The Basement jazzes up its menu

Dinner and a show has always been part of the package at live-music stalwart The Basement, but expect some serious ramping up of the food under a new owner.

Tim Read and Jane Burridge put the Circular Quay venue on the market in 2012, and Sydney restaurant consultant David Wallace is believed to have signed the paperwork to buy the business.

Wallace is quietly amassing a Sydney food empire. He is behind the clever Opera kitchen development at the Sydney Opera House, a shareholder in Cloudy Bay Fish Co at Westfield Sydney, and has co-purchased Steel Bar & Grill.

Numerous small bars and restaurants have popped up in the precinct around The Basement, and Wallace is believed to have big food plans for the venue while maintaining its musical legacy.