Blancharu chef courts food court

Haru Inukai worked under legendary French chef Joel Robuchon and has cooked at some of the best restaurants in Australia, but the Japanese-born chef is turning his back on fine dining for a food court.

In another worrying trend for serious dining in Sydney, Inukai, the former head chef at Restaurant VII has cashed in his restaurant chips, selling his Elizabeth Bay venue Blancharu.

''Fine dining is very difficult [in Australia]; the labour costs are really high, as are rents,'' Inukai says.

His food epiphany came when he started offering inexpensive ramen dishes in an effort to get more lunchtime customers at Blanchuru. They queued down the street.

In June Inukai will become one of the most highly decorated chefs on Sydney's food court circuit, opening a ramen outlet at Sussex Centre Food Court, near Golden Century restaurant.

''Ramen has a lot of power. People like $10-$12 dishes and you don't need waiters,'' he says.

It's a long way from the finery of his time at Bilson's and Ampersand, or shaving truffles at Blanchuru. Fans of the Elizabeth Bay restaurant will still be able to get a fix. Inukai has sold the Blanchuru to an Indonesian family with several key staff staying on and his lieutenant in the kitchen becoming a partner in the business.