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Ode, a new natural wine bar, opens in Bondi

Open from morning till night, Ode has all the makings of a neighbourhood favourite.

Inside Ode

Saskia Wilson

Natural wine by the carafe. Handmade pasta. A charcoal grill. Ode, which opened last month on Bondi Road, is not just another Bondi spot to hit for weekend brunch (although they are open for breakfast six mornings a week).

It’s a collaboration between chef Ben Abiad, designer Benedict Maurice and managers Jerome Wallcroft and Jeremy Moyle. The team took over the site formerly occupied by Panama House in February and it’s been all hands on deck since as they’ve transformed the space into a cosy spot that’s as appealing on a sunny morning as it is after dark.

Cavatelli with beef cheek ragù and gremolata (top) and cacio e pepe.

“I don’t see the dining scene as a per person, per plate place anymore,” says Abiad, who has clocked time at Dear Sainte Éloise and Mecca. “The more that I see people eating together, sharing great food and drinking great wine, I think that’s the only way to do it.”

Breakfast at Ode is perhaps more Euro than Bondi’s accustomed to. Standing room at the front window is an ideal spot for a quick Mecca espresso and a pastry or you might settle in for Iggy’s toast and boiled eggs, smoky eggplant, pickled onion and sauerkraut with cultured butter.

By night, it’s all about wine and Italian-leaning wine-bar food that doesn’t leave you wanting. Abiad cooks scallops on rosemary sprigs, turning the makeshift skewers over a charcoal grill behind the bar, before whipping the herb itself into an anchovy sauce that’s served on the side. Handmade cavatelli is accompanied by a rich beef cheek ragù and gremolata, while farfalle is lifted by chilli, Meyer lemon and anchovy. The usual wine-bar suspects are there, too (burrata, charcuterie, Merimbula oysters), but they’re joined by the likes of braised octopus with ‘nduja and lardo and mussels on toast with aïoli and pickled celery.

From left to right: designer Benedict Maurice, managers Jerome Wallcroft and Jeremy Moyle, chef Ben Abiad.

It took three months for the team to transform the site into Ode. They built everything from the large Deco-style mirror on the back bar to the light fittings and furniture. Timber and steel feature heavily, softened by warm orange light, exposed brick and various bronze sculptures.

“Benedict and Jerome pulled apart an old wharf and rescued all the old blue gum sleepers for our tables and bench tops,” says Abiad. “Building them together has turned Ode into a home, rather than an office for us. Our hands are on everything.”

Wallcroft and Moyle are behind the all-natural wine list, which favours smaller, minimal-intervention Italian, French and Australian labels. “We’re looking for interesting, sometimes lost, native grape varieties that are being revived by passionate wine makers,” says Moyle. Along with lots of skin contact drops, there are carafes of “really juicy” table wines from the Barossa’s Sparrow & Vine and a short and sharp list of cocktails.

Grilled scallops (top) and braised octopus with ‘nduja and lardo.

There are plans to host winemaker nights down the track while a regular Sunday event, “Italiano lunch and aperitivo session”, kicked off two weeks ago. The idea is to offer two mains, priced at $20, along with the regular menu of smaller plates. For the first event, Abiad created vegeterian-friendly plates of wintry borlotti beans with polenta, and creamed spinach with field mushrooms, Reggiano and pangrattato.

Depending on the time of day you visit, Ode is many things, but mainly it’s a tribute to good people, good times and hard work, says Abiad. “It’s an ode to us, our suppliers and winemakers and to the people who enjoy it.”

Ode, 251 Bondi Rd, Bondi, NSW, (02) 9130 2894, Tue-Fri 7am-11am, Wed-Fri 5pm-late, Sat-Sun 8am-late, odebar.com

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