The Sydney Morning Herald logo
Advertisement

Bondi butcher fires up the barbecue and cooks to order

Scott Bolles
Scott Bolles

T-bone to takeaway: Bondi's Peter Zaidan cooks steak to order.
T-bone to takeaway: Bondi's Peter Zaidan cooks steak to order.Dallas Kilponen

Fish shops have been doing it for years, now a butcher is jumping in on the act and cooking customer's selections on the premises.

Peter Zaidan, owner of the recently opened Macelleria on Campbell Parade at Bondi Beach, cooks his customers' steaks for no charge.

"I'm happy to tell them how to cook it properly at home, but by the time they take it home and fire up the barbecue … about 60 per cent prefer us to do it," he says.

Peter Zaidan cooking at his business in Bondi.
Peter Zaidan cooking at his business in Bondi. Dallas Kilponen
Advertisement

The shift away from DIY is echoed across the city.

Danny Russo, consultant chef at The Oaks in Neutral Bay, says the recent revamp of the hotel retained the signature customer barbecues in the beer garden, but "95 per cent of customers" now get the kitchen to cook it for them.

"And steak sales are up 25-30 per cent," Russo says.

Back in Bondi, Zaidan says his Cape Grim and Darling Downs steak is the same product used by many leading restaurants "but at layman's prices".

"Our T-bone is $15, I've seen it on a menu for $35, the rib eye is $25 instead of $56," he says.

While he admits he can offer it at those prices because he doesn't carry many of the overheads of a restaurant, the butcher says he likes the idea that "you don't have to be a millionaire to eat like a king in Bondi"

Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox.

Sign up
Scott BollesScott Bolles writes the weekly Short Black column in Good Food.

From our partners

Advertisement
Advertisement