ALTO Bar and Grill by Dining Concepts - wow, what a view

http://www.diningconcepts.com/Alto

Dining Concepts is one of the leading restaurant groups in Hong Kong, running a heap of restaurants from some of the world's leading chefs.  Names like Gordon Ramsey and Mario Batali are associated with the group, which gives Dining Concepts star power.  So much so that the group launched on the Hong Kong stock exchange this week with shares rising an amazing 1900% at one point.

Amazing really.

One of the key things about Dining Concepts is that they sure do know how to open a restaurant, often with much fanfare, sometimes low key.  ALTO in Causeway bay was the most recent restaurants to join the stable and after reading some of the press about the joint, we decided to get along and check it out.

Located in the very new V Point building, which it must be said was still not fully occupied at the time of our visit, the very modern space resides on the 31st floor of the building and had simply stunning views of Hong Kong.  You're instantly assaulted by the stunning array of lights that dangle from the ceiling, very much looking like floating orbs or golden suns at first, but as you get closer, more like bright amoeba - all different shapes and glowing.  The rest of the restaurant is a mix of comfortable modern chairs and tables that seemed like a cross between picnic and traditional restaurant tables.  

Designer Tom Dixon of internationally renowned Design Research Studio had done a superb job of building a contemporary looking restaurant that has moved away from the semi industrial feel that seems to be so prevalent nowadays!

Atelier Vivanda - Akrame's other global restaurant chain

http://www.ateliervivanda.com.hk

Akrame Benallal seems to be a man on a mission.  Not content with a Two Michelin starred restaurant in his native France, the young gun chef has been looking to expand and create a global culinary empire.

I'd been to his self titled restaurant, Akrame, located in the very hip Ship Street Wanchai, recipient of a Michelin Star in its own right and thought his take on French cuisine was nice (see post here).  So, when we were looking for an alternative to the steak frites dinners that we'd been consuming lately, Akrame's other global outlet sprang to mind.

Atelier Vivanda is located right next door to Akrame, but while Akrame is quite hidden from view, Atelier Vivanda is much more open and easy to find.  A bold and striking brand sits above an open window that brings the vibe of Ship Street right into the dining room, enlivening the feel of the restaurant.

We'd had quite an early reservation for dinner and arrived earlier still, so were the first diners to be seated at our table, in a prime position right in front of the open style kitchen.  The bold styling of the logo translated to a clean and modern fit out inside, with each of the tables created with spots to hold the specially made steak knives that are a feature at Atelier Vivanda.

The menu at chef Akrame's steak restaurant is quite simple and like many steak frites restaurants, is largely fixed.  I say largely, but there were quite a few options and combinations available on the menu, so for a set price, you were able to pick and choose from a wide variety of options.  At the crux of the menu however, you chose an entree and main, then get to select from the unlimited sides selection; which ran to five different styles of potato.

Beefbar - tasty food but small portions for lunch

http://hk.beefbar.com/

Worth the wait?  

A good question!

I'd been trying to get into the Beefbar in Central for a while.  I'd ring up to try to make a booking, only to be told that they were completely booked up.  The few times I'd taken the chance of a walk in resulted in an almost comical response from the Beefier 'gate keepers'.

And that's how I'd started to think about the phone booking team, as well as the door staff; gate keepers.  Getting in became insurmountable and I eventually gave up and forgot about trying to get in.

It wasn't until my regular lunch date with a colleague and friend that the prospect of visiting the Beefbar arose again.  When JP suggested visiting, I gave a whimsical 'why not', thinking that it would still be nearly impossible to get into (even six months after opening).  You can imagine my surprise when the reservation was confirmed.

I guess a Monday at lunch might be the perfect time to hit a new(ish) restaurant in this city!

Our lunch date/meeting was at 12 and I'd arrived on time but heard from JP that she'd be a few minutes late after finishing a meeting in head office.  I was cool with that, it gave me the opportunity to 'sticky-beak' around the place once I'd arrived at the eerily familiar front desk (yeah, I'd tried to get in a few times!)

Wooloomooloo Steakhouse Wanchai - the steaks were a little bland

http://www.wooloo-mooloo.com/hk/wan-chai.aspx

As an Aussie living in a foreign city, there is a natural propensity to gravitate to what you know, to what is familiar and what make you comfortable.  I'm sure that's true of most expats living in a place like Hong Kong, you only have to wander past a 'British Pub' to see plenty of pasty white guys spilling onto the sidewalk, beers in hand, taking about the latest premier league game (football for the uninitiated).

Anyway, this post isn't about pasty white guys in pubs, it's about an Aussie in Honkers finally getting around to visiting an Aussie steakhouse.

Wooloomooloo is one of Sydney's most iconic inner city suburbs, the home of the rich and famous and just happens to be the name of a chain of steakhouses here in Hong Kong.

With a number of outlets across HK, Wooloomooloo caters to a range of diners, from their very cheap and cheerful Chop House (see post here), all the way to their fine dining establishment Wooloomooloo Prime.  Our visit was to their mid range steakhouse, conveniently located just down the street from our new place in Wanchai.

Located on the 31st floor of the Hennessy, the Wooloomooloo Steakhouse at Wanchai has pretty much unrivalled views of Hong Kong.  Exiting the lift and making our way to our table reconfirmed our view that we were living in one of the most spectacular cities on earth and our table had a jaw dropping vista of the many skyscrapers that make up Wanchai and Causeway Bay.  Floor to ceiling windows helped provide a sense of space in the modern looking dining room that screamed Aussie Steakhouse.

Le Relais de l'entrecôte - steak frites in the heart of Wanchai

http://www.relaisentrecote.hk/

Man I sure do love steak and chips!

We'd become pretty regular customers of SoHo's La Vache - mainly because by Hong Kong standards the traditional French 'steak frites' joint is incredibly great value.

La Vache is super popular too.  In the past, we've turned up just before opening, only to find a huge queue of hungry diners waiting to feast on some decent steak and all-you-can-eat frites!  The place fills up so quickly, it's pretty unbelievable.

So it's equally unbelievable that Wan Chai's own steak frites joint le Relais de l'entrecôte isn't just as popular!

I'd know about le Relais de l'entrecôte for quite some time, but it wasn't until we signed a lease on an apartment in Wan Chai that we decided to finally get along to check it out.  As much to get a feel for the dining scene in our new neighbourhood as anything else.

There are a couple of entrances to le Relais de l'entrecôte, there's an elevator that takes you upstairs to the rather grand entrance, as well as an escalator a little further along Queens Road East.  You get to the dining room through a long walkway that has bright red wood paneling, and has prints depicting cute and arty Parisian drinking scenes.

Steak Frites by the Butchers Club - quality steaks at a price

http://thebutchers.club/steak-frites/

We'd only just sat down at our table when an enthusiastic chef from the kitchen was presenting huge slabs of raw meat for our perusal.  We could have had the full story about dry aged beef, but since I knew a little bit of the process of dry ageing, we skipped the lecture.

That's the way they roll at the Butchers Club, to say they are fanatical about beef products might just be underselling the team's devotion to bringing top quality meat to Hong Kong.

The Butchers Club are very well known for their burgers and for a while there, I was pretty darn addicted to their fat and juicy hamburgers (see post here).  While their burgers are arguably the best in town, I was keen to find out just how devoted to the art-of-the-cow the Butchers Club were, and visiting their Steak Frites joint on Staunton Street seemed like the best way to find out.

I'd walked past the entrance to Steak Frites countless times on the way to work each morning, so was well acquainted with the entrance actually being around the corner in Aberdeen Street. Walking up the stairs into the dining room was an interesting experience, with decor that included exposed bricks and a rustic feel that was enhanced by the slight red glow of the numerous hanging lights.  The space was a little smaller and more intimate than I was expecting, the tables quite close together.  Our table afforded us a clear view of the kitchen and fridge stocked full with the specially acquired Australian and US beef.

Frites Central - Authentic Belgian frites

http://conceptcreations.hk/frites/frites-central/

Not every meal can be had in a Michelin Starred restaurant (unfortunately) and sometimes it's just basic pub food you're looking for.  I'd just met the girl after work and we had to decide on a dinner location close to Sheung Wan, somewhere nice and casual.  I'd not had a heap of luck when deciding on casual dining spots in HK, with more than a few being quite the let down.

It just so happened that we were walking close to The Wellington, right on the border of Central and Sheung Wan and I remembered that there was a Belgium Beer House on the 1st floor. Frites sounded pretty interesting and the Belgium people are pretty well known for their frites (fries), so it seemed like an easy place to stop by on the way home.  We didn't have a booking and didn't really expect that it would be too hard to score a table.  Boy, were we wrong!  As we stepped out of the lift, the place was rocking with suits enjoying an after work beer.  Luckily, we were given a table on the promise that we'd be out of the place by 7:30pm - it was 6:15pm and an easy request to fulfil for a couple of speed eaters!

We were shown to one of the many bench style seats in the main dining room, which reminded me of an old style European bar; bench seats at one end and a traditional bar at the other.  It was quite comforting and warming inside, especially since it was a very rare cold winter's day outside. Placemat style menus were already at our table and showed off a wide range of typical pub fare, including a whole section dedicated to Mussel Pots, which were available in half or full kilo options.  A big pot of mussels sounded a tempting way to start a meal, but given we'd promised to vacate our seats in record time, we decided to forego starters and jump straight into mains.

London - Smiths of Smithfield by John Torode

http://www.smithsofsmithfield.co.uk/

One of my foodie observations is how the zeitgeist has changed over the last decade, with the super star chef front and centre in people's consciousness.  This has almost certainly been driven by the transition of the chef moving out from the kitchen and into the television studio.  One cooking show in particular has taken the world by storm, and that show is Masterchef.  The original Masterchef kicked off in the UK before the concept was picked up by other markets and at last count, there were fifty countries that run a version of Masterchef!

While the concept started in the UK, the Australian version is credited with helping to transform the show, providing a more glamorous approach that, for me, was a little too heavy on the drama and was less about the food.  One of the great ironies of Masterchef is that the Australian version is hosted by an ex British chef living in Australia (Gary Mehigan) and the UK version has an ex Aussie hosting (John Torode) - go figure!

I was recently in the UK for work and looking for a place to check out, and my boss recommended a little place called Smiths of Smithfield, one of his favourite steak restaurants run by Jonty Rhodes.  I thought is strange that an ex South African cricket star would run a steak restaurant in London, but hey, the South Africans are well known meat lovers.  It wasn't until I made the reservation and had a look at the web site, that I realised that I'd heard wrong and that Smiths of Smithfield was actually run by none other than John Torode!  I felt like an idiot :)

While I'd done my fair share of solo dining in London (The Square, Marcus, Maze Grill), I was actually able to convince one of my colleagues to come along and check out Smiths with me. Hailing from the US and an avid meat lover, bringing KH along to visit a steak restaurant seemed like the right thing to do.  However, trying to find the place, especially for a couple of tourists, turned out to be a little harder than expected and there was a lot of walking involved to find the funky restaurant in Charterhouse Street.  Not an issue for me, but a huge one for KH, who'd been recovering for ankle surgery, who took a little extra time to find the joint.

Porterhouse by Laris - a brilliant lunch set menu

http://porterhousebylaris.com.hk/

In my short time in Hong Kong, I've had some of the most amazing, and most expensive meals of my life.  I mean, seriously expensive meals where I've walked out of a restaurant in shock and with 'buyers remorse'.  This is a symptom of a lot of great restaurants, but largely the fact that practically all food has to be imported to Hong Kong.

It's why I am completely amazed by the fact that you can go to some of those same amazing restaurants for lunch and get a similar feed for a fraction of the price.  I'm not really sure why, but there is a thriving lunchtime food scene in Hong Kong and it's really, really cheap.  I was again reminded of this phenomenon recently when we went out for a team lunch and hit up new spot Porterhouse by Laris.

Located in the newly renovated, and might I say now impressive looking California Tower in Lan Kwai Fong, and established by Aussie Chef David Laris, Porterhouse is a contemporary and upscale steak house more akin to the Australian version of a steak restaurant than the currently stylish 'Steak Frites' places dotted around Hong Kong.  No stranger to working overseas, Chef Laris had spent time refining his trade in London's Mezzo before moving to Shanghai and establishing his own award winning restaurants.

Blue Butcher - Superb Steaks in Funky Soho

http://www.bluebutcher.com/

I'm forever surprised by the hidden gem restaurants dotted around Hong Kong, more so when I walk by a spot, not realising that an absolute cracker of a restaurant is nearby.  But then, to be fair, sometimes I walk around with my head in the clouds!

The girl has mentioned the name Blue Butcher to me a couple of times as we've walked down Hollywood Road in the Mid Levels, but it never connected with me that the dark little bar front was actually hiding something more my style!  It wasn't until a mate from work said his favourite steak place in HK was the Blue Butcher that I had the light bulb moment - we booked a table immediately.

I'd arranged to meet the girl at the restaurant and when I rocked up out the front, SC was finishing up with a beer at the downstairs bar.  It was still a mystery to me that there was a steak restaurant around, especially looking at the facade, but after we walked up the stairs, it all became clear.  A huge space opened up that was equal measures dark pub and funky industrial style kitchen.  

We were initially booked in for a seat at the bar, which we were very comfortable with, but as we were being seated, our waitress indicated that a table had opened up, as long as we were out by 8pm - easily done!  We were seated by the window, which overlooked Hollywood Road and gave me a great view of the kitchen.  

La Vache - steak frites Parisian style

http://lavache.com.hk/

There has been a long standing battle for the ownership of a national cuisine!  No, I'm not talking about the stoush between Australia and New Zealand over the beloved pavlova, I'm talking about something much more serious.

Steak-frites is a very common and popular dish served in brasseries throughout Europe, most notably in Belgium and France, where both lay claim as its birthplace.  Simply translated, it is a combination of steak and fries and in reality, many countries could probably lay claim to the dish.  Typically using entrecôte, French for the premium cut or rib eye, the fatty steak is usually cooked medium rare and served with golden fries and topped with a béarnaise sauce.

It's somewhat surprising to learn that Hong Kong has adopted the steak-frites revolution, with a serious number of players in the space.  In fact, SoHo in the Midlevels has more steak-frites restaurant than you can count, with Peel Street housing three within sight of each other!  I'd been eyeing off many of these brasseries and decided it was high time to check on out! 

With so many to choose from, I simply picked one that had the coolest name and best looking web site.  Conveniently located in Peel Street, stepping into La Vache was like being transported to Paris, the staff and the fit-out screamed chic Parisian charm.  We didn't have a reservation, but were informed that there was a table available, as long as we were out by 8pm - not a problem we assured our maitre 'd.

Craftsteak - Open fire cooking

http://www.diningconcepts.com/craftsteak

One of the most famous names in steak restaurants is Tom Colicchio, who is better known in his role as head jude go Top Chef (one of my favourite cooking shows).  I was pretty excited when I was wandering around Soho in Hong Kong one day and saw that there was a Craftsteak in Hong Kong. Upon further investigation though, I was disappointed to find out that it was in no way associated with it's more famous namesake.

I wasn't surprised though to find out that Craftsteak HK was actually part of Dining Concepts, arguably the most prolific restaurant group in this part of the world.  While I was mildly disappointed that I wouldn't get the quality and styings of a global celebrity chef, I knew that at least Craftsteak HK would be the real deal (or at least I hoped).

We'd not made a reservation but managed to easily score a table for a mid week on-the-way-home-from-work dinner.  Securing a table down near the open plan kitchen, I was able to get a view of the open fire custom made charcoal fired grill.  We were given a couple of menus to look over and it became clear quite quickly that Craftsteak was the king of meats, with a good selection of cuts of beef and lamb from the USA, Australia and New Zealand.

Bistecca - Another Dining Concepts Gem

Bistecca Italian Steak

Those crazy cats at Dining Concepts just keep rolling with an impressive array of restaurants and our exploration of their portfolio continued when we checked out one of their many steak restaurants.  Bistecca, Italian Steak Restaurant is located in Hong Kong hotspot Lan Kwai Fong and also has the distinction of being in the SCMP Good Eating Guide's top 100 tables of HK.

Bistecca is an easy walk from my work in Central, so it's pretty convenient for those after work dinners when you don't want to travel too far but get a quality meal.  Like so many restaurants in HK, you need to find the right building then head for the elevator to find the place.  I really love this about HK, it's like being transported to a new reality every time the lift door opens, each floor has a seemingly never ending stream of restaurants.  This time we walked into an exposed red brick interior that had shades of rustic Tuscany and by the time we were seated, I almost felt like we were in provincial Italy for our dinner.

Except for the window view, which was all Hong Kong!

The Pawn - The British invasion continues

http://www.thepawn.com.hk/

In 1997, after over 150 years of ruling Hong Kong, the British handed back control to China amongst much fear and anxiety. That anxiety was largely unfounded.  In 2015, it seems as if Briton's imperialist aspirations have returned, only this time it takes a very different form.  It's UK chefs that are taking control of Hong Kong, and it's the dining scene that is seeing an invasion of the UK's top chefs.  

When you think of the UK chefs establishing themselves in Hong Kong, it's usually names like Gordon Ramsey (see post here), Jamie Oliver and Jason Atherton (see post here and here) that spring to mind.  However, they're not the only well known celebrity chefs expanding their global network of dining establishments.  Tom Aikens may not be the first chef you'd think of when talking UK chefs, but that could be about to change.  One of the stable of well known chefs that have dominated Great British Menu, Tom was over visiting his Hong Kong outpost, The Pawn.  Of course, we had to get along and check it out.

The Pawn is located in one of the last remaining heritage buildings left in Wan Chai. The Pawn recently went through major renovations, which thankfully kept much of it's heritage charm. Aikens, working with HK group the Press Room Group, has collaborated as consultant chef and brings his uniquely British take on casual fine dining.  The dining room sits atop two bar areas, which we had to traverse to get to the restaurant, having failed to notice the main entrance on Tai Wong Street.  Instead, we'd taken a dark and narrow staircase up through one of the bars, before finding our way to a rickety elevator to take us the dining floor.

Casual Dining - The Chop House

http://www.wooloo-mooloo.com/hk/the-chop-house.aspx

After living in Hong Kong for around six months, I'm starting to get a bit of a feel for the food scene in this monolith of a foodie city.  Now, I'm not going to pretend that I've got it nailed, it's likely that will never happen, no matter how many restaurants I visit, but I am getting attuned to the vibe.  Most of the time, I find it pretty easy to track down a restaurant that feels right, a restaurant that I'd happily go back to again and again.  However, every now and then, I find a spot that doesn't really resonate, a spot that's pretty forgettable and sometimes a restaurant that is just plain terrible.

It's not as if you can pick the quality of a restaurant by an area in Hong Kong, there are gems in just about every part of the city.  Causeway Bay has some very fond memories for me, largely due to our regular haunt, Din Tai Fung (see post here), but also such gems as Penthouse By Harlan Goldstein (see post here) and Paradise Dynasty (see post here).  Wanting to expand our Causeway Bay dining experience, we made our way to Soundwill Plaza (the home of the aforementioned Penthouse) for an evening at the Wooloomooloo Group's The Chop House.

The Wooloomooloo Group is responsible for a swag of premium steakhouses in Singapore and Hong Kong, as well as being named after one of Sydney's most famous inner city suburbs (Russell Crow's old stomping grounds - yes, I know it's spelt slightly different too!).  With Wooloomooloo Prime and Steakhouse the premium brands, the group have established a slightly more relaxed, casual dining experience called the Chop House.  

'Off Night' One Off? Cenacolo Steak and Pasta

http://www.aldentegroup.com/restaurants.php?restaurant_id=7

Everyone knows and understands that all humans have different tastes, likes and dislikes.  FMUS hates pumpkin and sweet potato, I think they make a fantastic soup, mash or generally anything else.  I am really not partial to salted caramel anything, but FMUS will always order that flavour if it is on the menu.  Writing this food blog has also reinforced that what works for one palate doesn't work for another, and what one person thinks was an amazing experience will be a really bad night on the town for another.  We experienced the negative side during a visit to Cenacolo Steak and Pasta in Soho.   

We were still HK newcomers, and had only recently discovered the little district known as Soho. (Fun fact - the original Soho in London was thought to be named after a battle cry; whereas SoHo in Manhattan means "south of Houston Street" and SoHo in HK means "south of Hollywood Road").  I had been tasked with finding somewhere for dinner in this area, and, not knowing what was really on offer, did some research and came across Cenacolo Steak and Pasta, in Graham Street.

A night at the Spandau Ballet - Gold by Harlan Goldstein

http://www.hongkongin360.com/virtualtours/gold/001/

We have discovered that dining in Hong Kong is slightly different to Australia, in that it is more difficult to just walk in to a restaurant and ask for a table without a reservation, even if the restaurant is mostly empty.  With this in mind I had decided to make a reservation for dinner at Gold by Harlan Goldstein on a Friday night.  Unfortunately on the night in question FMUS was still suffering from a stomach bug, so we had to reschedule to the following week.  Finally that night was here, and we headed in for what we hoped to be a good meal at the flagship restaurant of one of Hong Kong's more prolific restauranteurs.

Harlan Goldstein is a New Yorker who worked under 3-Michelin starred chef Jean Banchet in Chicago, before travelling to Asia and working at some of the top hotel restaurants in the region.  He moved to Hong Kong and, after working at the Aberdeen Marina Club, has now opened his own stable of restaurants in Hong Kong.  We had eaten at one of his other restaurants very early in our Hong Kong experience (see post here) and were impressed with the simple yet tasty dishes served.  We were hoping that with a Michelin star, Gold would top our experience at Penthouse. 

Melbourne Series - The Meat and Wine Co

http://themeatandwineco.com/

With so many restaurants to choose from and usually being the guy that makes the choices, it was unusual for me to hand over the decision to others to choose a spot for dinner.  I'm not sure if I'd have picked the Meat and Wine Co as an early choice when visiting Melbourne, but it was the last day of a conference I'd been attending and the Meat and Wine Co is where we'd been booked.

I'd not heard of the Meat and Wine Co but quickly got up to speed.  Established in 2000, the Meat and Wine Co was created to create a family friendly steakhouse dining experience.  With a number of outlets around the cooler suburbs around  Sydney and Melbourne, the Meat and Wine Co has adopted an African meets Australian theme inside the restaurant.

We were booked into the Southbank outlet of the M&WC, which was just across the street from the Crown complex.   Our reservation was for 6pm sharp, with express instructions that we had to be out for the second sitting of the night at 8pm.  I was really surprised by this, given it was a Thursday, it was impressive that they could maintain a double sitting on a week night.  I was even more impressed when we finally hit the restaurant and saw how big the dining area was, over several floors.

It was pretty easy to see where the wine section came from in the name, with an extraordinary array of wines on display as we made our way upstairs to our table.  Walking up the stairs, there was a three story high stack of crates, filled with bottles of wine of all descriptions.  Of course, not being a connoisseur of wine, they could have all been ordinary, but visually, the stack was spectacular.  I was keen to see if the meat side of the name would be as impressive.

Black Hide Steakhouse - the newest Gambaro restaurant

http://blackhidesteakhouse.com.au/

I'd known there was going to be a new steakhouse opening up in Brisbane's Caxton Street and I'd heard that it was going to be set up by the Gambaro family, most famously known for their seafood restaurant.  What surprised me when I saw the restaurant take shape along one of Brisbane's oldest party streets was the name, Cut Steakhouse and Tapas. Now, if you're a meat aficionado or love your steak restaurants, you might have become very excited indeed.  That name is very well known around the country and the world - firstly Sydney has it's well know 'The Cut bar and grill' (see post here) and internationally renowned chef Wolfgang Puck has 'Cut' (see post here).

I'll admit to being a little disappointed when I realised that neither of these two institutions was coming to Brisbane, in particular 'Cut by Wolfgang Puck'.  It wasn't long after opening that the Caxton Street version of the Cut changed it's name to the Black Hide Steakhouse by Gambaro.  

I'm definitely a huge carnivore and I was always going to get along and check out the Black Hide Steakhouse, but it wasn't until the recent Brisbane Times Good Food Guide list of new hatted restaurants that I was sparked into action.  Not too many steak restaurants in Brisbane have chefs hats, so I wanted to get in and see if the Black Hide was indeed better than some of my other favourite steak joints (see list here).  

We'd decided to get along for a mid week visit, knowing that Caxton Street can get a little crazy on the weekends.  While it's close enough for us to walk, we hopped in the car and cruised over to the Barracks, where we could score a free park (as long as we were less than two hours).  Black Hide is only a quick stroll from the Barracks and we were soon standing out the front of a very masculine looking restaurant.  The wood facade gave the restaurant a modern feel, which was reinforced once we walked inside to the modern looking fit out, with big bar down one side and dining tables, the other. The feeling of masculinity only increased once we realised that apart from one waitress, SC was the only female in evidence.

BlackBird Bar & Grill - I fell in love with this place!

http://www.blackbirdbrisbane.com.au/

It's not too often that I'm completely blown away by a new dining experience but I really love it when it does happen. There have been a few notable restaurants abut Brisbane that I've checked out shortly after opening and have known, just known that they would be come institutions.  

Black Bird Bar and Grill has only just opened it's doors, but it's already gathering a reputation as one of the most exciting new restaurants in a number of years.  I'd been keeping my ear to the ground and heard quite a bit about the old Rugby Club site over at Eagle Street and in particular the hype surrounding the new venture by the Ghanem Group.  Most of the hype revolved around the plush makeover of the site and the acquisition of star executive chef Jake Nicolson, a two Michelin starred chef who had worked at some of London's best restaurants the Ledbury and the Square, not to mention some time at Spain's elBulli.

I'd also been getting the lowdown from one of my work colleagues, JH, who had already been to Black Bird a number of times and seemed to be quite well acquainted with the team.  JH had been quite lavish in her praise of the menu and Executive chef Jake Nicholson.  In fact, by the time we eventually booked a table, I felt as intimately in tune with the Black Bird menu and offering.