Gault&Millau is one of the leading independent international restaurant guides in the world, launched its first-ever Australian guide in 2014.
The Gault&Millau Melbourne and Sydney Restaurant Guide not only offers chefs and diners a different opinion to restaurant reviews in Australia’s food capitals, but it also allows local chefs the opportunity to be judged on the same scale as the best in Europe.
This year’s much anticipated list, features two Greek talents among its best.
Anna Polyviou, the famous New South Wales Punk Queen of confectionery has been nominated for Pastry Chef of the Year, while Melbourne eatery Bahari is a finalist for Best New Restaurant of the Year.
Polyviou, the Greek Cypriot Mohawk pastry chef is known worldwide for creating otherworldly sweet treats with funky cool beats that taste like heaven. Her career has taken her from Melbourne to London, Paris to Chicago and back to Australia at the Shangri-La Hotel Sydney. Anna is putting all her creative flair into the pastry department, having introduced uniquely flavoured macarons, handmade chocolate bonbons and high-end desserts to the hotel’s all-day dining restaurant, Café Mix. Along with her team of ten pastry chefs, she has also taken the hotel’s famous High Tea and Chocolate High Tea offering in the Lobby Lounge to new sweet heights. Anna Polyviou was also named Best Hotel Chef at this year’s prestigious HM Awards in a ceremony which took place last Friday night at the Sydney Town Hall.
Chef and restaurateur Philip Vakos and friend Stell Kaponas on the other hand, have combined their experience to present a fresh, funky vibe restaurant in the heart of Richmond serving traditional dishes with a modern Aussie twist. Bahari embodies ‘togetherness’, the inviting food philosophy of the Greeks, encouraging people to try an assortment of plates throughout their dining experience. This relaxed, and intimate space enables Philip the freedom to really express his palate, by constantly reinventing the way traditional Greek food is enjoyed by his customers.
“There is no fixed menu; given it changes so frequently. It’s really nice to be able to wake up each day and put something different on the specials board, it’s a freedom I’ve always wanted and I think the customers enjoy it; especially for locals – it means they will always find something new to try,” Philip says.
Bahari is famous for its low roasted-pulled lamb shoulder, char-grilled octopus, saganaki, its five star vegetarian moussaka and its mouthwatering galaktoboureko dessert. The zucchini fritters filled with prawns, the goat fat baked potatoes and the baklava are also a hit.
Good luck to both!