Source : the age
Hannah Green – owner of hatted Brunswick East restaurant Etta and winner of the Service Excellence Award in the 2024 Good Food Guide – is expanding her footprint on Lygon Street, opening neighbourhood venue Daphne a few doors down from Etta.
Following the closure of pizzeria Bar Romantica, Green will this September revive the site as a 125-seat bar and restaurant with an easygoing, all-are-welcome vibe.
“The need for something a little less stuffy … was always in my mind for my next thing,” says Green. “Approachability and [a more affordable] price are at the heart of Daphne.”
In recent years, the cooking at Etta has sharpened so excitingly – under past head chef Rosheen Kaul and now Lorcan Kan – that diners see it as an occasion restaurant, rather than somewhere to pop in on a whim.
Daphne will bridge that gap, as a new low-key local for Brunswick East residents. And being so close to Etta, “I can essentially be at both venues at the same time, so there are no favourite children,” Green says. “That made me comfortable taking the leap … And I already know the market, I’m already part of the community and I live [nearby].”
Where Etta’s league-of-its-own menu draws on Kan’s Chinese-Malaysian heritage, Daphne will focus on “European-leaning plates” from a custom-built woodfire grill and oven. “It’s not overly complicated food, but with beautiful produce front and centre,” says Green. A head chef is locked in but won’t be announced until June.
Nightly specials to start the week will hopefully lure passers-by into the front bar, which will have counter service and paper-lined tables that kids can doodle on with crayons.
Monday means Martini Club, with freshly shucked oysters and cocktails designed by drinks whiz Sam Peasnell (behind the lists at Etta and Barragunda), including an alcohol-free Nah-tini “you actually want to drink”, says Green. Tuesday will be steak night and Wednesday noodle night, with reasonably priced one-plate meals on offer.
Deeper into the space, it’ll be slightly less of a free-for-all, with table service in a dining room lined with linen, as well as a semi-private dining space for up to 30 people.
Working with more square metres than at Etta means the team will have more scope for events, for fermenting (in a temperature-controlled upstairs space), and for even more sustainable practices. “We might get a whole Western Plains pig in and make hamburger meat for Daphne and use the prime cuts for Etta,” says Green.
Rounding out the offering is a punchy wine list by sommelier Ashley Boburka, including drops by Yarra Valley winemaker Valentine on tap, plus access to Etta’s full catalogue.
Elements of the Bar Romantica fit-out will remain, including the original terrazzo floor, but IF Architecture (Etta, Cutler, Baker Bleu) is giving it a new lease on life. Some red-ish hues will honour the site’s roots, alongside new walnut timber and stainless steel.
