The powerhouse restaurant group makes a strategic play and giving the ’burbs what they want – a beautifully presented, Amalfi-inspired bistro, boozer and sun-kissed courtyard.
Finally, Alfi Eatery & Bar is here.
This Mediterranean-influenced venue in the Everton Plaza precinct was intended to open in the winter. Given its ginormous size, though – 350 seats spread across 800 square metres – 80 or 90 days doesn’t seem so bad, especially when Ghanem Group only just came off the launch of the similarly large-format Hotel Terminus on Fish Lane.
“There are elements that get easier about opening these venues, and elements that remain challenging,” managing director Nehme Ghanem says. “You can’t expect it to be smooth sailing ... But it also gets a little easier in some ways – back when we opened Byblos [in 2006], I was literally sleeping there, working 20 hours a day.”
“We’re definitely more versed in what to expect now,” Nehme’s brother and co-director, Adonis Ghanem, adds. “You learn something with every opening and that experience helps, but every venue has its own challenges, team and audience, so you can never assume what worked somewhere else will automatically work again.”
Alfi encapsulates all of Ghanem Group’s accumulated experience after opening some of Brisbane’s buzziest venues – including Byblos, Donna Chang and Iris Rooftop – over the past 20 years. You can see it in the shrewd location in the middle of a suburb going through a significant demographic shift, and the Amalfi-inspired treatment, which flows effortlessly from a low-key, airy bistro into an expansive drinks garden. It’s a venue intended for locals and well designed for their needs.
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“[These] larger venues definitely have another layer of complexity,” Adonis says. “With somewhere like Alfi or Hotel Terminus, you’re bringing together a lot of moving parts, from the kitchen and service through to the bar and the different spaces, and making sure they all work together.
“The dining experience is still at the heart of what we do, but there’s more to think about when you’re operating a venue on this scale.”
Overseeing the design was regular Ghanem partner Space Cubed. It features Italian stone and marble, flashes of light timber and pastel upholstery, and arched windows and curved ceiling features. Inside, there’s a series of booths that can be curtained off from the dining room; outside, crazy pave tiling and a timber banquette that’s framed by greenery.
For food, group executive chef Jake Nicolson and head chef Roberto D’Anna have written a menu that presents a selection of tweaked pub classics alongside pastas, pizza and larger Italian plates to share.
Diners can expect char-grilled baby octopus with potato, celery and olives with a salmoriglio dressing; chicken parmigiana; slow-roasted porchetta rolled with garlic, fennel and pepper with a rosemary jus; spicy vodka parmesan rigatoni; beef ragu Napoletano; baked barramundi with potatoes, garlic, white wine and an acqua pazza broth; whole char-grilled heritage chicken with devil sauce and roast capsicum; and a selection of woodfired pizzas made with Alfi’s signature in-house dough that’s slow-fermented over 36 hours and cooked in an imported Valoriani Forte pizza oven that’s the centrepiece of the kitchen.
For drinks, there’s a punchy wine list that generally favours Australian wines made in a European style; short spritz, digestivo and signature cocktail menus; and nine beers on tap.
“We’d love Alfi to become part of the local community,” Adonis says. “Somewhere people can bring their family, meet friends for a pizza and a drink, or spend a few hours enjoying the live music with a few drinks in the courtyard.
“Good food is obviously a big part of that, but hospitality matters just as much. We want people to feel comfortable, well looked after, and enjoy themselves from the moment they walk in.”
Open Tue-Wed 10am-10pm, Thu-Sat 10am-late, Sun 10am-10pm
