Merivale snares Jordan Toft for Coogee Pavilion

The greatest stockpiling of chef talent in Sydney culinary history continues at Merivale, which has snared Jordan Toft, the highly touted head chef at Los Angeles' Eveleigh restaurant, for its Coogee Pavilion project.

Toft will join the star-studded Merivale posse that includes Dan Hong, Tim Pak Poy, Jeremy Strode and Peter Doyle. Toft, who was touring Sydney food haunts last week, will kick off at Coogee Pavilion as its executive chef.

Merivale chief Justin Hemmes says Toft will also oversee the rooftop, which opens later this year, as well as eventually using his kitchen talents at the upmarket restaurant opening at Coogee Pavilion in 2015.

The mega development is undergoing a serious makeover, with ceilings being raised, private cinemas installed and a chill zone created with vintage table-tennis tables.

The food offering has had input from every corner of the Merivale empire, including a recent chef signing from Chez Panisse in San Francisco.

Amidst the pizza and fresh juice bars that'll open July 22, The Fish Shop's head chef, Zac Sykes, will oversee the seafood.

Coogee has been crying out for a top-shelf seafood restaurant for years, while a Toft-fronted restaurant upstairs might just be the most exciting launch on Sydney's eastern beaches since Icebergs Dining Room a decade ago.