GT 2013 Restaurant Awards winners

Bar of the Year: The Everleigh, Melbourne

If you were seeking evidence for the ever-evolving diversification and specialisation of Australia’s small-bar culture, The Everleigh would make a good Exhibit A. This is a bar for grown-ups, a bar that takes its business seriously, but does so in a way that eschews intimidation. That seriousness is focused on making sure customers have a good time through the fine-tuning of drinks, service and music with an experienced hand. It might be a meticulously curated bar but it never feels staged or pretentious. It’s also a whole lot of fun, like the fantasy of a cocktail bar made real. Make ours a double. The Everleigh, Level 1, 150-156 Gertrude St, Fitzroy, Vic, (03) 9416 2229

Wine List of the Year: Carlton Wine Room, Melbourne

The Carlton Wine Room’s wine list has character and style in abundance. What sets this list apart is the way co-owner and wine list-compiler Jay Bessell’s own unique, enthusiastic and deeply hospitable approach to wine enjoyment is woven through its fabric. Each section is arranged not by grape variety or country, but by weight: “from the lighter and elegant to the bold and rich”, and the whole thing is peppered with evocative, educational encouragements to try new and unusual wines. Carlton Wine Room, 172-174 Faraday St, Carlton, Vic, (03) 9347 2626

Sommelier of the Year: Banjo Harris Plane, Attica, Melbourne

Quay, Est. and Bentley all figure on Banjo Harris Plane’s CV, but it’s been his time working as the sommelier/manager at Attica in Melbourne that has seen him really come into his own. Here, he has the perfect setting to ease diners out of their vinous comfort zones and into the pleasures of the unknown with pairings that speak of his fine palate and close study of less-familiar wine-growing regions, not to mention sakes, beer and more. Attica, 74 Glen Eira Rd, Ripponlea, Vic, (03) 9530 0111

Maître d’ of the Year: Ainslie Lubbock, Pei Modern, Melbourne

Call us lazy diners, but there’s something tremendously reassuring about being able to put our dining and wining pleasure in the hands of someone else knowing that it’s all under control. Ainslie Lubbock is that rare manager whose warmth, professionalism and unaffected style on the floor transform an entire restaurant’s ambience for the better. Her great taste in wine and ability to build a great team make us that much more willing to surrender completely. Pei Modern, Collins Place, 45 Collins St, Melbourne, Vic, (03) 9654 8545

Best New Talent: Alejandro Cancino, Urbane, Brisbane

With serious time at the internationally renowned likes of Mugaritz, Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons and Noma behind him, this 28-year-old comes to Brisbane with some impressive fine-dining chops. But what makes his dining so fine is the fact that even though it’s carefully wrought, it isn’t too serious to be fun. It’s artfully plated food that engages, makes you grin, think and wonder. But most of all it’s food that tastes amazing – and really, that’s what counts. Urbane, 181 Mary St, Brisbane, Qld, (07) 3229 2271

Regional Restaurant of the Year: Loam, Drysdale, Vic

Loam just gets better and better. There are flasher restaurants in regional Australia, restaurants with deeper cellars, larger floor teams, even more moving settings. But none of them can hold a candle to the package here in terms of freshness, excitement and lightness of touch. That element of spontaneity, combined with the smarts and experience Aaron and Astrid Turner maintain in the kitchen and on the floor to ensure it translates to timely, tasty dining, has made Loam the regional restaurant of the moment. Seize the day. Loam, 650 Andersons Rd, Drysdale, Vic, (03) 5251 1101

New Restaurant of the Year: Momofuku Seiobo, Sydney

What’s the bigger influence here: the superb (and often native) ingredients on the plate or the English and Korean-American backgrounds of its chefs? How can a bookings system this annoying be considered hospitality? Does it matter? When the food and drink are this good, perhaps not. Yes, the music is set permanently to 11, but so too are most of the flavours, not to mention the fun. Yes, it’s part of a chainlet based, for the most part, in New York, and yes, it’s in a casino, yet the front-of-house team is superior to any of its Big Apple brethren, and the package transports diners somewhere new. Momofuku Seiobo, Level G, The Star, 80 Pyrmont St, Pyrmont, NSW

Outstanding Contribution to Hospitality: Janni Kyritsis, chef

Janni Kyritsis came to our shores from Greece in 1970 as an electrician. His partner, David Bradshaw, encouraged his interest in cooking as a way to better his English. Over a lifetime of good cooking at the pioneering restaurants of the day, first under Stephanie Alexander at Stephanie’s in Melbourne, then with Gay Bilson at Berowra Waters Inn and Bennelong, and finally at MG Garage, Kyritsis has influenced a generation of young chefs. His creativity, technical virtuosity, honesty and playfulness have inspired his peers and protégés alike.

Chef of the Year: Ben Shewry, Attica, Melbourne

Were we surprised when this young transplanted Kiwi topped the ballot for our first-ever Chef of the Year award? Not entirely. This award differs from the rest on these pages because it’s determined not by our reviewers but by peer vote. We asked chefs from the Top 100 restaurants in the previous edition of this guide to name the Australian chef they respected most. The news that Ben Shewry’s name came up trumps simply confirmed that chefs have come to see what we diners have known for a while: hey, this guy is good. Attica, 74 Glen Eira Rd, Ripponlea, Vic, (03) 9530 0111

Restaurant of the Year: Quay, Sydney

Chef Peter Gilmore’s great talent and the restaurant’s frankly stunning setting are both tremendous drawcards in their own right. Mix them together, add an increasingly appealing wine list and shake them up with a floor team that’s gaining the gravitas and personality that have been wanting over the years and you’ve got a potent cocktail that’s intoxicating and more than a little bit addictive. Constancy and polish are the foundation here, of course, but a deeply felt commitment to capital-B beauty conjured from delicious ingredients is what makes Quay soar. It’s not just an essential Australian dining experience, but a must for gourmet travellers the world over. Dig in. Quay, Upper level, Overseas Passenger Terminal, The Rocks, NSW, (02) 9251 5600.