When SkyCity’s CEO Nigel Morrison dined at Sean Connolly’s award-winning restaurant Sean’s Grill in Sydney 18 months ago, Connolly wooed him with a steak. And it was an instant “Yes” from Connolly when Morrison offered him a site for a new steak and seafood restaurant in Federal Street, as part of the casino’s new restaurant precinct.
It has been all go since then. The Grill opened earlier this month, across the road from Peter Gordon’s tapas bar Bellota and in the same complex as Gordon’s restaurant Dine. And the new Aussie kid on this inner-city gourmet block joins two ventures in the same street by our own Kiwi lads – Al Brown at Depot and Luke Dallow’s gastro bar, Red Hummingbird.
Connolly’s excited with his culinary venture across the Tasman.
“It’s a great chance to build an international restaurant and work with New Zealand produce,” says the 44 year-old Yorkshire-born Australian. He sees plenty of similarities, too, between his first home and New Zealand’s terrain, climate and produce.
The Grill is located in the recently revamped Grand Hotel lobby. It seats 140 people over two levels, with private dining upstairs and a hand-picked team serving in a classic, relaxed dining environment.
“The focus of the food is on pasture-fed meat and sustainable seafood from New Zealand’s best producers. And yes, there’s Yorkshire pudding.”
There’s a lot Connolly likes about New Zealand.
“There’s such easy access to artisans here – knife makers and copper pan makers, people like that. That just doesn’t happen in Australia.”
The Grill’s street-level location is another plus. He’s cooked on a boat (QEII), and had restaurants 17 and 23 floors up and is relishing having his feet on the ground.
For a non-gambler, he’s had a long association with casinos – 17 years with Sydney’s Star City Casino and now with SkyCity Auckland.
“I enjoy the challenge of the casino environment. Some people see them as dens of iniquity, and frown on them a little, but I’ve found them good environments to work in and the people are passionate.”
Famous French chef, Joël Robuchon has his fine-dining establishment L’Atelier at the MGM Grand Hotel in Las Vegas and if anyone’s tempted to turn up their nose, they should read this super-chef’s CV. Robuchon has more Michelin stars than any chef, ever, and in 1989 was awarded Chef of the Century by the Gault Millau guide.
L’Atelier seats 40 people, there are 16 chefs, 12 waiters, 24 types of bread and 48 petit fours and you have to walk among the slot machines to get there. Connolly reckons if the casino environment is good enough for Robuchon, its good enough for him too, although guests at The Grill won’t see any pokie machines:
“In Federal Street, we’re part of the casino but not in it.”
Connolly will be hands-on at The Grill for six months, showing his team how he cooks, and then he’ll be the team builder, flying back from Australia once a month to check in. He’ll keep an eye on things from Australia, with a camera installed above the hot plate.
“I can hook in and see how things are going. That’s important because I want to feel connected.”
He’s impressed with the standard of local chefs and is keen to appoint a Kiwi head chef.
“They’re really good and a lot have been successful overseas. They’re in touch with the locals too.”
Researching the local hospitality scene for the past few months has kept Connolly busy.
“I’ve been looking at my benchmarks and for fine dining establishments; I’m impressed with The Grove and Clooney, to name a couple. They’re on the cutting edge of food and as good as anything in Sydney.”
He’s impressed with our front-of-house expertise too.
“People are extremely hospitable, the service has been excellent and the staff have it down pat – even in the sticks.”
Asked to make the predictable comparisons between Australia and New Zealand, Connolly names two weaknesses: there aren’t enough of us here and the ones that are here and too humble.
“You play down how good you are, and it’s the same with your produce. People always talk the quality down, but it’s awesome and I’ve been really impressed with the winter produce. You are proud of your potatoes, though.”
Famous for cooking a great steak, Connolly’s comfortable enjoying a glass of bubbles with red meat and No. 8 Cuvee from Marlborough is a current favourite. Pushed to name a favoured red, he says: “It all depends on the climate.”
Connolly’s passion for cooking kicked in early.
“I started cooking with my Gran when I was nine years old, learning to bake and roast. I loved listening to people’s stories about food and the challenges of cooking during the war years with rations in place. The resourcefulness of those times is amazing – the way people made meals from just about nothing.
“By the time I was 12, I knew I wanted to be a chef. I’d buy cookbooks for Mum, but really it was so I could read them myself. Dad was an academic and he could see I wasn’t that way inclined so, when I was 13, he helped me get a job in a local hotel and I worked there Friday and Saturday nights for free.
“This was in the 70s and cooking was a man’s world – a testosterone-fuelled environment with lots of tattoos but the staff took me under their wing. It was quite an experience. I went from cooking with my grandma to spending time with the rough boys.”
It must have been good training, because 35 years later, and from around the other side of the world, Connolly has cooked in every conceivable style, from fine dining to molecular and been feted for each one.
“You’re only as good as your staff, though. Sean’s Kitchen (one of two restaurants he established) opened a new world for me. I loved it for years and I didn’t know any different. But I’m over the Cathedral-style now, where the restaurant is all quiet and the diners pay homage to the chef.
“Only a small percentage of the population is into fine dining and I’m keen to cook for the masses now – cooking things that more people want to eat. I love cooking for people and making them happy – I’m more about food being the vehicle now.”
Connolly already has a well-established career as a celebrity chef on Australian TV screens. Filming My Family Feast was a fantastic experience for him and he’s hoping to do another series. He’s currently starring in his own show in New Zealand now as well. Under The Grill screens on TV3 on Tuesday nights and follows his 100-day race against the clock set up of his Kiwi restaurant, just in time for Rugby World Cup.
When the tournament leaves town, he’ll be pleased to spend some time with his family back home. There’s not a lot of time between projects, however – he’s already planning his next restaurant in Sydney. And Connolly’s advice for those in the industry: “Don’t lose the passion.”