Andrew McConnell's first restaurant since Gimlet opens - hospitality
Andrew McConnell and Jo McGann launched Côte Basque on Friday 7 August, marking their first new restaurant since Gimlet opened in 2020. The European grill is inspired by the Basque country, with produce cooked over flame and embers.
“We’re taking this opportunity to pare things back, and focus on really great-quality produce, saucing and technique – traditional service styles that elevate these dishes,”
The kitchen is prioritising the simplicity of Basque cuisine, and tradition rather than technology is underpinning the menu’s ethos. “Since my first trip to the Basque in the 90s I have been inspired by the region,” says McConnell.
“We wanted to do an authentic wood grill and wood-oven restaurant, dedicating a menu to the beauty of that tradition of cooking. We’re trying to keep it as simple as possible – the best produce we can get our hands on, treat it with care, grill it perfectly, put it on the plate.”
The restaurant is set in the storied walls of 25 Crossley Street, which once house Pellegrini’s Tavola Freddo Cantina, and was home to fine diner Becco since 1996. Working with architecture studio ACME, the team restored the original 1950s green terrazzo flooring, cherrywood panelling, and stainless-steel framed windows.
The resulting all-day diner aims to channel New York spirit and 1950s Milan flair, and features a a 12-metre mural by artist Magnus Reid. The menu’s Côte Basque signatures include calamari à la brute, Victorian calamari seasoned with its own ink; and a fish soup reminiscent of the classic Basque ttoro that Head Chef Allan Doert Eccles says is “a pure expression of the sea”. There’s also a daily grill with fresh-caught seafood and David Blackmore’s wagyu and Galician rubia gallega hybrid, which is aged in-house for a month.
Meanwhile, desserts include chocolate souffle and and a Gâteau Basque with Armagnac-soaked prunes. “We’re taking this opportunity to pare things back, and focus on really great-quality produce, saucing and technique – traditional service styles that elevate these dishes,” says Doert Eccles. The news comes just a week after McConnell and McGann announced they will take the reins at St Kilda institution Stokehouse in October.
Côte Basque is located at 25 Crossley Street, Melbourne, and is open seven days from midday until late. Photography by Sharyn Cairns.
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- Who: Côte Basque · Andrew McConnell · McConnell · Crossley Street
