One of Sydney’s rising star chefs, Brad Crowle takes over at Balmain-neighbourhood favourite Elliott’s.
Here Crowle has re-written the menu with a strong focus on open-fire cooking, transitioning the culinary offering from Euro-style bistro to a more distinctive Australian menu where local produce and seasonality is the focus.
After stints at Kiln, Oncore by Clare Smyth, Aria and Barangaroo House, Brad Crowle has stepped away from Sydney’s CBD fine-dining circuit to lead Elliott’s into its next chapter.
His debut menu is a culinary love letter to Sydney of sort with dishes like flame-cooked Murray cod, blue swimmer crab tartlets and premium Australian steaks that sit alongside hyper-seasonal produce sourced from leading growers and producers around the country.
Brad Crowle spoke to The Write Drop for our At the Bar series.
MY CITY
Sydney. It’s a city that has it all: the ocean, the bush and a world-class dining scene. There’s always something new to discover, but you’re never far from the water or a great meal.
FAVOURITE FOOD MEMORY
This is probably the hardest question because I could talk for hours about different experiences. One that always comes to mind was a trip to Sicily in 2018. We hired a car and drove around the island, which in itself was an incredible food experience. We stumbled across a restaurant-lined alley in Agrigento where you sat at tables on the stairs. They served a toasted panini with ox heart tomato, stracciatella and anchovy, and it was so good we ordered another one straight away. That was eight years ago, and we still talk about it.
FAVOURITE BAR
Dropping into our sister restaurant, Tequila Mockingbird, for a margarita before the AFL. It’s hard to beat.
BEST HANGOVER CURE
It sounds crazy, but going for a run, and if possible, following it up with a swim in the ocean. A bacon and egg roll afterwards never hurts either.
BEST INTERSTATE BAR
I haven’t been interstate for a little while, but Stokehouse overlooking the water in St Kilda is a pretty special spot. Sitting there with one of their spicy margaritas is hard to beat.
FAVOURITE WINE
I’ve been really enjoying Barossa Shiraz lately. We’ve been working on a lot of red meat dishes at Elliott’s and it’s the perfect match.
A WINERY YOU RECOMMEND
I love Champagne, particularly Blanc de Blancs. Visiting the Champagne houses through Reims and Épernay was an incredible experience. I’d happily go back to France just for that. Tahiti. I recently got my scuba diving licence, and it looks like one of the most incredible places in the world to dive.
NEXT DESTINATION
Tahiti. I recently got my scuba diving licence, and it looks like one of the most incredible places in the world to dive.
DINNER PARTY WITH THREE FAMOUS PEOPLE – GO!
Ferran Adrià because I’d love to understand how his mind works. He’s changed the way chefs think about creativity, and I’d be fascinated to hear how he comes up with ideas.
David Attenborough because I could listen to him talk for hours. The places he’s been the people he’s met and everything he’s witnessed over his lifetime would make for some pretty incredible stories.
Jacinda Ardern because she’s shown what real leadership looks like. The way she handled some incredibly difficult moments is something I really admire.
I think between the three of them there’d be a lot to learn, and the https://elliottsbalmain.au/conversation would never get boring.
BEST THING ABOUT YOUR JOB
Building something that people want to come back to. There’s no better feeling than seeing familiar faces walk through the door week after week.
www.elliottsbalmain.au
