Eastside Grill will open in The Old Rum Store on Kensington Street, Chippendale, on Saturday 28 January. The restaurant, owned by the Greencliff group, evokes the atmosphere of New York’s meatpacking district and delivers a menu influenced by the traditional Japanese Binchotan charcoal grill.
The venue will be helmed by executive chef Stanley Wong (Spice Market, New York, Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Hong Kong and most recently The Private Kitchen, Sydney), working alongside head chef Angie Ford (Navarra, Ottawa) and restaurant manager Ivan Gasparini (Marco Pierre Grill, Dubai).
Wong’s menu has American influences with subtle Japanese flavours throughout. Starters include roasted bone marrow with mushrooms and ginger; wedge salad with bacon vinaigrette, gorgonzola and organic egg; buttermilk-marinated calamari with ginger chilli dip; and sashimi of Moreton Bay bug with nashi pear, black garlic and jalapeno.
The smokeless, flameless Binchotan grill is the key behind many of the mains including the bourbon-brined Kurobuta pork chop with smoked apple and fig chutney and the 350g grain fed Ranger’s Valley scotch steak with watercress and oven-roasted tomatoes, which can be paired with a sides such as truffled mac and cheese; hand-cut duck fat fries dusted with seaweed; and blistered shishito peppers with katsu and yuzu essence. The dessert menu features house-made New York style cheesecake and cinnamon-dusted vanilla cream doughnut holes with mocha ice-cream.
Angie Ford, Stanley Wong and Ivan Gasparini. Image: Alana Dimou
The Old Rum Store building has an industrial past, which designer Chris Wilks from Giant Designs honoured when planning the layout of Eastside Grill. Existing exposed brick walls were retained as well as the statement arched windows overlooking Kensington Street. These elements were combined with cues from American steakhouses such as dark timbers, leather upholstery and bronze panelling.
The restaurant features a leather panelled bar with bronze back bar display, custom brass chandelier, a runway of herringbone flooring and an assortment of steel and leather chairs.
A ten metre stretch on either side of the bar hosts a mural by Belgian-born graffiti artist Caratoes sits. As her first commission in the Southern Hemisphere, Caratoes has used NYC-cab yellow and charcoal to make a work reminiscent of New York by night, with Japanese influences incorporated to tie the artwork together.
Greencliff executive chairman Dr. Stanley Quek’s intention was for all elements of Eastside Grill to have synergy, from the culinary direction and design to the name.
“With his German-Chinese heritage, extensive experience working in Asia and his five years at the helm of two great New York restaurants, chef Stanley Wong is a natural fit for a restaurant with an American and Japanese influenced menu,” he said.
“The interior design is reflective of the warehouse-style restaurant spaces populating New York’s Brooklyn and Meatpacking District and the name stems from New York being on the east coast of the US and the fact the restaurant is located on the east side of Kensington Street. Eastside Grill is a homage to two of my favourite places to visit and will make for another first-rate dining experience within the ever-growing Kensington Street culinary precinct.”
Eastside Grill will be open for lunch 12pm–3pm from Thursday to Saturday, dinner 5.30pm–10pm from Monday to Thursday and 5.30pm–10.30pm Friday and Saturday.
Images: Alana Dimou