Chef Annita Potter is gearing up to open her first restaurant in Sydney’s Woolloomooloo after nearly two decades in the kitchen.
Potter began her career in Perth, later cooking across France and Thailand before working alongside David Thompson at Nahm in London.
The chef spent time in Thailand at Thompson’s company working on projects that took her to Cambodia, Vietnam, Hong Kong and Singapore where she launched Long Chim.
Potter found herself back in Sydney in 2020, which saw her open a trial pop-up of Viand at the Mint until early 2021.
Now, the chef has found a permanent home for Viand on the corner of Crown and Cathedral streets which will swing open its doors on 2 March.
While Potter as spent a considerable amount of time exploring Thai food, the chef says Viand won’t be pigeonholed into one cuisine.
“Viand is an archaic word for assortment of foods, which for me is a perfect description for what I believe Thai food is,” says the chef.
“I purposely chose something without Thai connotations. A food concept of its own, not specific to any cuisine … at the end of the day, I am a chef who cooks and produces an assortment of food, and hopefully, as my concept grows, it too will grow into other cuisines and assortments.”
Debut dishes include crispy noodles with Balmain bugs, coriander and yellow beans; salted duck egg relish with scampi and sticky aged pork; jungle curry with king prawns and braised monkfish with pickled plums and Asian celery.
The tasting menu is priced at $145 per head, with a vegan dining experience priced at $120 per head.
On the beverage front, there will be premium wines available alongside a curated tisane and tea offering.
Viand will open Wednesday to Saturday from 6:30pm, bookings now open.