One of the most acclaimed chefs in Australia is steadily building a seafood empire. When Saint Peter opened in the wealthy Sydney suburb of Paddington in 2016, I don’t think anyone could have expected the level of international acclaim Niland would attract with this “scale-to-tail” approach to cooking seafood, and ever since the chef’s star has only been rising. Now, as Saint Peter prepares to relocate from Oxford Street to The Grand National Hotel, the hard-to-book seafood eatery finally gets a sister restaurant with Josh and Julie Niland opening Petermen on Sydney’s Lower North Shore.
Although Niland also has casual spin-offs Fish Butchery and Charcoal Fish, Petermen is Niland’s first traditional a la carte dining experience. Located in St Leonard’s, the new restaurant aligns with the chef’s other venues, in that it champions local, sustainable and ethically-sourced seafood, but there’s a heap of new options to choose from on the menu.
Diners are able to choose from a curated selection of raw, preserved and charcoal-filled dishes on a menu that’ll likely change regularly based on fresh catches. Dishes such as a Bowen Hand Line caught coral trout for two comes with various sides, while so far a popular option has been the $80 350g Manjimup marron with curry butter and fried bread. Appetisers like saltbush empanadas and Mooloolaba yellowfin tuna with capers and black garlic are also on the list alongside various oysters, preserves, desserts and vegetarian sides.
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A seafood-centric Sunday brunch should also pull quite a bit of business in on weekends, seeing as Niland has put up dishes such as Ballina spanner crab croissants, Manjimip marron scrambled eggs, and pancakes with smoked Aquna Murray Cod bacon and maple.
The simple space, with enough capacity for 60 diners at a time, features a marble bar with timber furniture and original artwork by Ken Done. If the demand for Saint Peter is anything to go by, bookings will be hard to come across but since it’s the Lower North Shore, Niland has expressed the desire for Petermen to be a local and accessible restaurant. There will be about 10 seats at the bar available for walk-ins, and obviously the earlier you rock up the better your chances are.
Petermen
Address: 66 Chandos St, St Leonards NSW 2065
Contact: (02) 8387 4836
Opening Hours: Monday (5:30 PM – 10 PM); Wednesday – Friday (5:30 PM – 10 PM); Saturday (12 PM – 3 PM, 5:30 PM – 10 PM); Sunday (10 AM – 3 PM)
