With a new subway station and a slew of new venues opening in the coming months, the city's historic strip will be packed with diners.
With the new Martin Place underground station set to open in July, hospitality operators are betting on a boom in business in and around the new train station. Mediterranean restaurant Tuesday the 21st and his coffee shop companion, by Marty, will open next door to Melbourne's pastry mecca Lune Croissanterie at 1 Elizabeth, the sprawling development at the entrance to the station.
“I feel like it's going to put this part of the city on the map,” says Sebastien Lutaud, who spent years living in France, observing the impact of train movements on the ebb and flow of restaurant business. The culinary director of Etymon Projects (the team behind The Charles Grand Brasserie in the city and Loulou Bistro in Lavender Bay), Lutaud believes commuter traffic and thousands of office workers in the towers above will keep Martin 21 and Marty's in a challenging market.
Lutaud, who says he has seen a recent bump in business at The Charles restaurant after a slow start to the year for trade in Sydney's CBD, is opening in an area where hospitality operators remain upbeat. 21 Martin is in a development fronting Elizabeth, Hunter and Castlereagh streets.
When the 130-seat Martin 21 opens in the spring, it will have plenty of company. A high-profile restaurateur is thought to be close to a deal to open across the street, and House Made Hospitality, the group behind it Hinchcliff Houseopens four premises, also in the spring, in the grounds of the Wentworth Hotel.
There is no doubt that the site is in the midst of a construction boom. Caterpillar Club opened late last year at the northern end of Martin Place and is one of Sydney's hot spots, while the Latin American restaurant Morena recently opened its doors at the west end of Martin Place in the GPO building.
Sydney bar pioneer Frank Dilernia will also be joining the spring launch party with the opening of Epul restaurant, on the corner of Pitt Street and Martin Place.
Dilernia, Sydney's stable of locals includes sherry bar Circular Quay Tapavino and CBD restaurant balcony, undaunted by the difficult trading conditions, is confident in the area's potential as a major untapped hospitality hub in Sydney's CBD. The area has no shortage of operators ready to try to fully activate it.
Restaurant reviews, news and top openings posted to your inbox.
Sign up
Scott Bolles writes the weekly Short Black column at Good Food.
