The two-hatted Fleet team are opening a Mexican joint

Brace for impact. Chef Josh Lewis and front of house gun Astrid McCormack, the duo behind Brunswick Heads' tiny mighty two-hatted restaurant Fleet, have bought Gringos Fresh Mex, an old school cantina where locals have long-celebrated birthdays with sombreros and burritos, and plan to re-open it in October as a slightly more updated Mexican restaurant.

Why? "I don't have a rational answer," says McCormack. "We just knew we'd open another place when the place came up and we've always said what a great space it is. Then, the owners wrote it [was for sale] on the chalkboard - under two-for-one margaritas."

The restaurant, unbelievably, is even smaller than single-shopfront Fleet, but the draw is the big outdoor courtyard and garden. So far the renovation has meant prizing the sign off the front and having a fire sale on the kitchen equipment. This consisted of five microwaves and a gas ring more commonly used in campsites. "I've never seen a kitchen with so few places to cook," says Lewis.

For the rest of the reno, which will be a DIY job with oversight from Fleet's builders, McCormack says they've "taken it back to bricks, but will re-use as much as we can, re-spraying the tables which are retro steel underneath and salvaging timber."

A new team is being recruited, but for the first three weeks Fleet will close so the whole crew can assist until the ship steadies, and will do periodic shifts there. "Other than that we'll be here drinking margaritas on Mondays," says McCormack.