night smoke and a drink. I’m not motivated by my own needs! venue: How much of an impact have the smoking laws had on trade.

Vernon Chalker: Gin Palace’s sales were down 20 percent, and that was consistent for the last six months of 2007. I knew our sales would take a dive but I didn’t think it would be a 20 percent dive. Most reports from New Zealand and Ireland, where they’ve had similar laws introduced, said the market was generally down about 15 percent for nightclubs and bars. Then sales rebounded after six months. But we’ve seen a consistent downturn for the first six months. That’s eaten up all of our profits for that time. venue: So what’s the plan?

Vernon Chalker: After 10 years of having a good run, we’ve got to build up our reputation again. It’s still a good business. We can rationalise the operation to cut costs, but it just took us by surprise. Such a definite impact; and so sustained.

Smoke Signals venue: You must have had your suspicions that the smoking laws would cut deep, given you were leading the charge to secure an alfresco site to insulate yourself from the impact.

Vernon Chalker: Well, Gin Palace was always going to be hit quite hard because its site is such a dungeon. So, come early 2005 when the smoking laws were foreshadowed I knew I’d have to get orgnised. I recall that it was the day of the announcement that I went out looking for a rooftop — believing that was the next logical step to take. Then within a couple of weeks we found the Madame Brussels location in Bourke Street. venue: But it was hardly what you’d call a conventional hospitality site was it?

Vernon Chalker: It’s an office: a simple upstairs office with partition walls and an early ’80s renovation. We’ve just converted a simple office space. So you’re right, it wasn’t conventional and many people wouldn’t have gone near the site, but I was convinced it’d work. After all, Gin Palace worked despite its location, and people will go looking for a destination venue — if you make it fun enough and interesting enough, people will come.

Our first winter was fairly quiet, but by summer we were going ballistic and we had a really good season. venue: Do you think you had a fairly easy run with council planning, given you were one of the first in the queue presenting an alfresco bar option?

Vernon Chalker: It’s true, we got our permits well before alfresco permits were on everyone’s lips and in those early months there were some crazy renovations approved. For example, I’ve seen a section cut out of a window and recessed so people can stand out on the street sucking on a fag only a metre away pedestrians. The council realise they’ve made some mistakes in granting some permits and are much happier to have smokers higher up or away from the street entirely.

Ra Cocktail Bar: Architects: Jackson Clements Burrows; fabrics and furniture chosen by Kirsten Hicks; fabrics purchased from Warwick Fabrics (www.warwick.com.au), hard furniture by Camm Upholstery (03 9555 7580), soft furniture and cushions by Interiors on Cumberland.

“in Sydney you can be managing a huge venue, be very talented and skilled in hospitality but you’ve got no chance of being an owner”

Sydney Opportunities venue: Given you're precisely the type of operator the Sydney city council is after, what’s your assessment of the liberalising of its licensing laws?

Vernon Chalker: There’s no doubt the bar scene will start to thrive if smaller operators are allowed to enter the market.

We saw how Melbourne evolved — it took a few years to kick off, as it has done in Wellington now — but the proliferation of small owner-operated bars has created a really vibrant scene. Sydney rightly wants to have something similar in their narrow laneways. They want to see low-rent locations fill up and add life to the city. venue: How far off is that sort of prospect?

Vernon Chalker: Currently, they’re only proposing that liquor be sold without food in cafés and restaurants until midnight, so there’s no opportunity for a Gin Palace just yet. They’ve not said that you can’t apply for a later license, it’s just not likely to be granted. It’s a case of chipping away until the laws change. venue: But it’s not going to be a bloodless coup, surely?

Vernon Chalker: Sure. Some pubs would close. That’s what occurred in Melbourne — the laws changed and some pubs folded when people could get a glass of wine without food in a restaurant. And the AHA is never going to applaud a move like this — they’ve lobbied to corner the liquor market for decades. But what’s good about the laws changing is that small operators with less capital and people who work in the industry, and are ambitious enough, will have the opportunity to own their own venue. That’s everyone’s dream. In Sydney you can’t fulfil that dream. In Melbourne you can. In Sydney you can manage a huge venue, be very talented and skilled in hospitality but have no chance of being an owner. You can’t just borrow a couple of hundred thousand and start off small. You’re talking millions. So, as the laws stand, I think a lot of talent is wasted.

Quarter Given venue: After eight or nine years running Gin Palace alone, you seem to be in a rich vein of ‘form’, with the latest being is the Collins Quarter [see the next page for details].

Vernon Chalker: The Collins Quarter opportunity suited me, so I don’t think I’ve caught the ‘new venue’ bug just yet. However, I am involved in another project that’s in its start up stage. But I won’t be running that business. It’s with Michael Delaney. We applied for a site to move his nightclub, Honkytonks to little Lonsdale Street, near Elizabeth Street. It’s a fantastic building, but we got knocked back at council in the middle of all the ‘Booze City’ beat up — drunken yobbos roaming the streets every night etc etc. Which is simply not true. There’s always been violence in the city and it’s nothing to do with licensing laws. Anyway, we love the location and we’re going to open a restaurant/bar — breakfast, lunch and dinner seven days a week — and a fantastic function space. venue: And finally Vernon, what’s in the DNA of a good bar operator?

Vernon Chalker: Service is the main thing. If you build a team of good people who are happy to serve the customer and feel like they’ve got a good product… well, then they’re happy and the customer is happy. So service is the first thing.

Tied in with that is looking after your staff. Your whole objective is return trade and you can’t do that with a high staff turnover — if people like what they get they return expecting you’ll deliver the same quality product, which includes the same staff. So it’s a good idea to invest in staff training, that way your staff feel more knowledgeable about their product and better looked after.

And you’ve also got to take risks. Risk isn’t without its stresses — any business is like that — so it helps if you’re able to not let stress get to you — stop taking risks and you don’t move forward.

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The Proprietor — Adam Garrisson The Chef — Tobie Puttock venue chats to the men behind Fifteen about what it takes to get beyond the television

hype and down to the business of juggling both a successful restaurant and a training program for disadvantaged youth.

venue: Let’s kick off with you Tobie. What are the ingredients that go into making a good restaurant?

Tobie Puttock: It starts with the base concept. The most important thing is understanding the market that you're targeting. Everyone's familiar with the comfortable restaurants which have been done many times before — and are a proven format — the 'Caffé e Cucina'-type restaurants.

Maurice Terzini did it 15 years ago, and it's a formula that really works in Melbourne. But something like Fifteen is quite unique [in Melbourne]. We've seen it work over in London, in Amsterdam, and we've used those as a blueprint, but at the same time we're constantly learning everyday about what Melbourne is. I mean, I was born and bred in Melbourne, but I'm still learning about what Melbourne people want, because they're very different to a Sydney market, and definitely different to a London market, that's for sure. venue: What would you say constitutes that blueprint of a Fifteen restaurant?

TP: Obviously we’ve got the training side of what we do here.

So there are two sides to it: we’ve got the restaurant, and then there’s the foundation side, of which we’re both directors.

Adam Garrisson: It makes it very difficult from a layout and operations point of view, because it’s almost like having two kitchens: you’ve got the normal brigade and then you’ve got the trainees. In this restaurant, we doubled the size of the existing kitchen [MoMo’s — Ed.] and rebuilt it.

TP: So I get the luxury of a big kitchen.

AG: And I get the luxury of the big bills! venue: Let's go back a step and talk about how a Fifteen came to be established in Melbourne.

TP: Let me set this up for you: I was involved in the UK Fifteen, and I’ve known Adam for many years. When I came back and told Adam about this, he became super interested in the idea and jumped on board. I think Melbourne’s an interesting city for this kind of concept. We’ve got a small population with so many good restaurateurs. Having the media behind you isn’t enough; you have to come through with a really good product as well. venue: Obviously, the TV cameras would have made for a strange gestation period…

AG: The time frame for this was unbelievably tight. We had some delays in getting access to the space after we bought the existing business — which didn't help; Jamie [Oliver] was coming out for the opening — which was a non-negotiable deadline; and we also had the trainees working… as the TV show was being filmed. We ended up doing a total refit of this space, and finishing what would normally be a three-month fitout in five and a half weeks.

It was a massive coordination exercise. We had a design team that included Woods Bagot Architects, [design consultant]John Warwicker from Tomato in London, and all our team. In effect, it was the same structure you would use in a medium-sized development project — quantity surveyors, services engineers, structural engineers, the lot — to make it work in such a short time. Our meetings had 14 to 16 people in them, which you would normally never see for a 90-seat restaurant.

venue: Were there any concerns about having to film the fitout? Was it designed partly around that?

AG: No, not at all.

TP: A lot of people think this restaurant is the result of a TV show, but that’s simply not the case. This restaurant would have gone ahead with or without TV. TV was great for us because it let so many people understand a little bit about what we’re doing. It’s more than a restaurant, it’s not just the Jamie Oliver 'Road Show'; it’s actually about the kids in there in the white hats.

AG: That’s the really important thing. Fifteen is here for the long haul and not just for a TV show. That documented what we did, but is now just a memory. venue: To take you back to that memory, infamously, when Jamie arrived, he had a few issues with the design. What actually changed?

TP: Nothing.

AG: He had some beliefs as to what things should look like, but we had our view as well. And I believe the end results speak for themselves — it works really well. venue: Was it because he's coming from a London, as opposed to a Melbourne, standpoint?

TP: It’s more about him being on the other side of the world looking at computer animated drawings, and verbally told how it’s going to look. It’s quite hard to paint a picture in your head of what it’s going to be like.

At the end of the day, we’ve got a really good relationship.

And it’s Adam and my restaurant, part of a franchise that Jamie is on the board of, and he very much trusted our view of what Melbourne would go for.

AG: Because Melbourne is very particular, that’s why we did what we did. It’s our restaurant and we listened to his input, but…

TP: To be very honest, the whole thing went incredibly smoothly. venue: Could you talk me through some of the key design features of the restaurant?

AG: The integration of the kitchen into the restaurant, and its visibility were the main priorities.

TP: The whole restaurant revolves around the training program.

One of the key elements that Fifteen restaurants all have in common is that you can see the kitchen from everywhere in the restaurant. There’s even mirrors placed around, so if you’re sitting with your back to the kitchen, you can look up and see it in there.

AG: When we were in the middle of construction I changed the white tiles to black tiles to make them slightly more theatrical — it looks almost like a film set. venue: And there are plenty of suprises in the design — lots to discover?

AG: Spatially, we wanted to create different environments within the space, instead of everything being the same. So people can have a different experience every time they come into the space, but, again, it all leads back to the kitchen, which is key. venue: Was the layout and size of the kitchen entirely your call Tobie?

“A lot of people think this restaurant is the result of a TV show, but that’s simply not the case.”

TP: I had a fair bit of pressure on me to come up with a kitchen in the space we had to work with — we were going head to head through the whole process. Obviously seats translate into dollars but I needed a kitchen that could fit all these extra people. Right now in the kitchen we’ve got 10 people on. With hot pans and fire and knives, and when more than half of the staff isn’t skilled, you need to be really careful and you need to have room for that. Because we’re in a basement, there are a lot of columns supporting the building above us, we couldn’t pull anything more out, we had to work around the space we had.

We must have come up with 20 different scenarios of layouts for the kitchen before arriving at this one. venue: Finally, Adam, I'd like to hear your thoughts on what makes a great restaurant.

AG: I think people like to walk into a space and have a really interesting experience.

Whether it is fine dining, or something we’re producing, or something ultra casual, it has to exude a charismatic character that is reflected in the food, the service and the environment.

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Adam Garrisson and Tobie Puttock spoke to Mark Davie.

» Jubbly: All eyes are on Fifteen's kitchen. Every nook and cranny of the Woods Bagot-designed basement site has views of Tobie Puttock's domain.

Black tiles, rather than the customary white, add to the theatre.

The Restaurateur — Neil Perry Restaurateur royalty, Neil Perry, talks to venue about the Rockpool phenomenon, and what makes a restaurant a great restaurant.

venue: What makes a great restaurnant Neil?

Neil Perry: A great restaurant is an elusive combination of all the elements. It’s not really just about food or wine or service, but the food and wine, service and the ambience. It’s the whole coming together of the lot to create a really wonderful memory for people. It’s really making sure that all the elements express themselves as one. venue: As both a chef and owner of restaurants you’d have a clear idea about the demands of merging form and function.

Neil: Yeah, I’m always heavily involved in the design. So it really does need to be functional, and when you’re sitting down to design it, you need to make sure you brief your designers really clearly as to what your expectation is, and what the restaurant is going to be: what the style of food is, the sense of ambience and feel that you’d like, and also on the sorts of materials you’d like to see used. The brief can be broad, because the designers bring along their own ideas that you may like, but you really need to express a view that restaurants pretty much get hammered for the 10 years of their life and they really need to hold up. So they have to gain a patina, and get better and better with age. venue: In Melbourne’s Rockpool Bar & Grill, Bates Smart seems to have taken that idea, of longevity in design, and used certain material elements in order to achieve it. What are some of the design elements that stand out for you?

Neil: There are lots of design elements that work in that way.

There’s lots of wood, leather, and metal, stone; these are all elements that have a long life; they gain that patina and grow old with grace, along with the restaurant. Longevity is really important, because restaurants get hammered not only by the customers, but also by the staff, and if waiters’ stations don’t function, and if the path to the kitchen doesn’t function, then the restaurant disintegrates into chaos. venue: So how do you preserve the life of a restaurant, given all the materials you’ve used suffer from wear and tear?

Neil: You’ve got to have really good maintenance. The floors, for instance, are oiled every three months. We’ve clearly got a very good cleaning regime, both from the professional cleaners’ standpoint and also from the waiters’ and chefs’ standpoint, for the dining room and kitchen. We make sure the chairs are tended every year now, for example. We just had the first one done, which was a bit under a year, but we had all new feet put on and the leather conditioned, and the legs re-painted. There’re always lots of little things to do. You know, a lot of restaurants don’t leave enough room in the budget on an ongoing basis to make sure that, for example, every six months all the kitchen equipment gets serviced, because that makes sure that it’s there, looking good and working good, for the length of the restaurant’s life — 10 years or whatever that might be. venue: Do you consider that you have pretty strong creative control over what the restaurants are going to look like?

Neil: What I would say is, that I have a very strong idea of what I want it to look like, in the sense of look and feel. So yes, I have a very strong idea of creating a brief that the architect, the designers, can follow, so they know what your final result is going to be, and how it’s going to fit in with the food service, and the general feel of the restaurant’s image — the ‘brand’.

But then I really leave it up to the designers, to make sure that they bring their part to the table. It’s a bit like having a dog and then barking yourself: if you’re going to tell a designer what to design, then you might as well do it yourself. Really high quality restaurateurs with really great restaurants bring together a team of people that they work with who, if briefed really strongly, come up with an image and a brand and a feel that is usually

quite extraordinary, because you’ve used their expertise. But if you’re going to tell them what you want, then you’re just going to end up with the limits of your own imagination. venue: So what did Bates Smart bring to the table that particularly impressed you?

Neil: They came up with lots of the elements of the restaurant. The large copperwood fan around the open kitchen, and I worked very closely with Grant [Cheyne, Senior Interior Designer, Bates Smart] on how open the kitchen is, because he wanted the flame grill to be very visual. And we had to make compromises in terms of the way you’d normally set up kitchens to do that. But we’ve successfully worked through that. And other great elements, like the dividing rope screen that was added to the restaurant later, which really gives us a number of intimate spaces within a very large restaurant. And I really briefed them on this, how I wanted the restaurant to feel like it had a number of spaces, though when you looked at it you’d see a large volume of tables and chairs but not a sea of them, and I think that Bates Smart did a great job in achieving this. venue: This seems to be the move in a lot of restaurants now, to create a variety of dining options within one space…

Neil: Yeah, and I think it’s interesting too, how people come to a restaurant and have to come a few times to really get what the place is about. They keep discovering things each time they come… venue: You’re refurbishing Sydney Rockpool this year [due for completion as this issue of venue hits the streets]: is this a move away from fine dining and more towards the feel of the Melbourne Rockpool?

Neil: I’m making it a seafood version of the steakhouse aspect of Melbourne, so I’m making it a Rockpool-inspired seafood restaurant. And it is a move away from fine dining, but it’s a move towards what I think Melbourne Rockpool is, which is great dining.

It’s a great place to eat; it’s a grand restaurant. You feel like you could be anywhere in the world when you’re sitting in Rockpool Bar & Grill. And you have enormous choice on the menu. It’s all really high quality ingredients, cooked by chefs who have a really good understanding of cooking to the moment, and cooking perfectly. There’s a great serving team and a fantastic wine list.

So it’s like going to a brilliant restaurant anywhere in the world, but we’ve just taken away a few of the more time-consuming and fastidious things that are sometimes considered fine dining, to give people more choice, and more opportunity to engage with the restaurant on a more regular basis. venue: So what is the difference between fine dining and plain old great dining?

Neil: Well I think fine dining is an expression of all the things that happen around the meal as well as the meal itself, which sometimes can get a little overbearing in a sense. But when there’s more canapés, more petits fours, more bread than you really ever need, then it’s all got a bit carried away. But I think there will always be fine dining, because people want to have a great night out, and a very unique dining experience with the chef putting every ounce of their own individuality into the food.

By the way, there aren’t a lot of people who can cook like that around the world…

So I did that for 25 years. I’m 50 now, and I’m really just going into a new phase. Dozens of journalists have rung me up and said, “You’re leaving fine dining, so is it dead?” But I’m really just going another way. Fine dining’s not dead just because I’ve decided to go in another direction. venue: So is it not so much a shift in the menu, as much as it’s a shift in the ambience of where you’re eating?

“Fine dining’s not dead just because I’ve decided to go in another direction”

Neil: There is a shift in the menu, in that Rockpool [Sydney] at the moment has a choice of a 12-course tasting menu, or a five-course menu with choices — three choices in each course. So it’s more narrowed, more specific, and you need to be going there with a certain mindset. Whereas at Bar & Grill you can turn up with any kind of mindset, with 68 things on the menu you can find something you really feel like eating. You can sit down and have a burger in the bar, or you can sit in the restaurant and have lobster, abalone and caviar, and drink one of the greatest wines of the 20th century. So it’s really about more approachability and flexibility, and people are able to lock into what they feel like. You might come and spend a lot of money here — you might not even start to think about that. You might have come here for a nice steak and something else, and then all of a sudden you see the wine list, and you see lobster and caviar, and you can be transported to eating the most amazing produce in the world and drinking the most amazing wine. Or you might sit down and have a chopped cos lettuce salad and an amazing piece of aged rump for $39.

So Rockpool Melbourne also gives price-point flexibility. You can come in and you’re not locked in to spending a certain amount. At Rockpool Sydney it’s $180 per head for the tasting menu, or $150 for the five-course, so you’re more locked in. But that will change with the new Rockpool Sydney. venue: And what can Sydney diners look forward to?

Is it anything like Rockpool Bar & Grill?

Neil: From a design perspective it’s changing dramatically in the dining room. You won’t recognise the fitout: it’s completely changing. Bates Smart are doing it, but it’s not going to be anything like Melbourne. Rockpool Bar & Grill in Sydney that we’re working on will reflect a little of what we’re doing here, but we’re not sort of cookie-cutting it, we’re just taking some references of the steakhouse and so forth.

Sydney Rockpool is going to be really cool, and in keeping with the whole seafood philosophy, and when people see it they’re totally going to be blown away. venue: Could you sum up your idea of what makes a good restaurant in 20 words or less?

Neil: From our restaurant’s perspective, we always end up serving the best quality food we possibly can. We look after it perfectly and we always make sure we train our staff and give them great product knowledge, which is so important for the customers, to understand the experience we’ve gone through.

And for the restaurant to be really comfortable, relaxing, engaging. It’s called hospitality — so it’s all about hospitality and generosity, and we try to get a sense of that right across the whole experience, not just through the food.

And comfort is so important. So many people say to me, what they love about my restaurants is that they have a comfortable chair to sit in…

Okay, so that was a little over 20 words, but when Neil Perry talks, and given the superlatives regularly used to describe his restaurants, it’s worth listening…

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Neil Perry spoke to Sophie Gebhardt.

The Osmond Brothers Live!

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n Tuesday May 1, 2007, Brothers Will and Toby Osmond unveiled their new venture: Will and Toby’s Taylor Square. The highly anticipated project is the flagship in the rapidly expanding Will and Toby’s portfolio.

Will and Toby’s Taylor Square is located on the first and second floors of the iconic Oxford Hotel on Sydney’s vibrant Oxford Street. The former ‘grand dame’ of the Sydney’s colourful nightlife reigns again — the epitome of style, glamour and the very best in late-night entertainment.

Will and Toby Osmond first became famous for their Will and Toby’s Bistro and Bar, a Darlinghurst hot spot they opened in 2001. Although the venue was pokey the business was an instant success, becoming recognised as a ‘home away from home’ for many. The success of the business was often attributed to the hands-on hospitality of the brothers. Together with their team, customers were always greeted by a friendly, familiar face with a solid knowledge of the product and a keen eye for detail.

Last year the brothers opted for beachside chic, opening Will & Toby’s Manly. The venue has a summery, beach house appeal with blue and white striped banquettes, a lifeguard-and-bikini themed mural, a tall communal table and a big, handsome bar.

Groovy architects and interior designers, SJB, created a space that is sophisticated yet relaxed, contemporary and inviting directly opposite the beach.

However, long before the Manly venue was even a twinkle in his eye, Toby was working on the brothers’ return to Darlinghurst and it has taken four years for Will and Toby’s Taylor Square to finally become a reality. The first floor — The Supper Club — is a late-night jazz and cabaret venue that can seat 200 guests. Upstairs is the Polo Lounge, which can best be described as a gentlemen’s club with a twist, drawing inspiration from the bars in London’s Mayfair and New York’s Upper East Side.

The debonair interior, designed by Paul Kelly, features oak parquetry floors with marble edges, 5m-long black leather chesterfields, a floating jade ceiling, a custommade art deco stairwell with lit stair treads and a spectacular fresco depicting a gothic fairytale.

Where there’s a Will… venue caught up with Toby Osmond, a charming, genial man — definitely ‘the host with the most’. venue: How did you become involved in the hospitality industry?

Toby Osmond: It started like most people as a second job but both my brother and I found we liked working nights and the lifestyle that went with it. We both worked our way up to managing venues — although not together — thinking that one day we’d get a ‘real job’. It wasn’t until my mid-twenties when a friend pointed out to me that I was clearly good at hospitality — that it came naturally to me — so I started to look at hospitality seriously and as a long term career. venue: When did you start working with your brother?

Toby Osmond: I had been involved in a venue for 18 months and was very tired, so I took a 12-month break in New York returning to Sydney in 2000. I was looking at doing something of my own and Will was too. Although we’re brothers we didn’t see a lot of each other and it took someone else to suggest we open a venue together.

It then all happened really quickly. venue: Do you squabble much?

Toby Osmond: When we told people we were going into business they asked if we could even stay in the same room together! We used to have our moments in the old days but we’ve come a long way. We stick to what we do best. venue: Describe the first venue you co-owned?

Toby Osmond: It was a French bistro on Victoria St, Darlinghurst. It had the restaurant out front, which I looked after; and the bar in the back, which Will ran. While the restaurant was relaxed and casual I did have certain standards, whereas Will was a real showman. I’d be providing silver service out front, then I’d look back at Will and he’d be standing on the bar belting out Frank Sinatra tunes to everyone. People loved it but we had to sell it in order to do this place. venue: Why did you open the Manly restaurant while planning this venue?

» Saddle Club: The Polo Lounge is Paul Kelly at his best: classy and gentrified, serving up a fresh twist on a gentlemen’s club. The palette is kept to a bare minimum of chic black and white, with the walls clad in white gloss timber panels with black marble trims. Spread across the oak parquetry floor, the Polo Lounge boasts luxurious black leather chesterfields, fireplaces and plush chairs — all evocative of a well-upholstered Fifth Avenue luxury apartment. The Moooi horse lamp is hard to ignore — a frisky filly in a stable of sophistication.

Avsound Productions installed a Martin Audio PA system, powered by Crown amplifiers, with a BSS Soundweb-based zoning/processing and routing.

Will and Toby are the hottest names in Sydney hospitality. venue tracks down Toby upon the launch of their latest and most ambitious venture yet — Will and Toby’s Taylor Square.

“Although we’ve spent a lot of money on the venue it’s still understated.”

Toby Osmond: The Taylors Square approval process was taking such a long time and the opportunity in Manly presented itself. It all happened really fast. Manly takes 200 covers on a Monday night which is just unheard of, even in town. venue: What do you think makes it so successful?

Toby Osmond: There’s really not much competition in the area and it is also on the beach. It has a relaxed and casual atmosphere but Manly isn’t called the ‘Insular Peninsula’ for nothing, you really need to get the locals on side. We found the quickest way to do this was to donate $25,000 to the Manly Surf Club to purchase a long boat. Once the locals saw the boat with ‘Will and Toby’s’ written down the side we were in!

» Supper Time: The Supper Club is committed to bringing the very best in sleek and sophisticated live entertainment. Paul Kelly has used raw exposed masonry walls offset against vivid retro fabrics and playful ceiling moldings. If this room was personified, it would be “a technicolour, vivacious Doris day in full song”, commented Paul. Avsound installed a topof-the-range JBL Curvature Line Array powered by Crown amplifiers, along with all the audio trimmings live bands expect.

Room for Inspiration venue: What was your initial concept for Will and Toby’s Taylor Square?

Toby Osmond: We looked for an opening in the market. People had embraced the small cocktail bars which catered to about 50 people and they in themselves were a reaction to mega-venues of the ’90s, but the success of your night out really depended on the other people in the bar. We decided that people were probably ready to be entertained again and so we wanted to introduce a live element. While the Polo Lounge is a lovely, smart cocktail bar that’s doing really well, it’s the downstairs that we really want to get right. venue: What were your design inspirations?

Toby Osmond: Paul Kelly and I did a quick reconnaissance trip to Los Angeles and New York.

Paul’s initial presentation was a quite modern design, which was not what we wanted, so the best way to explain our wishes was to take him overseas and show him. We’ve used some very direct references, especially from New York — for example, the ceiling above the stairwell we took from the observation deck of the Chrysler building, while the exposed brick wall downstairs is a common feature in New York bars. Every detail is classic and has been done before. What makes it so special is the way it’s all put together. Although we’ve spent a lot of money on the venue it’s still understated. venue: Tell me about the horse?

Toby Osmond: He comes from a Dutch company called Moooi. As the venue was taking shape we were a bit worried that people might think we’re taking ourselves too seriously so we wanted to show that we did have a sense of humour — we didn’t want to be perceived as being too precious. It’s fast becoming a tourist attraction. Of course we do get people trying to jump on it but you get an immediate red card if you do! venue: How do you and your brother divide the work?

Toby Osmond: I run the Polo Lounge, which is more about the existing clientele that we have from Victoria Street — in fact, friends and family probably make up 50% of the customers. So I spend my nights with all of them, which is lovely but can be a bit draining, whereas Will looks after the operation of downstairs. I’m the more ‘front of house’ brother. venue: What are your plans for the Supper Club?

Toby Osmond: It’s important to gain credibility in the music industry. We didn’t want to be known as a fashionable eastern suburbs nightclub that happens to have entertainment. It’s working, as Sony, Universal and Warners are all using us for showcases. We haven’t skimped at all on the technical equipment, in fact we had Jimmy Barnes play here last week and he said it was the best sound that he’s ever heard. I find that in this country, when people are building a venue, the sound and staging are almost an afterthought. We’ve done it the opposite way: everything started with the staging and audio then the interior followed. Felix is our full-time lighting and sound guy. He used to be at The Vanguard, and he’s helped give the venue credibility as so many people know of him.

“One thing we’ve discovered is although the venue may be full, people who watch live music don’t drink! ”

“Oxford Street at midnight on a Friday had a real party atmosphere but nowadays it’s as if people have to be dragged out. Everyone is at home on bloody chat lines.”

Lessons Learnt venue: Have you learnt any lessons since opening?

Toby Osmond: We deliberately opened in mid winter without much fuss, that way we had a few months to grow and get everything right. We haven’t pushed the venue much, preferring to let people find it in their own time.

However, the Polo Lounge has been pretty much full from Day One. Downstairs has been more of a struggle as we’ve had to learn that market. One thing we’ve discovered is although the venue may be full, people who watch live music don’t drink! They’ll happily watch the best jazz act in the country while consuming only a couple of glasses of red wine over four hours. So we have to rethink that a bit.

We may change the direction on a Saturday night to make it more of a club atmosphere. venue: Future plans?

Toby Osmond: One thing I’m interested in is marketing the brand of Will & Toby’s and designing homewares, such as glassware. At the moment we’re both so hands-on and our presence so integral to the success of our venue, that the key is to try to make the operation a little more selfsufficient. venue: What are your thoughts on the current Sydney scene?

Toby Osmond: I think the only way is up. There hasn’t been much excitement in Sydney for quite a few years. Maybe it’s me getting old but I hear other people saying the same thing. I remember when I first moved to Sydney in 1990, there was such a buzz. Oxford Street at midnight on a Friday had a real party atmosphere but nowadays it’s as if people have to be dragged out. I think they have to be educated in how to go out again! Everyone is at home on bloody chat lines.

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» Will and Toby’s Taylor Square: Oxford Hotel, 134 Oxford St, Darlinghurst NSW www.willandtobys.com.au » Paul Kelly Design: (02) 9660 8299 or www.paulkellydesign.com.au » Avsound Productions: 1300 663 166 or www.avsound.com.au » Dynalite (lighting control): www.dynalite-online.com » Babel Study: The custom-made art deco stairwell cost $300,000 to construct. LED-lit stair treads add glam while the spectacular fresco adds gravitas. The four-storey mural was designed by Killanoodle.

Blue Diamond venue snaffles a sneak preview of one of the most keenly anticipated members-only club openings this year.

Text: Sophie Gebhardt

Âť Diamond Geezers: Blue Diamond owners, Henry Maas and Andrew Leonedas at their RACV building premises.

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ot so long ago, venue predicted the rise of the ‘business class’ membership club (Issue 9, Editorial), and lo and behold, another such club will be added to the small but growing list in September this year.

Located in the heart of Melbourne’s CBD, and with a multimillion dollar view, Blue Diamond is the vision of long-time Melbourne entrepreneur Henry Maas (The Black Cat and The Night Cat) and business partner Andrew Leonedas, also well-established in the world of hospitality.

I visited the site of the new club to talk to the pair about their plans. On the top floor of the old RACV building on Queen Street, the club is very much under construction, but the potential is clear. Once housing the RACV members’ dining room, the site already has an aura of exclusivity and luxury that will be dramatically polished over the next few months.

Diamond in the Rough As I sat with Henry and Andrew, various tradies and suppliers interrupted our chat, and this only added to the sense of anticipation about the finished product. Carpet colours and textures were debated, builders presented quotes for the 18-foot-long bar… and, when they had a chance, Andrew and Henry talked about the philosophy behind the club, the planned layout of the place, the furniture, and of course, that view.

Henry: Essentially, the idea for the Blue Diamond stemmed from being at the Night Cat for a long time and wanting to move on, wanting a more mature place — while I got older the Night Cat crowds stayed the same age. And there’s a lack of mature venues in Melbourne, so that was the next step, to do something like Blue Diamond. So I contacted Andrew, to see if he was interested, and he was. And then we started searching…

It’s probably taken a year to find the room, until we finally stumbled on this one.

Venue: So how did you stumble on it?

Henry: We were, in fact, looking at a place across the road, but it was too office-y. Then we turned around and saw another ‘for lease’ sign. As it turned out it was advertising office space just below us here. But, regardless, we approached the owner about this floor and he liked the idea so much that he decided to go with us.

Andrew: Previous to Blue Diamond this was the RACV members’ dining room. So with that came all the main infrastructure: the toilets, the plumbing and the kitchen, for example, were all in place. So really, it just needed a cosmetic workover. And really, regardless of the interior we found here, the views — the aspect of the whole place — were just perfect.

And it really is an escape. There are other clubs that are going along similar lines… but not with this view. This is really special — very special.

Venue: Apart from the view, what is Blue Diamond going to offer its members?

Henry: We’re going to have live music: Kate Cebrano, Paul Grabowsky, cabaret, that sort of thing…

Andrew: And the bar… we’re going to put in a proper bar. It will cater to the upmarket crowd, so we’re talking

Photo: Pat Scala

“It’s about nibbling, having a drink and taking in the ambience”

about a really strong range of high quality wines, spirits and cocktails. We’re trying to create an atmosphere reminiscent of Manhattan in the ’30s, where you can come to your own little private club after dinner or after a show and watch the sun rise. venue: Sounds very romantic! And obviously we’re talking about an extended license.

Andrew: We’ll be operating as late as we need to. We’ve got a 24-hour licence, so we can cater for those who want to stay on…

Henry: We’re going to be open from noon, so food will be always be available…

Andrew: We’ll put some menus and platters together.

We’ll keep it very simple, but very fresh and very good quality. It’s about nibbling, having a drink and taking in the ambience.

Henry: It’s about meeting and coming together; that’s what it’s about more than anything…

Just Lounging The design of the furniture and fittings are all geared towards the theme of comfort and luxury, with a predominance of reds, pinks and warm timber tones. There will be low tables (designed by Henry and Andrew and made in China) and comfortable chairs custom-made by Stile Mobile of Italy.

Banquettes (upholstered by Evolve Living) will line the windows and the Independent Carpet Company will be supplying the custom-made carpet.

Currently not much more than an artist’s impression, the interior will be an opulent backdrop to the opulent view — an inviting spot for members to wile away the hours in contemplation of the ever-changing cityscape.

Blue Diamond — High Stakes Following the interview I attended the third of the four preview nights for prospective members. As darkness descends and silence replaces the cacophony of construction, nothing distracts from the almost 360-degree view of Melbourne. The position offers rare vistas. Looking to the east, you are confronted with a panorama of the CBD, with its strange juxtaposition of Victoriana and the postmodern. To the south is a fantastic view of Southbank and the awe-inspiring Eureka Towers. And to the west you can peer down Little Collins towards New Quay and the Docklands. I can only begin to imagine what this place will be like on a hot summer’s evening, with the last rays of sun casting a golden glow; or at dawn as the sun rises over the top end of town. This element of tantalisation is what Henry and Andrew are counting on in running the previews and drumming up pre-opening membership. And if you can’t afford the price, then you’ll want to befriend someone who can — tag along as a guest, because the experience of Blue Diamond will be one in a million.

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» Blue Diamond: 15th Floor 123 Queen Street, Melbourne » Henry: (03) 9419 7753 Andrew: 0412 401 640 » Stile Mobile: stile@jarl.com.au » Evolve Living: evolveliving@optusnet.com.au » Independent Carpet Company: (03) 9706 5547

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asual dining might be the preferred mode of scoffing these days but sometimes it’s nice to kick back in a place where you’re not referred to as ‘Luv’ by an orange-haired waitress; fed food you could passably recreate on a quiet Sunday afternoon in our own kitchen, feeling like another faceless punter being ‘fed and watered’ like cattle.

In short, people love the chilled-out nature of casual dining but sometimes they want something a little more special — they want special food, special atmosphere and they want to feel special… relaxed and special.

Longrain has been in operation for over six years in its Surry Hills location in Sydney and has enjoyed an enviable reputation. And, arguably, it’s struck the perfect balance of casual and fine dining. It’s vibey, fun and relaxed but the Thai food is superb and the service is highly professional.

Regardless of whether you’re a city CEO or a suburban mum, a night out at Longrain is a treat. And it’s that broad appeal that has sent Longrain’s numbers sky-rocketing — regularly feeding 1500 people a week.

Longrain is the brainchild (or should that be the lovechild) of Sam Christie. Sam served his hospitality ‘apprenticeship’ with stints at Bayswater Brasserie in King Cross; Terence Conran’s Quaglino’s in London; Bilson’s in Sydney; as sommelier at Tetsuya Wakuda’s internationally acclaimed restaurant, Tetsuya’s in Rozelle; and then (again as sommelier) at James Ingrams’ The International.

Sam then resolved to open his own establishment. But it wasn’t until he joined forces with chef Martin Boetz that the final pieces of the puzzle fell into place: “Initially we weren’t going to be a Thai restaurant,” remarked Sam. “And then when Martin came on board, that’s when we decided on the cuisine. We didn’t expect the business to be quite so successful. We thought it would be a little neighbourhood place for our friends and a few locals!”

The Sam Christie Interview Restaurateur, Longrain

Few restaurant/bars in Australia have the vibe and goodwill that Longrain in Sydney enjoys. And after six successful years in the harbour city, Sam Christie has decided to take on the Melbourne market. venue catches up with Sam for a few grains of wisdom.

Interview: Christopher Holder Photography: Jeremy Simons

Head South Over the years, news of Longrain spread. For example, any Melbournian with a nose for a good night out ensured that a trip to Sydney included an evening at Longrain.

Inevitably Sam was peppered with requests for him to open a Longrain south of the border. And so it was: in late 2005 Longrain Melbourne opened its doors. The site and location bear all the hallmarks of a canny operator: Longrain Melbourne occupies an old red-brick stable building at the Parliament end of Little Bourke Street. It’s on the fringe of Chinatown, in a location with enormous character that’s amply surrounded by city professionals and urban dwellers. And, above all, the site and fitout ensures Longrain instantly feels like Longrain — anyone familiar with the original restaurant will instantly ‘get it’.

“We wanted people to walk in here and think ‘ah this feels like Longrain’. And it’s not just the sight of three big wooden tables [a Longrain signature] but it’s that sense of space and openness — a breezy feeling. And we’ve definitely achieved that. The architects were Hecker Phelan and Guthrie, with Hamish Guthrie the partner doing most of the work on the project.” venue: How difficult was it to secure just the right site?

Sam Christie: Firstly we decided on a city location — we wanted a lunch trade, and the city is the only place for a good consistent lunch trade. After that we looked around for about a year. Initially we were poking around the Yarra River side of the city — principally Flinders Lane — and didn’t find anything that was perfect — the places we saw

» Banquet Style: Longrain’s trademark long wooden communal tables have been supplemented by circular tables (from David Chipperfield). The vivid red and green murals behind the bar feature artist Christopher Hodges’ ‘anemone’ silhouette and was a collaborative work created by the artist with Nikki Christie (aka Mrs Sam Christie).

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were either too big, too small, had bad access etc.

Then we came across our current location.

It had been the site of the Melbourne Champagne Bar, which was more of a nightclub. When we took possession, there was a lot of plaster. The ceilings had plaster, the columns had plaster, the walls were plastered. You’d have no idea that there was this beautiful red brick building underneath except for the structure outside — the outside looked great. So we ripped out 98 percent of what was here and virtually started the refit from scratch. venue: A reasonable number of operators have taken a successful Melbourne concept to Sydney but not so many in the other direction. Is that your feeling?

SC: Sure. There’s been Paul Mathis with Blackbird, Maurice Terzini with Otto and The Icebergs, the Last Aussie Fish Café did it in the ‘80s, Fratelli Paradiso is another good example, the Hugo’s guys have done

it; a lot of people have done it successfully in that direction. But as far as I’m aware we’re the first people to do it from Sydney to Melbourne. venue: Which is extraordinary.

SC: I agree. I find it kinda bizarre. Our thoughts were: if we open up another place in Sydney we might be in danger of diluting our presence. So we asked ourselves what the next biggest and most obvious market was — which had to be Melbourne. We had it in our heads for years to do it.

But it wasn’t until we actively tried to pursue it that things came to fruition. We’ve taken partners down here, which was a wise move — we realised that we couldn’t go it alone. So we’ve gone into partnership with John Van Haandel, who’s best known for his success with the Prince of Wales and the Stokehouse. That partnership means you’re tapping into their local infrastructure and buying power. It’s a great marriage.

“ If you’re sitting in a beautifully-appointed dining room and you’ve got the starched table cloths and the bow-tied waiters … well, it can be hard to relax”

Can’t Get The Help? venue: How do you go about retaining good staff?

SC: Free beer all year seems to work pretty well! But that aside… venue: So you do offer free beer?

SC: Sure. You’ve got to have a staff beer; you’ve got to have time to talk about service, relax and wind down.

But my experience with staff has been a little different front of house compared to back of house. For example, it’s been really hard to find chefs — but you hear that from everyone, countrywide. We just had the Lexus Young Chef of the Year launch in here this morning, which is an award we’re right behind — anything that keeps kids in the business is a great thing. There’s a 50 percent dropout rate in chef apprenticeships, while I think there’s a 20 percent dropout for other trades. So it gives you an idea of the enormous attrition rate. venue: Why is that?

SC: It’s bloody hard work! These new kids think they’ll get spat out as Jamie Oliver or Neil Perry after four years, and they don’t realise you’re on your feet for 60, 70, 80 hours a week… and you’re dealing with intense heat, sharp knives and stress… It’s hardcore. There’s not a lot of glamour to it… at least at first. If you get very good at your profession your job might have a glamorous exterior but it’s still blood and guts behind the scenes.

Meanwhile, at front of house we’ve been quite lucky to get a really good crew in Melbourne. But I know that’s not the general experience of operators in Melbourne — there’s definitely a shortage of staff. venue: What’s your view on how the new IR legislation is changing the hospitality workplace? Have waiting staff been getting the rough end of the pineapple?

SC: You should see a weekly wage bill at a restaurant of this size. I mean, once you’ve added your superannuation, your workers’ compensation, your payroll tax…. You’re forking out tens of thousands of dollars on wages every week. It’s a lot of money. A lot of places can’t afford to pay staff what staff want because they couldn’t afford to stay open — the equations don’t add up. After rent, and purchasing food, and wages, there’s not much left over except to break even. So it’s really hard. venue: It’s a tough balancing act I guess. After all, you want to retain good staff.

SC: The situation at front of house is different because there’s the tip element. So if you run a tight ship front of house there will be rewards for waiters and bar staff, and our kitchen staff get a cut of tips as well. So that tops up their wages. But because there’s such a shortage of good, qualified chefs, if they come to us and they’re asking for X amount per week, you have to take them because there’s no one else out there. It’s that sort of market at the moment. Which is unfortunate for everyone involved. venue: A classic case of supply and demand?

SC: That’s right. You read about it in the papers. Baker’s Delight has been advertising and can’t get the staff, so they’re sponsoring 20 bakers to come from Vietnam.

Then you get chefs from overseas and they don’t hang around. You nurture them, teach them your cuisine and in three or six months down the track they’ve moved to Byron Bay! venue: Sam, you seem like a remarkably nice guy to be running a high-volume restaurant… surely there must be a bit of mongrel lurking in you to stay successful?

SC: No, you need to be a people person more than anything. That’s what I am. That way you can look after your customers and staff, and motivate the people around you. I don’t think ‘mongrel’ really works. If you’re a mongrel to your staff then the staff are mongrels to your customers. I often go into restaurants and my friends are commenting on a waiter ‘with attitude’.

» With the Grain: The dark stained wood of the restaurant’s interior is lightened up with Vico Magistretti’s iconic white ‘70s inspired ‘Atollo’ table lamps (left). While Red/cream and dark-brown rattan ‘Flo’ stools by Patricia Urquiola add splashes of colour and texture to the bar space (above).

“We didn’t expect the business to be quite so successful. We thought it would be a little neighbourhood place for our friends and a few locals! ”

» Longrain: www.longrain.com.au » Architects: Hecker Phelan & Guthrie — (03) 9417 0466 » Audiovisual Supply: Factory Sound — (03) 9690 8344 or www.factorysound.com » Audiovisual Design: Richard Hallam — 0419 577572

» Banquet Style: The bar cleverly divides the cocktail lounge and the restaurant’s main dining area. Made from solid American oak the bar is topped by white-marbled Calcutta stone. Dinnerware is from Pillauit, while the glassware is a Luigi Bormioli design.

But I know he doesn’t have attitude, he’s just getting a lot of pressure from his kitchen and probably has the chef yelling at him. It’s not attitude, it’s just stress, and I can see the tell-tale signs. I’ve worked in restaurants for 18 years and I’ve seen the European way of running a kitchen with that hierarchy and strict pecking order, and it doesn’t work very well on Australians. We challenge authority and we’re too laid back to put up with all that. venue: It sounds like it’s still a business for true believers? Running restaurants isn’t a shortcut to the millionaire’s club?

SC: If you’re running a business of this size and with our experience it’s a lot easier than it is for young guys coming in without much of an idea about what to expect… But it’s not all doom and gloom that’s for sure. venue: You must be having a bit of fun?

SC: I’m having a lot of fun, don’t your worry about that!

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he Crown hecomplex Crown complex is big. Really is big. big.

Really You big. just won’t You just believe won’t believe how vastly, how hugely, vastly,mind hugely, bogglingly mind bogglingly big it is…big [Apologies it is… [Apologies to to Douglas Douglas Adams.] Adams.]

Actually Actually it is easyit enough is easy enough to quantify to quantify how big how Crown bigis.Crown The is. The propertyproperty is spreadis over spread 510,000 over 510,000 square metres square (about metres two (about two city blocks) city and blocks) houses and dozens houses of dozens speciality of speciality shops, over shops, 50 over 50 food/drink food/drink outlets (restaurants, outlets (restaurants, bars, cafés bars,etc), cafés two etc), hotels, two hotels, 14 cinemas, 14 cinemas, three nightclubs three nightclubs and of course and ofacourse casinoa(which casino (which incidentally incidentally accountsaccounts for only around for only 20 around percent 20 percent of the floor of the floor space). All space). of thisAll serves of this toserves attracttosome attract 25,000 some to25,000 35,000to visitors 35,000 visitors per day. per day.

That’s a lot That’s of traffic. a lot of traffic.

NeedlessNeedless to say, running to say, a running complex a complex that makes thatmore makes money more money (around (around $375m last $375m financial last financial year) than year) most than medium-sized most medium-sized towns, requires towns, a requires well-organised a well-organised management management structure.structure.

Three Three directorsdirectors look after look all the afterfood, all the drink food, and drink catering and catering operations operations and I had and theI pleasure had the pleasure of speaking of speaking to David to Yallouz David—Yallouz General — General Manager, Manager, CateringCatering Operations.

Operations.

Apart from Apart being from 2IC being (second 2IC (second in-charge) in-charge) to the to Executive the Executive General General ManagerManager (Food &(Food & Beverage), Beverage), Walter Wagner, Walter Wagner, he oversees he oversees all the banqueting all the banqueting areas — The areas Palladium, — The Palladium, associated associated banqueting banqueting rooms, the rooms, River the River Room and Room other and meeting other meeting rooms —rooms amongst — amongst other duties. otherUnder duties. Under David’s control David’sare control an Executive are an Executive Chef (and Chef his team (and his of over team100 of over 100 staff), a Food staff),and a Food Beverage and Beverage Manager, Manager, a 10-strong a 10-strong Event Sales Event Sales team (which teambrings (which the brings likes of thethe likes Logies of the into Logies The Palladium into The Palladium at at Crown), an Crown), Eventan Management Event Management team of around team of12 around people 12and people and an Operations an Operations team of over team250 of over staff.250 staff.

As I say, it’s As quite I say, it’s an quite operation. an operation.

And it’s aAnd lot of it’sresponsibility a lot of responsibility for a chap forwho a chap is onwho the isright on the sideright side of 40 and of who’s 40 and come who’supcome through up through the Crown theranks Crown — ranks David— David has been has at been Crownatsince Crown it moved since it into moved its current into its Southbank current Southbank premises,premises, starting starting as a restaurant as a restaurant manager. manager.

But that’s Butthe that’s the way Crown way likes Crown to play likes to things. play Itthings. identifies It identifies talent astalent soon as soon as they sign as they on. sign Whether on. Whether it be a waiter, it be aawaiter, croupier a croupier or a ‘busor a ‘bus boy’, management boy’, management grooms its grooms staff, puts its staff, them puts through them through Crown Crown College and College pushes andthem pushes up them the management up the management ladder. ladder.

The David The David Yallouz Yallouz Interview Interview

General General Manager Manager — Catering — Catering Operations Operations Directing Directing Traffic? Traffic?

CrownCrown Entertainment Entertainment Complex Complex venue: When venue: I think When of Iwhat think itoftakes whattoit get takes people to getinto people a bar into to a bar to have a drink haveorato drink sit down or to sit and down have and a meal, haveIathink meal, of Isomeone think of someone Melbourne’s Melbourne’s Crown Entertainment Crown Entertainment Complex Complex is is needs who who street needs smarts, streetpassion smarts,and passion a love and of a seeing love of customers seeing customers the biggest the biggest of its type of its this type sidethis of side the equator. of the equator. enjoyingenjoying themselves… themselves… not a big notcorporate a big corporate juggernaut juggernaut like like Crown. IsCrown. it sometimes Is it sometimes hard to maintain hard to maintain that grassroots that grassroots passion passion With 50-plus With 50-plus food, drink food, and drinkbanqueting and banqueting for hospitality for hospitality when it iswhen such ita ishuge suchenterprise? a huge enterprise? outlets outlets under under one roof oneit roof requires it requires precision precision David Yallouz: David Yallouz: Maintaining Maintaining that passion that passion is the reason is the for reason for and passion and passion to keep to the keepcogs the turning cogs turning the hierarchy. the hierarchy.

Each of Each our restaurants of our restaurants and bars and operates bars operates smoothly. smoothly.

Christopher Christopher Holder Holder discovers discovers how how autonomously. autonomously.

Each is Each managed is managed by its own by its restaurant/bar own restaurant/bar Crown Crown maintains maintains its edge. its edge. manager, manager, the restaurant the restaurant has its own hashead its own chef head etc,chef etc. etc, So that etc. So that passion ispassion encouraged. is encouraged. venue: The venue: cynics Theamong cynics our among readers our might readers suggest might that suggest yourthat your restaurants restaurants and barsand are bars simply are antechambers simply antechambers for the gaming for the gaming tables —tables warming — warming up clientsup forclients their journey for theirto journey the casino. to the casino.

DY: Gaming DY: Gaming revenue revenue is obviously is obviously crucial to crucial the financial to the financial success of success Crown, ofno Crown, one would no one deny would that. deny But that. a real But point a real of point of difference difference we havewe here have is the here strength is the strength and variety andofvariety our food of our food and beverage and beverage [F&B] offerings.

[F&B] offerings.

F&B actsF&B autonomously acts autonomously — we’re — we’re not under not the under auspices the auspices of the gaming of the operations. gaming operations.

So to suggest So to suggest that the that F&B the offerings F&B offerings are somehow are somehow deficientdeficient becausebecause they they exist under exist the under larger the umbrella larger umbrella of Crownof would Crown bewould totallybe wrong. totally wrong.

The restaurants, The restaurants, bars andbars banqueting and banqueting are all very aresuccessful all very successful in in their owntheir right. own And right. for many, And forCrown many,is Crown about isgoing about togoing a niceto a nice » Liquid Refreshment: » Liquid Refreshment: Crown’s award-winning Crown’s award-winning restaurant,restaurant, Koko, was given Koko, a was traditionally given a traditionally Japanese Japanese interior design interior care design of Tony care Chi. ofThe Tony standout Chi. Thefeature standout is this feature rather is spectacular this rather spectacular water garden. water garden.

» Nice Spread: The Palladium at Crown plays host to many of the top-draw gala events, such as The Logies, the Brownlow Medal and the Allan Border Medal. The size of the room, the proximity of the luxury hotel and the quality of the package provided makes Crown a market leader in the blue-ribbon end of the catering game.

restaurant, having a drink, going to the movies… and not about gaming at all. We want to give people a total experience, and certainly the F&B/gaming synergies are very important, but for the manager of each of those outlets, all they care about is exceeding the expectations of their target clientele and making their outlet a success. venue: And I guess that sums up the strategy when it comes to managing F&B? DY: Yes. At the end of the day, F&B is not brain surgery. It’s a simple business where you set your goals and have a clear pathway to those goals so you’re able to achieve them. For us it’s about exceeding the guests’ expectations with every single experience they have with us. They come here expecting one thing — dining at Koko, having a beer at The Pub — and then you’ve got to make sure they’re expectations are exceeded.

A big component of those expectations is how the client is treated. We insist on our staff offering a high level of service and, crucially, keeping that standard consistent at all times. We have clients who come to Crown every day and we demand that our staff offer consistently excellent service every time they sit at a table or order a drink. That consistency is a big driver of customer loyalty. As a result we have a massive repeat, faithful clientele.

Under Control

“In banqueting the growth has been so robust that we’re reaching saturation point in certain months and weeks of the year”

venue: Clients love consistency when it comes to service but they like to see change in other areas I imagine?

DY: True. You’ve got to evolve. Clients don’t want to come in every day for eight years and see the same thing.

We’ve been able to evolve and open new outlets. Take, for example, Number 8, which is a totally new restaurant concept of ours. Then there’s The Pub at Crown, which is on the old Planet Hollywood site. We now have a joint venture restaurant with Philippe Mouchel, which is going very well. And opening soon is a new casual dining concept called Steakout, where All Star was. You have to continue to grow and diversify your product mix and give your customers something exciting and fresh every time they come in. We have to create a ‘wow’ factor. venue: I guess having the ideas is one thing but having the right people to execute them is another?

DY: Sure. The staff is pivotal in that process — you need the right staff around you for that change to be successful.

It’s not that easy to go on the ‘open market’ and pull in a restaurant manager and say, ‘here’s Number 8’ or

‘here’s Silks, go and look after it’. So we are aware that we have to look after our people here. We train them, give them a lot of coaching, and we identify talent early and put them into that structure. In fact, 80 percent of our management team have come up through the ranks.

Technically, we have to be at the forefront as well, to ensure smooth change and continued growth. Our booking system (Respac), our point of sale system (Micros), or our Delphi reservation system for event management and banqueting — it’s all state-of-the-art, cutting edge technology, making the process more efficient for the staff and ultimately more satisfying for our clients. We are now phasing in web-based on-line booking systems, Telstra wireless Hot Spot and video/tele-conferencing in our banqueting facilities. Our entire technological client offering is something we continue to look at changing and evolving, because if we don’t, our competitors will, and they’ll catch up. We don’t want them to catch up; we want to stay at the forefront. venue: It seems like you are bringing more of these restaurants in house?

DY: Correct. The tenancy numbers are dwindling. Crown sees an opportunity to be successful in running outlets. The first takeover, a number of years ago, was Number 8 — which used to be The Duck. That move was very successful and was a catalyst for others, such as The Pub. So there are not too many left. If we have the opportunity to operate more food and beverage outlets we will. However, we have some fantastic operators here at Crown; for example, Cecconi’s and the Waterfront are two very successful restaurants that complement the entire offering.

Red Carpet Treatment venue: The Logies, Brownlow Medal and the Allan Border Medal: high-profile loss leaders or genuine moneyspinners?

DY: They’re not loss leaders. They’re functions that generate a very high profile and say to the public that Crown does the big events. Crown is committed to the bigger events that no one in Melbourne or Australia can do as well as us. They’re a great branding opportunity. venue: Which sounds like another way of saying ‘loss leader’!

DY: We are not in the business of losing money. Each event in its own right creates various opportunities. There are not many operations that can consistently do a Logies or a Brownlow like we can. venue: Are functions and banqueting in general a good growth market?

“for many, Crown is about going to a nice restaurant, having a drink, going to the movies… and not about gaming at all” DY: It’s a massive growth area for us. In banqueting the growth has been so robust that we’re reaching saturation point in certain months and weeks of the year. Year on year there’s been double-digit growth in many areas. That’s not just in banqueting, but the restaurants as well. In fact, we’ve branched out. We’ve discovered that there’s a market for outside catering. We’ve done a lot of events in conjunction with Channel 9, catering for up to 400 to 500 people in their studios, and we’ve done the Melbourne Food & Wine festival as well. It hasn’t been at the expense of our core banqueting business, but if we have the opportunity to do a high-profile event then we’ll take it. venue: What do you put that extraordinary growth down to?

DY: We do it differently to anyone else. We like to say ‘yes’ to our clients. If they want something that they can’t get elsewhere then we like to do it for them. And we like to offer something different, something innovative. For example, we source different chinaware and glassware from around the world which no on else can offer. We try to be innovative in our approach to table tops in banqueting, we offer something different in the flowers we use… We’re lucky to have The Palladium, which is a unique and stateof-the-art space — no one can offer that in Melbourne on that magnitude. But clients come back for the consistency of service and a food and beverage product that is continuously innovative and unique — the overall F&B package.

Metre-Long Sausages venue: What’s the idea behind the opening of Steakout?

DY: It’s a simple concept that hasn’t been done in Melbourne before: great steaks and music. We’re aiming at the Melbourne entertainment seekers. We’ll be serving a great selection of steaks (in fact, up to 1kg steaks will be on offer) and amazing one-metre-long » French Vue: The brasserie by Philippe Mouchel is a joint venture between Crown and the aforementioned chef extraordinaire, Philippe Mouchel. Like many of the Crown restaurants, the brasserie enjoys views of the Yarra river and alfresco dining… weather permitting.

» The Pub without the grub: When Planet Hollywood moved out, Crown moved ‘The Pub’ in. It was one occasion when Crown decided to reappropriate space from a failed tenancy, and its success has strengthened F&B’s resolve to continue this strategy as and when the opportunities arise.

sausages that will be served on custommade beaten metal trays that we have had designed specifically for Steakout.

The variety of sausages will be served with a selection of dips on beaten metal ramekins and will be a perfect bite for group situations at the bar or a table while having a cold beer. Beer will be important as well — a large variety will be on offer along with kebabs that will be hanging on skewers. It will be a perfect venue for large private parties. There will be live entertainment — a DJ, or perhaps a live band. It’ll be lively place for the after work crowd and will complement The Pub nicely. Crown is missing that type of venue at the moment and I have no doubt that it will be as successful as The Pub. venue: Who takes care of the new venue design?

DY: We do. We have the resources and expertise to come up with the concepts. We have our Construction Projects team to help us with the practicalities of the design and the construction, but ultimately it’s the F&B team that has the final say on the designs. venue: Where does the inspiration come for the look and concept of new outlets?

DY: It comes from within the team. We’ve all travelled widely and been seconded to casinos around the world, so there’s a lot of influences to draw on. A lot of it comes from South East Asia — whether it’s Singapore or Hong Kong — while the Middle East is leading a lot of innovation at the moment. So even if it means borrowing tiny details from what we’ve seen then we’ll do that to keep our edge. But in the end, we’re not in Asia, we’re not Dubai, and the concepts need to draw on our sympathy and understanding of the local market — what Melbourne wants. It’s great to have an amazing concept but it’s got to work with your crowd. «

“It’s great to have an amazing concept but it’s got to work with your crowd”

I

f, as they say, ‘the devil’s in the detail’, then in another age Paul Mathis would probably be barbequed in the town square for consorting with Beelzebub.

Sure, Paul may be best known for his ‘pan-o-vision’ approach to cafés but he’s just as intent on the minutiae as he is sky-high ceilings and aircraft carrier-length bars. Case in point is Taxi — Paul’s new restaurant that sits in the middle of the three-tiered Transport building like the tasty filling of a club sandwich. As we sat down in Taxi for this interview it wasn’t the broad-brush design masterstrokes that he brought to my attention, no… instead, I was somewhat surprised that Paul pointed out our table’s sugar bowl, salt cellar and pepper grinder for my inspection. And sure enough, he didn’t have to explain, they spoke for themselves — elegant, diminutive, simple and perfectly complementary. As they say, the devil’s in the detail.

And it’s that designer’s eye for detail that goes a long way to describing and understanding Paul Mathis’ philosophy to venue design and ownership. How so? Well, Transport in Melbourne’s Federation Square is Paul’s 12th venue. That’s 12 in 20-odd years, of which three are currently under his ownership. That’s a reasonably hectic schedule by anyone’s standards. And the reason for the flurry of activity is Paul’s compulsive need to create — to take an idea and actually build it. In essence, it’s the designer in Paul Mathis that motivates him more than anything else.

The Paul Mathis Interview Paul Mathis, Restaurateur He’s one of the most high profile and influential restaurateurs in the country. With cafés like Joe’s Garage and Blue Train he was pivotal in the popularity of casual dining. But, as Christopher Holder discovers, it’s the designer in Paul Mathis that drives him most.

Paul Mathis: I absolutely love design. I sit up at night and dream of objects… homes… walls… cars… you name it. Sometimes I think I should have been a designer, not a restaurateur. And I’m expressing my design instincts by doing so many restaurants. I just want to do it. I just want them out there. And as a result, the bars and cafés I’ve owned are all absolutely an expression of me.

Christopher Holder: Down to the last detail?

PM: Absolutely. Take Transport as an example. It’s an amazing fitout, but imagine how it would look if we used really bad beer glasses…

Or, by way of a more extreme example, you could take a bare room and add a Grecian-style pattern around it that might be only an inch high — suddenly it feels like a Grecian room, just from that one tiny element.

You’ve got to pay homage to that simplistic detail in order to drive your design in a way that connects with people in your chosen market segment. That attention to detail is what will keep you cutting edge. And Transport’s definitely cutting edge. And yet it’s simple.

CH: Sounds like, in your mind, simplicity and detail are intrinsically entwined. Why so?

PM: A fitout like the one we’ve done here at Transport or at Chocolate Buddha is an expensive undertaking. And it’s no good being yesterday’s news the day you open. When it came to Transport I was really, really concerned and worked myself into a frenzy over that particular point. It became apparent to me that the only way I was going to do something that was going to have lasting value was if I maintained its simplicity.

“the bars and cafés I’ve owned are all absolutely an expression of me.”

» Taxi, Federation Square: Paul Mathis’ latest venture is a fine dining restaurant on the first level of the Transport building. Paul’s flair for design based on a combination of simplicity and an eye for detail are evident. Taxi is soon to be joined by Transit, one floor above. Interior Design: Maddison Architects.

» Chocolate Buddha, Federation Square (top): “was driven by my philosophy that you can make food that’s organic and present it organically.” All the floors, tables and stools are constructed from bamboo — one of the most environmentally sustainable woods that can be used and also extremely versatile and strong. » Soul Mama, St Kilda Beach (below): “was the result of my personal voyage towards vegetarianism and life long compassion towards animals.”

I’m convinced that simplicity is always the key to longevity. If you over embellish something in the wrong way, or if you’re adhering to a current design trend and embellishing that design with elements that are obviously current, then you’re asking for trouble — that is the root of obsolescence.

In the case of Transport I kept the design pared back and hopefully that will give it more latitude to mature gracefully. After all, you can always add, but it’s very hard to take things away, especially if those things are built in.

CH: Are the portents looking good for Transport? Will it stand the test of time?

PM: I can’t give you answer about where we’ll be in years to come but with the combination of the location and the ambience in the pub, we should be okay for a good few years yet.

But ultimately everything will need a revamp. Even the world’s best café will one day need a revamp. Even a classic café like Pellegrini’s [in Melbourne’s Bourke St] that has lasted years and years on a simple formula has had four renovations over its time frame.

CH: Blue Train was a phenomenal success based on informality and good, affordable food.

Was your design philosophy of simplicity evident in that case?

PM: It was a similar thing — stylish simplicity. It was about the views [across the river Yarra], a simple red lino floor, retro designer chairs, simple table tops… Nothing was over-done. The walls actually did a lot of the talking. We had the rock walls and artwork that was constantly being managed every month by a different artist — displaying art we could sell. The menu design was really simple. We printed it in a font that was very close to Courier and kept in a simple booklet with an image of a coffee cup. That held us in good stead for the 10 years that we owned it.

Simplicity is easy to execute, but it’s hard to resist the temptation to keep adding.

CH: But there’s a difference between ‘adding’ and ‘fine-tuning’?

PM: Yes. I’ve been known to pull things out after a few months! Here at Taxi we’re about to pull out $40,000 worth of carpets. It’s not just because I don’t like the look of it, it’s because it doesn’t wear well and it’s starting to look tatty. So, sure, fine-tuning or realising where things have gone wrong is critical.

North of the Border

“I’m convinced that simplicity is always the key to longevity”

CH: Can you tell me what happened with Black Bird in Sydney’s Cockle Bay and why it was sold only nine months after the launch?

PM: It’s hard to run a café from another state. People were clocking-on every morning knowing you’re in Melbourne and knowing you’re unlikely to walk in for weeks. So there were some interesting scenarios going on in terms of service. I learnt a hard lesson from that place. But it was sold for more than it cost us and, by the time I went to sell it, Black Bird was generating a substantial turnover. But it was hard to run it as a business. It was more a labour of love.

That said, I was certainly attracted to the project. I’ve always planned to move to Sydney.

CH: Really? Given your ties to Melbourne I wouldn’t necessarily have picked that.

PM: I love Sydney. I had an interesting experience with Black Bird but one day I’m going to live in Sydney. I love Melbourne as well — I was born and bred here — but I feel that it’s short-sighted to live and die in the one city. I don’t want to do that and Sydney is my chosen city. I’m going to live there and when I do I’ll probably have a café or a bar.

CH: Did the Black Bird experience give you further insight into the whole Sydney/Melbourne cultural divide?

PM: There are obviously differences. Melbourne really does reflect on its inner component and Sydney is more exuberant. Melbourne is more introspective and retrospective and Sydney is not.

You see it in the way Sydney uses bars and cafés. Sydney has its bars on the water — its Cargos and Bungalow 8s — and they’re big party houses that never close. The cafés are the same: Sydney has an outdoor culture, and that permeates through to the menus they provide and the way they serve drinks. They do lots and lots of cocktails, for example, and all the country’s best-known cocktail makers are in Sydney. But that culture doesn’t extend to wine. Melbourne has a far more mature wine culture.

Look… the differences are there and the differences have been well documented, but how significant those differencess are is a moot point — I don’t think they’re really that crucial. I

guess, if I had to summarise my impressions, I’d say the Sydney market has a greater strength in pub ownership and Melbourne has a slightly greater strength in café ownership — pound for pound, square metre for square metre. Perhaps some of that is down to a café glut post Sydney Olympics. Certainly, it is surprising to see how some cafés in Sydney that have had million-dollar fitouts two years ago are being sold for peanuts. But I think things are starting to pickup again. One thing s for sure, Sydney has a great ability to sort the men from the boys.

CH: And is that what’s attracting you to Sydney?

PM: There’s something in that. I’m attracted to the big-city heartbeat that Sydney has.

Melbourne has more of a genteel nature to it. It seems that Melbourne’s bar scene is underpinned by smaller and more specialised venues and as a result they don’t make as much ‘noise’. But the bars that emerge from the Sydney scene are absolutely huge — they burst out there like the Incredible Hulk. ‘Here I am! International guests and locals alike, come and check me out.’ Nothing genteel about that!

I’ll give you an example. Every time I’m in Sydney and I find myself in those well known bars and cafés, like The Establishment, there wouldn’t be a time where I wouldn’t be sitting next to a celebrity of international proportions — f**k, I’m sitting next to Robbie Williams! That’s what happened to me on one recent occasion at The Establishment.

And Sydney tends to encourage that. But if Robbie Williams came to Melbourne, he’d probably not be as prominent — he’d probably be in his hotel ordering room service…

What is it about Melbourne that we’re more likely to be hiding?! Meanwhile, in Sydney, they’re all out there… flashing their boobs… having a great time.

“[location] is extremely important, but even seemingly terrible locations can be — and need to be — excellent for a venue to be successful”

Location Location Location

CH: You’re obviously attracted to sites where there are great views, or where there’s a lot of passing traffic. How important is location?

PM: There’s no simple answer to that question. On one hand it is extremely important, but even seemingly terrible locations can be — and need to be — excellent for a venue to be successful. Take Cookie for example. If you looked at Cookie and asked: ‘is it a good or bad location?’, what would you say?

CH: Well, it’s on downtown Swanston St, but you can’t see it from the street, and you have to go up two flights of stairs to get to it… so on the face of it I’d say the location is lacking.

PM: There you go. There’s your answer. When in fact the location is actually fantastic.

Why? Because the space is amazing, the volume is amazing, and that circumvents any shortcomings it might have in terms of location. But that’s its location and, for Cookie, it’s the right location. The same applies to Melbourne’s [Italian] Waiters Club — it’s down an alley and up one floor. Or, 20 Meyers Place next door. Good location or bad location? If the place is successful then you have your answer.

CH: But because of the more stringent liquor licensing laws you’re less likely to find a place like that down an alley in Sydney. Would you agree?

PM: I don’t entirely agree with you there, Chris. There are a lot of places down alleys and hidden away. Having lived in Sydney a while I discovered a lot of interesting places tucked away. Really cool places. The Thai restaurant, Long Grain, springs to mind. Then there’s the Victoria Room, which isn’t anything from the street but a totally beautiful space. The International Lounge, which admittedly is now closed for renovation, was on the 44th floor of a skyscraper. That wasn’t somewhere you’d find by walking in off the street, but it was a great location.

With design it’s a case of whether your glass is half full or half empty — it’s your perception of the space and how you create it. You could take any room in Melbourne and make it cool if you have the ability. Regardless of location, if you build a cool enough venue people would come. I use the word ‘cool’ very loosely, but I’m talking about a place that’s evocative; something that draws people to it; a place with something intrinsic about it.

» Transport, Federation Square (right): “I did it because I was intrigued to see if I could and to see if it would be fun to run a bar/pub… It had to feel

like it was made for Australians by an Australian. So I tried to do as much as I could to keep things out of here that were bought from or designed by other countries. For example, all the timbers in the whole project are recycled and come from Nullarbor Forest Timber Industries out of Echuca.”

Transit — Departure Lounge CH: What next for Paul Mathis?

PM: I’ve still got one more floor to go here at Transport. Above us, we’re going to fit it out as a place called Transit. It’s going to be a lounge and a garden. It’s going to be really sumptuous — a more mature environment for the more discerning drinker, AKA ‘older people’. More suited to me! I find Transport a bit too heavy. I like quiet comfort, something with a bit more of a lounge orientation.

There will be a large selection of wines, a lot of cocktails, a lot of beautiful teas and coffees…

CH: You’re best known for your expertise in casual dining. Is Transit a bit of a departure?

PM: No, the truth is I had a place called the Transit Lounge at the Crown Casino complex. I sold it on to people who thought there was more of a market for food than there was for lounging. So they turned it into a Thai restaurant. I always said I’d do another lounge, because that was a great little business. It wasn’t a particularly profitable business — I only had it for eight months — but I wanted to revive the name Transit and do it somewhere else.

Something Old, Something New CH: Are you a forager? Do you enjoy the process of searching junk shops and markets to find inspiration?

PM: Love it. That’s what I do on weekends and it’s what I like doing the most. It’s my way of relaxing. Years ago it used to be Lygon St that had all the little junk shops, then it used to Brunswick St before they were forced out, then the top end of Chapel St, St Kilda… I go everywhere.

In fact, after this interview I’m heading off to Graham Geddes’. He’s one of the most expensive places in Australia but also one of the most respected antique dealers in the country. I’m going to buy antiques for Transit — lamps and tables — and I’m going to juxtapose them with ultra modern seating options. We’re going to have really simple, recta-linear cubist-style low-slung chairs with leather inserts and backs. And right next to those will be an absolutely super-funky marble-and-brass ornate, Louis XV-style coffee table and lamp. So the ‘skin’ will be ultra modern while all the fittings, with the exception of the lights and chairs, will be old. That’s the design angle I’m taking with Transit. I didn’t want it to be just modern or just old world. So I’m fusing the two. I’m not entirely sure how it’s going to look… But in my mind it looks amazing. «

“I’ve been known to pull things out after a few months… we’re about to pull out $40,000 worth of carpets”