Merivale has officially opened the doors to Bert’s at The Newport.
The brand new bar and brasserie, situated on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, takes cues from the grand hotel dining rooms of the 1930s, and serves a coastal European menu reminiscent of an era gone by.
“We want to create that sense of relaxed indulgence you experience on a coastal European holiday; to capture the feeling when you decide to order the fresh lobster or relax into the afternoon with champagne and oysters,” explained Bert’s executive chef Jordan Toft.
Working alongside Jordan in the kitchen is head chef Sam Kane, who joins Merivale with an impressive resume which includes dining institutions including Gulliaume at Bennelong, Bistro Moncur, Bibo Wine Bar and Four in Hand.
The menu is broken up into the open kitchens seen within the dining room. Guests can start off with toasted brioche fingers; sample the daily selection of crudo served with virgin grape seed and muscatel vinegar dressing; or indulge in the raw bar with hand-picked whole mud crab with lemon and mayonnaise, oysters on the half shell and Siberian caviar with cultured butter and chives.
It’s then onto the larder with salads like the ‘crudite & bagna cauda’ – raw vegetables, warm shallot and anchovy dip – and the ‘Avocado Bert’ with creamy avocado, chopped egg, tarragon, chive, chervil and togarashi, alongside charcuterie – lemon thyme-marinated anchovies, pork and game terrine, San Danielle prosciutto with melon and beef carpaccio.
For mains, the grill and oven take the lead, with Australia’s beautiful and bountiful produce cooked using charcoal, iron bark and fruit woods.
Overlooking the idyllic Pittwater and expansive grounds of The Newport, Bert’s is the second phase of the venue’s landmark redevelopment.
