Duke Bistro

LOCATION
In the floor above Flinders Inn.

PROFILED BY DE GROOTS MEDIA
A narrow, blink-and-you’ll-miss-it door sits beside the Flinders Hotel, behind which a mysterious staircase leads up to the dimly lit Duke Bistro. This unassuming entrance belies a hospitality team of impressive pedigree – Mitch Orr (ex-Sepia and 2010 Josephine Pignolet Young Chef of the Year) and Thomas Lim (ex-Tetsuya’s) in the kitchen, plus Bayswater Brasserie bartending alumni Charles Ainsbury and Andy Penney.

The night kicks off with a Leaving Tijuana, a would-be margarita elevated with honey, blanco tequila, freshly squeezed lime juice and a smoked salt rim. The elusive food menu leaves much to diners’ imagination, but tongue-in-cheek dishes showcase chefs’ confidence and ability to reinvent classics. ‘School Prawns, Spiced Tea Butter, Croutons’ takes the form of three bite-sized toasts topped with the crunchy critters and sprinkled with microscopic seaweed flakes. ‘Witlof Tonnato’ swaps the standard veal-and-tuna mayo combo for slices of tuna sashimi cloaked in subtle goat’s cheese and marinated witlof leaves, while the Kingfish Gin and Tonic’s (served in a cocktail tumbler, of course) cubes of raw fish flesh, gin-loaded jelly and cucumber strips are as refreshing as the botanics-laced booze itself. While tasty, these are sadly the type of share-plates that leave plenty of room for more.

Brit gastro-pub inspired interiors blend vintage floral banquettes, forest green walls and low-slung, black pool table lamps, while a bizarre boar’s head audaciously occupies a stool at the bar. While the elegant interiors are decidedly less knick knack-covered than its American dive bar sibling downstairs, the restaurant’s opening hours are just as late-night party-goer friendly with the kitchen pumping out meals until the wee hours.

Duke is defined by its sense of whimsy – a playfulness that spans drinks, food, décor and service. Never ostentatious yet always surprising, it’s a restaurant that’s sure to set some serious trends on the Sydney dining scene.

Alecia Wood