Sydney chef duo Mike Eggert and Jemma Whiteman are two names which are always welcome at any table in Sydney, stemming from their time running the city’s hugely popular Pinbone before closing up shop in 2015. Since then they’ve been spotted in and around the likes of 10 William Street and their own Kensington restaurant, Good Luck Pinbone; their latest project is a pop-up in collaboration with Merivale, titled Mr Liquor’s Dirty Italian Disco.
Fitted into what is currently the drive-in bottle shop of The Tennyson Hotel in Mascot, the pop-up American-style Italian eatery will be operating for six weeks from this Friday (20th October), serving up a “short and snappy” rotating menu of bruschetta, pasta and wood-roasted meats.
“We went with the classic trio of bread/pasta, cheese and meat”, said Whiteman. “That’s going to be the strong nucleus of how this restaurant’s going to fall in line because, to us, that’s what makes Italian food – simple, uncomplicated, rustic”.
The duo’s signature twists will be applied of course, drawing inspiration from the red sauce joints of New York to push dishes like beef tongue with confit tomato and crispy garlic; meat loaf with dill pickle; anchovy and tomato bruschetta; pappardelle verde; porchetta with charred scallion; and 500g bistecca with mustard and parmesan.
Since they’re taking over a bottle shop, much of the pop-up will be dedicated to the original fit-out, where guests are able to buy their own alcohol from the walk-in fridge before going over to order at the counter and dine in the 90-seater drive-way eatery. They’ll be around 150 wines available, specially selected by Sommelier Franck Moreau, sitting alongside bottled classic aperitifs and digestifs, seasonal cocktails, amari and cellos.
Mr Liquor’s Dirty Italian Disco
Address: 952 Botany Rd, Mascot NSW 2020
Dates: Six weeks from Friday 20th October
Hours: Wed-Fri 6pm-12pm; Sat 12pm-12am; Sun 12pm-10pm
Website: merivale.com.au
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