Swedish-born chef Joachim Borenius is about to take the helm of Sydney's Bouche on Bridge, as former executive chef Harry Stockdale-Powell steps down to focus on a new venture.
Borenius has worked Heston Blumenthal’s The Fat Duck and Thomas Keller’s Per Se in New York City, both Michelin-starred. Locally, Borenius has experience under Mark Best at Marque and most recently at Best’s Pei Modern.
Borenius said “I’ve been given this great opportunity to do my own thing and I’m really excited to use my 20 years of fine dining experience in a more relaxed environment.
“For me, the core of a restaurant is how comfortable you feel there as a diner. The dining experience should be about the guest rather than the restaurant and I think this has been lost in this city in recent times.”
Borenius will introduce a new menu in May. The philosophy will remain fine dining ‘without the fuss’, and will focus on seasonal, high quality ingredients with dishes including Kinkawooka mussels with fermented kipflers and parsley; Muscovy duck breast with caramelised fig and radicchio; and smoked chicken, farro and salsa verde.
The dessert menu is a collaboration with 2015 Josephine Pignolet winner Lauren Eldridge and includes a spiced plum tart tatin.
After stepping down, Stockdale-Powell will focus on a new venture under the Darrouzet Restaurant Group which will see him assisting in bringing native ingredients to food markets.
He’ll also prepare for his competitive performance against 15 other international chefs at Taste of Abu Dhabi Australia later this year.
“It was a tough decision to move out of the Bouche kitchen, however I’m incredibly excited that Joachim has been appointed,” said Stockdale-Powell. “We speak the same language when it comes to produce and I know he will lead Bouche into an exciting new chapter whilst staying true to the Bouche ethos.”
Stockdale-Powell’s departure follows that of bar manager Matt Linklater, who’s now working at Black Pearl in Melbourne.