Award-winning chef Louis Tikaram is returning to Sydney this September to open Cantonese restaurant Stanley at Manly Wharf. The 212-seat harbourfront venue will span indoor and outdoor dining areas, a private dining room and a dedicated bar, with live seafood tanks, a custom-built duck oven and tableside Peking duck service. Stanley takes its cues from the waterfront atmosphere of Hong Kong’s Stanley Bay and builds on Tikaram’s Brisbane restaurant of the same name at Howard Smith Wharves. The Sydney menu will centre Australian seafood, meat and seasonal produce through Cantonese cooking traditions, shaped by Tikaram’s philosophy of great food, friends, fishermen and farmers. Premium seafood, live mud crab and signature Peking duck will form part of the offering, alongside a dedicated wine program. The opening marks a homecoming for Tikaram, who spent a decade working in Sydney kitchens including Longrain, Bentley Restaurant + Bar and Tetsuya’s before continuing his career interstate. “Opening Stanley in Sydney is incredibly meaningful to me,” Tikaram said. “Sydney shaped me as a chef. I arrived here as a young apprentice and spent ten years learning from some of the best people in the industry. “It’s also where I first fell in love with the energy of Chinese restaurants. Whether it was breakfast in Chinatown before work or celebrating milestones with family and friends, those experiences have stayed with me throughout my career. “To return with Stanley, a restaurant that reflects my Chinese heritage, my travels and everything I’ve learned over the years, feels very special.” Raised on the NSW North Coast, Tikaram has long been connected to surfing, fishing and life near the water, making Manly a natural fit for the restaurant’s second home. “Surfing, fishing and being around the water have always been a big part of my life. Being back in a location so closely connected to the ocean is inspiring both personally and professionally. “I’m excited to reconnect with producers and suppliers across Sydney and build a restaurant that feels connected to both the harbour and the community around it.” Stanley will join the growing Manly Wharf portfolio operated by Artemus Group, the team behind Howard Smith Wharves and the precinct’s ongoing redevelopment. Artemus Group founder and director Adam Flaskas said the restaurant would be an important addition to Manly Wharf. “Louis is one of Australia’s most respected chefs, and we’re proud to welcome him back to Sydney to create something truly special for Manly Wharf. “From premium Australian seafood, signature Peking duck and live mud crab to an exceptional wine program, every detail has been carefully considered. Our goal is simple: to create a restaurant locals are proud to call their own, and one that’s worth the trip across the harbour.” Stanley Restaurant is scheduled to open at Manly Wharf in September 2026. Source: The Cru Find more dining out updates on Crumb Wire.

Australians may be dining out less often amid the current cost of living, but it would seem they have not stopped valuing the experience. MISC. Parramatta owner and H&R Block Australia’s SMB Ambassador, Jad Nehmetallah, says tighter household budgets have made diners more selective about where they spend their money and less willing to overlook an experience that falls short. Best known to many Australians from Gogglebox Australia, Nehmetallah has built a hospitality portfolio that includes the waterside Parramatta restaurant, with a second venue now on the way. “Going out for dinner has become less about doing it every week and more about making it count when they do. “If someone’s spending their hard-earned money, they want to leave feeling like it was worth it. That’s why hospitality has to deliver on every level, from the food and service through to the atmosphere. You can’t rely on people coming back out of habit anymore; you have to earn it every visit.” For diners, that means a meal out increasingly needs to justify the spend. For venue owners, it places more pressure on every part of the experience, including the decisions customers never see. Good food is only the baseline Nehmetallah believes diners now remember how a venue made them feel just as clearly as what arrived on the plate. “Great food is the baseline now, but they’re also looking for genuine hospitality, consistency and venues with personality. “Customers remember how a place made them feel just as much as what they ate. They want warm service, a welcoming atmosphere and an experience that feels authentic rather than manufactured.” Social media has also changed how customers discover restaurants, but a strong online presence will only carry a venue as far as the first visit. “People discover venues online, but they’ll only come back if the experience lives up to what they saw.” That demand for personality and connection can give independent venues an advantage over larger operators. Independent teams are often able to adapt quickly, build relationships with regulars and create experiences that reflect the communities around them. “People can tell when there’s real passion behind a venue. They’re supporting local businesses because they know there’s a person behind the counter who’s invested in making every service better than the last. “That authenticity is hard to replicate, and I think it’s one of the biggest strengths independent hospitality has.” Dining out has become more intentional COVID changed Australians’ relationship with dining out, according to Nehmetallah, making customers more deliberate about where they go and less forgiving when the experience does not match the price. Operators are balancing those expectations against rising costs, staffing challenges and changing consumer behaviour. “It’s a much tougher environment than it was a few years ago. That’s why running a venue today isn’t just about serving good food. It’s about making good business decisions across the board.” Those decisions can have a direct impact on the customer experience. Cash flow affects whether a venue can retain staff, invest in its menu and maintain the consistency diners increasingly expect. The future of hospitality As Nehmetallah prepares to open a second venue, he is also managing the less visible side of growth, including suppliers, staffing, compliance, tax and finances. “Getting the financial side right is just as important as getting the menu right,” he says. At MISC. Parramatta, one of the biggest lessons the team has learnt is that a single impressive meal is not enough to build lasting loyalty. “The biggest lesson has been that consistency builds trust. People don’t just come back because they had one great meal. They come back because they know what to expect every time they walk through the door.” Opening another venue has also shown Nehmetallah how quickly the number of decisions facing a small business can grow. “It’s easy to think you’ve got everything covered until you’re actually in it. Working alongside H&R Block has been a good reminder that ‘good enough’ isn’t always enough when it comes to those financial decisions. “Having the right advice gives you confidence to focus on growing the business rather than worrying about what’s been overlooked.” Despite the pressure facing the industry, Nehmetallah remains optimistic about the future of independent hospitality. He believes the venues most likely to thrive will be those that stay adaptable, understand their customers and pay close attention to the business beyond what happens on the floor. “Margins are tighter than they’ve ever been, so every decision matters. Whether it’s investing in the right people, improving the customer experience or making sure your finances are in order, those small decisions add up over time. or Nehmetallah, the venues that survive will be the ones that understand great hospitality may begin on the floor, but it has to be backed by a business built to last. 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Quick Bite Pincho Disco has launched a new Thursday night Sushi Fiesta and brought back Saturday Bottomless Brunch to its Collingwood restaurant. The Latin American-inspired venue is now serving a $99 Nikkei sushi platter from 5pm every Thursday, with oysters, salmon rolls, sashimi and nigiri designed to share between two or work as a starter for a larger group. Nikkei cuisine traces back to Japanese immigrants who settled in Peru in the 19th century, combining Japanese techniques with Peruvian ingredients. The new platter brings that crossover to Pincho Disco’s menu, giving diners another option for date nights, group drinks and late-week dinners. On Saturdays, the venue’s Bottomless Brunch returns with 90 minutes of food and drinks for $75 per person. Bookings run from 12pm to 2pm, with a share-style menu featuring cheese and corn empanadas, chipa bread, lamb tacos, woodfired cheesy chorizo tacos and crispy cassava fries. Drinks include red and white sangria, mimosas, house wine, beer and a chilli grapefruit margarita. Pincho Disco is located at 59 Cambridge Street, Collingwood. Source: Sense Communications Find more dining out updates on Crumb Wire.

Connoisseur is bringing strawberry matcha to the freezer aisle with a new ice cream stick launching exclusively at Coles in late July. The new release takes one of the year’s biggest drink trends and turns it into matcha ice cream swirled with strawberry syrup, then covers the lot in a strawberry-flavoured pink chocolate shell. Strawberry matcha has moved quickly from café menus into desserts and bakery cabinets, helped along by more than 110,000 TikTok videos shared under #strawberrymatcha. The combination has become especially popular with Gen Z, pairing the earthy flavour of matcha with sweet strawberry and, crucially, producing something extremely photogenic in the process. Connoisseur senior brand manager Vanessa Mason said shoppers were increasingly discovering new flavours through social media and online culture rather than during a trip to the supermarket. “Consumers today aren’t just discovering flavours in store anymore; they’re discovering them through culture, social media and what’s trending online. “As strawberry matcha is one of the biggest flavour sensations of the past year, we saw an opportunity to be the first to reimagine it into a premium ice cream stick. It captures everything people know and love about the flavour trend while delivering the indulgence and craftsmanship Connoisseur is known for.” Connoisseur is calling the launch a first for premium ice cream sticks in Australia. It follows the success of the brand’s Pistachio Gelato range, with the pistachio sticks now its second best-performing multipack. Matcha is not entirely new territory for Connoisseur either. The brand already sells a Matcha Green Tea with White Choc one-litre tub, making strawberry matcha the next logical addition to its growing line-up of trend-driven flavours. Connoisseur Strawberry Matcha sticks will be sold in packs of four for $12, exclusively at Coles from late July. Source: Wired Co. Find more food retail updates on Crumb Wire.