Port Melbourne will soon welcome a ’50s-inspired cocktail bar, when Clooney Kitchen & Bar opens its doors in August.
The bar’s name is a nod to jazz musician Rosie Clooney (George Clooney’s aunt).
Leading the drinks offering is Shannon McFarland (The General Assembly, The Rochester and Woodland House) and Will Crennan (ex Gin Palace, Collins Quarter, Brunswick Mess Hall), while head chef Leigh Stanicic (ex Melbourne Wine Room and The Fat Duck) will be creating the food menu.
“I knew I wanted a bar to be a place that was more than just ordering a drink,” says Crennan. “After trying a million variations of the classics over the years this is about serving the best we can, as bartenders should. The ethos is that there should be an abundance of things you have never tried but delivered with the same respect to the classics.”
Customers can expect creative cocktails and craft spirits, including craft gins, Starward whisky, Italian liquors, and Scotch tasting trays, alongside a small but considered wine list with French, Italian and Australian varieties, plus Italian and local craft beers.
McFarland will also be serving his signature house-made infused liqueurs, such as the Apple Tea Liqueur alongside George Clooney’s Casamigos Mezcal Tequila.
The food offering takes inspiration from Asian and European flavours with many raw dishes on the menu. The menu will include small dishes, snacks and a four-course cocktail and food matched degustation.