Grounds of Alexandria to open Melbourne spinoff

The Grounds of Alexandria was one of the hot Sydney food launches for 2012, now it is poised to join the long food march south and open a Melbourne spinoff.

The Grounds will follow in the footprints of Sydney-based operators Neil Perry and Guillaume Brahimi, but the Victorian capital has until now been richer pickings for Sydney restaurants than its cafes.

The Grounds, which has also been scouting additional Sydney locations, no doubt on the back of optimism due to its frustratingly long queues, has a particular Melbourne location in its sights.

A spokeswoman for The Grounds confirmed, ''there are some things in the pipeline'', but added the deal isn't yet across the line. ''The guys don't want to disclose the location or timing just yet,'' she says.