Cafe Sydney CEO Jan McKenzie to depart after 26 years, Jeremy Courmadias named successor
Jan McKenzie will step down as chief executive of Cafe Sydney in December after 26 years running the Circular Quay institution, with former Fink Group chief executive Jeremy Courmadias set to take over.
Hong Kong-based owner Cafe Deco Group has appointed Courmadias, who spent close to a decade leading Otto, Bennelong and Quay under the Fink Group banner. He left Fink last year and recently returned from London, where he helped launch a Dante bar outpost at Claridge's in Mayfair.
Courmadias will work alongside McKenzie until her departure at year's end.
McKenzie joined Cafe Sydney in May 2000, when the 200-seat harbourside venue was just nine months old and facing an uncertain future after a run of tepid reviews. Under her leadership, the restaurant built annual turnover thought to be approaching $30 million, according to the Sydney Morning Herald, making it one of Sydney's highest-performing and most consistent dining rooms despite never earning a hat in the Good Food Guide.
"We have broad appeal," McKenzie told the SMH. "We're not really a cafe; we're not fine dining.
We're an elevated brasserie ... what we want to do is create a total experience for people."
McKenzie said her early focus was on building repeat custom rather than chasing critical acclaim.
"The first year was busy, but it was people having a one-time experience, or tourists," she said. "My whole commitment was to build long-time clientele, and relationships with the people around us."
That strategy, she said, saw tables of two return as tables of four, then book the private dining room, then the whole venue for weddings and second-generation customers returning for christenings.
Consistency underpinned that approach, extending to the restaurant's physical upkeep.
She also resisted pressure to overhaul the menu, retaining the tandoor oven and signature tandoori salmon despite early criticism, instead bringing in specialists in Indian cooking. "It's the fitting and respectable thing to do when your name is Cafe Sydney," she said of the decision to lean into Australian wine and produce.
Of Courmadias, McKenzie said: "Some people are good at front-of-house, other people are better at the back end. Jeremy has both skill sets." Courmadias said the institution's history was part of its appeal: "I've always been attracted to institutions. Jan has really kept the restaurant relevant."
McKenzie, who joined the business while pregnant, said she plans to take a break before considering new opportunities. "In many respects, I just want to reclaim my life," she said.
One mystery remains unresolved on her watch: the theft of David Moore artworks from the restaurant's bathrooms two decades ago. "It's still unsolved," McKenzie said.
Jonathan Jackson, 25th August 2026
