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Former chef of the year Pasi Petanen to launch new project

Scott Bolles
Scott Bolles

After a four-year break, chef Pasi Petanen is reopening Cafe Paci, this time in Newtown.
After a four-year break, chef Pasi Petanen is reopening Cafe Paci, this time in Newtown.Daniel Munoz

Newtown has snared one of the country's best chefs, with Pasi Petanen set to reboot his award-winning Cafe Paci on King Street.

Petanen, who snared The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide Chef of the Year award during his time at Cafe Paci's original location in East Sydney, hopes to swing open the doors in eight weeks.

"I'm just waiting on a few approvals. It'll be called Cafe Paci, but it'll be super casual and no set menus. I find it more enjoyable to cook that way, more spontaneous," he says.

The Finnish chef has been on the hunt for a permanent home for Cafe Paci since closing in 2015, settling on a shopfront next to Bella Brutta at the Marlborough Hotel end of the strip.

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Petanen, who sharpened his skills at Marque before striking out on his own, continues to be no-nonsense in his approach. His design brief?

"Some tables and chairs and a bar, what else do you need? There's no ferris wheel." Nor is he concerned about launching during what has been a tough period for Sydney restaurants. "People are still hungry," he says.

His choice of location fits the description he painted back in 2015 of his next venue: a smaller, permanent home embedded in a food precinct. Let's hope the second part of his dream – a neighbouring bakery – follows in time.

"Sydney has so much sourdough; it's time for rye," he says.

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

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