Sydney’s second casino will feature even more culinary delights
Crown Sydney is set to open its doors this December on the banks of Barangaroo in Sydney Harbour.
This $2.4 billion dollar complex will feature VIP gaming facilities, accommodation, retail, and a 14 restaurant dining precinct. Crown Sydney was greenlit by the NSW Government in 2013, but has had a controversial and rocky road since the announcement. Many people opposed the development, arguing it would increase problem gambling.
However, the Casino has continued to attract enormous talent.
British chef Clare Smyth was announced in January as the first high-profile tenant at the casino. Iconic Japanese chef Nobu Matsuhisa will also be opening his first Nobu restaurant in the Sydney venue.
Today, a further three restaurants were slated to open.
The first is Alessandro Pavoni’s Italian eatery A’Mare.
Pavoni is best known for running waterside restaurants Ormeggio at the Spit (now Ormeggio 2.0) and Chiosco by Ormeggio.
After the Covid-19 lockdown in June, Ormeggio reopened with a completely meat-free menu, opting to focus on seafood instead.
A’Mare is set to have a seafood focus (a’mare means “at sea” in Italian) and feature lofty harbour views.
“I am inspired by the nostalgic romance of dining out,” said Pavoni in a media release.
“The dining experience at A’Mare will bring to life an element of theatre and the old-school sense of service that Italy is known for.”
Woodcut by Ross and Sunny Lusted is the second restaurant announced to open at Crown.
The Lusteds were the owners of award-winning CBD fine diner, Bridge Room, which closed in April last year. Ross Lusted was well-known for cooking on a robata grill before Masterchef made the grill publicly famous by using it in its immunity challenges.
Lusted is known for using flames, steam or coals to create flavour.
“This earthy and sensory cooking method will be at the heart of the Woodcut experience,” said Lusted. “Imagine whole John Dory in a cast-iron pan straight from the wood oven, Queensland mud crab cooked in steam kettles, or the rich and earthy flavours of duck slow-cooked in clay pots,” Ross Lusted said in a press release.
While Ross will focus on the food, Sunny will act as general manager with a focus on the classic hospitality that made Bridge Room famous.
Woodcut will focus on Australian produce including Bruny Island mussels, Fraser Island spanner crabs and Camden Valley Veal. It will be backed by a well selected wine list and the finest hospitality.
The third restaurant in the new Crown mix is Yoshii’s Omakase at Nobu.
Omakase at Nobu will be a an intimate 12-seat “chef’s choice” diner located inside Nobu.
Sushi chef Ryuichi Yoshii has worked throughout Australia and Japan for almost 40 years and presided over the omakase experience at Fujisaki, also in Barangaroo.
A feature of the restaurant will be patrons’ ability to watch the sushi master at work as he prepares his unique multi-course menu each evening.
Bringing the talent together
There are many talented restaurateurs lining up to feature their wares at the new Crown Casino and bringing them together is Crown Sydney culinary director, Sarah Briegel. Chef Briegel has spent nearly 30 years cooking at some of the world’s biggest luxury resorts, including acting as executive chef at Shanghai’s five-star Mandarin Oriental resort.
“After spending so many years abroad I was excited by the opportunity to return home,” Briegel said. “Sydney deserves a world-class resort ... and I think Crown Sydney is going to deliver that for the city.”
Crown Sydney is slated to open in December 2020.
Irit Jackson - 14th July 2020
