Maze graduate to open Clove Lane in Randwick

Chef Emile Avramides, a graduate of the exacting kitchens of Gordon Ramsay's Maze restaurants in London and Melbourne, has chosen a quiet shopping strip in Randwick to debut his Sydney restaurant, Clove Lane.

"Michael Tran (The Bellevue and Hibiscus in London) will be my co-head chef. The builders are in, we want to open at the end of April," Avramides tells Good Food.

Despite the upmarket pedigree in its kitchen, Clove Lane will pitch itself as a neighbourhood restaurant.

"I hate to use the term modern Australian, but it leans that way," he says. "I like the word bistronomy, but if people get the wrong idea they think you're being pretentious. So, I guess you'd say modern bistro."

Clove Lane will open with a focus on diner, but lunch and weekend breakfasts are also planned. Avramides, who grew up in Melbourne and also has Cutler & Co on his CV, will open at 19 Clovelly Road, in the middle of the daytime focused strip where butcher Terry Wright has long traded.