When Cru Bar opened, it wrapped the wine store and wine bar ideas together in its own individual way, going somewhat bigger and more boldly than other pioneers into this territory. Indeed, this is no street-corner enoteca, but rather a wine store of vast liquid resources, a fully equipped cocktail/wine bar and a restaurant that can seat 80 diners. There’s also a covered al fresco area at the entrance, and a more classic private dining option amongst the cellar’s bottle-stacked shelves.
Thanks to the magic of Coravin, Cru Bar offer around 110 wines by the glass or taste. Perhaps a 1969 Marc Brédif Vouvray, a 2009 Bouchard Corton-Charlemagne or a 2005 Rockford ‘Rifle Range’ Cabernet Sauvignon? Or maybe names like Tempier, Chidaine, Vietti, Hudelot-Noëllatmight stir your interest. There’s an extraordinary choice across the new and old world and across many regions, with vintage depth being a particular feature.
If you’re after a bottle of wine, the list runs to about 1200, with more resources in the cellar, too. The range takes in pretty much everything, appealing to those with more classical tastes, while also carrying plenty of pét nats, natural and orange wines, and a healthy selection from the Jura. If there’s any bias, it’s for Champagne, Burgundy and Barolo, which are more than understandable obsessions. Sherry, saké and whisk(e)y are also very well represented.
Ex-Stokehouse Brisbane chef Richard Ousby has recently taken the reins of the kitchen. He has an open brief, the only caveats being that the food is wine friendly, and that the produce is sustainably grown or reared and locally sourced, where possible. Charred brussels sprouts with pumpkin yoghurt, fried pork belly dumplings and Fraser Isle spanner crab spaghettini with chilli, lemon and pangrattato have quickly become customer favourites.
Snack Man is Cameron and Jordan Votan’s moody adjunct to their well-lit, minimalist canteen, Happy Boy. While the latter focuses on dishes from the barbecue and blisteringly hot woks, with craft beer and local small-producer wines, the latter is all, unsurprisingly enough, about snacks, or small plates, with inspiration coming from regional Chinese cuisine, and…
Andrea Contin and Valentina Vigni opened La Lupa Pizza Bar to celebrate their Italian heritage, but also to move forward, to redefine where necessary. Situated in Brisbane’s West End at the base of the Light + Co. apartment building, which was built on the site that provided the gas for Brisbane’s gas street lighting back…
Until he opened La Lune Wine Co, chef Paul Mc Givern was perhaps best known for his exploits on the fine dining scene, notably at East Brisbane’s The Wolfe, which achieved its fair share of critical acclaim. And though McGivern again pushed into that sphere with Corella (now closed), the equation that underpins La Lune…
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