Chris Lucas, the restaurateur behind Chin Chin in Sydney and Melbourne, is about to open a new restaurant named Carlotta in Canberra this spring.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the restaurant is going to have 150 seats, and is going to open “in the heart of Canberra” at Scotts Crossing.
The city has competitive advantages. Lucas pointed to its younger demographics. Canberra has “the highest disposable income in Australia” and a lower saturation of restaurants to population compared with Sydney or Melbourne.
“It’s a city that takes food seriously, it has a great food culture,” Lucas told the Sydney Morning Herald.
Canberra has already put itself on the food map.
“It felt like the stars were aligning for Canberra,” Lucas says. He skipped the obvious route of opening one of his existing brands, but hasn’t ruled out a future play: “I’d love to have a Chin Chin here, but at the moment, all our energy is focused on Carlotta.”
“I wanted to do something just for Canberra. It is its own city with its own culture,” he mentioned.
The Carlotta restaurant will offer a variety of Mediterranean flavors. Although the name suggests an Italian influence, it will feature elements from Spain and Greece as well. A custom wood oven, crafted in Italy, will be a focal point, while the dining room will draw inspiration from mid-20th-century Italian design.
Source: The Sydney Morning Herald
