Article from the Sydney Morning Herald, Good Living section. Tuesday, 17th March 2009,
by Simon Thomsen.
Set in stone...celebrating Rockpool's 20th anniversary, Neil Perry has a had a profound influence on Sydney's dining scene. Photo by Sahlan Hayes.
NEIL PERRY may champion top produce but he says restaurants are “in the nostalgia business”. The chef has a lot to get misty-eyed about. His flagship fine diner, Rockpool, turned 20 on February 28.
It’s a remarkable achievement in an industry that defines ephemeral. The 51-year-old marked the occasion with a minimum of fuss. “I thought turning 10 was incredible, even more so than 20, because there was a degree of disbelief,” he says. “At the time, not many Sydney restaurants had done that.”
After service the other Saturday night, Perry repeated his action from two decades earlier. He walked across the road to look back to his restaurant with a mixture of pride, amazement and pleasure.
“It was emotional,” he acknowledges. There’s been a lot of jus under the pass lights since then but, right now, Perry has little time to reminisce.
The Rockpool empire and its fortunes, which waxed and waned in that time, are on the rise once more.
On Thursday night in Sydney‘s CBD, Perry opens his latest – and perhaps last – big project: Rockpool Bar & Grill. His father, Les, was a butcher. His three brothers, too, so a steakhouse suggests this ponytailed sirloin didn’t fall far from the carcass.
The opening night nerves should be familiar. This is Perry’s 14th time, give or take the odd rebrand. Think: Wokpool, XO (twice), Star Bar & Grill and MCA Cafe to name just a few. A decade ago, at his previous peak, there were five restaurants (not counting the noodle bars) under his command. Now it’s four, however, with 350 employees and more than $40 million invested, the stakes seem higher.
Some things change, others don’t.
“The terror and excitement are the same,” Perry says. “You’re always pushing, you always need more time and you’re struggling to get the builders out. First night comes and you wonder why am I doing this? It can be painful, frustrating and scary. I must be insane!”
Well, not quite.
“We learnt a lot from expansion in the late ’90s, so this time we’re a bit more prepared,” he says. “I’ve a clearer idea of what I want to do and how I’m going to do it.”
It was his US business partner, David Doyle, who gave Perry a “once-in-a-lifetime chance” in the grand green terrazzo space of City Mutual’s heritage-listed art deco building.
“We stood in the room and Dave said: ‘Should I buy it?’ And I said ‘Yeah, it’s the most fantastic room I’ve ever seen’,” Perry says. “I hope its sheer beauty will make people’s jaws drop.”
The chef says the luck on this project has fallen in his favour but there’s a wry coincidence at play, since the City Mutual building springs back to life 22 years after its instigators were laid to waste in the 1987 stockmarket crash. Despite Sydney dining’s current jitters, Perry is unwavering.
“To live a dream like this, I would put everything on the line even now,” he says. Perry’s done just that, with the support and nous of his long-time business partner, Trish Richards. Rockpool’s 20th anniversary is as much a testament to her skills as it is to her cousin’s talent.
The restaurant’s highlights are many. The chef singles out being named as the fourth best restaurant in the world in 2002 as a particular pleasure.
Receiving three hats in The Sydney Morning Herald Good Food Guide is another, along with Gourmet Traveller’s Restaurant of the Year award.
The grand gestures in his generous support for charity are also fond memories.
His influence on a generation of chefs (who didn’t want Rockpool on their CV?) is notable, too. The prevalence on menus everywhere of Perry’s crab omelette is also proof of his influence. “Passing on what you believe in is as important as living it,” Perry says. “A lot of great people came through here and hopefully went off with a philosophy of hospitality, generosity and professionalism.”
His lowlights? Losing the third hat, the first time in 1999, then again in 2006. Rockpool was almost lost two years ago when Perry abandoned fine dining, to rebrand it as a fish bistro. Twelve months later, he recanted.
“I missed fine dining,” he recalls. “More than any of my other restaurants, Rockpool is my food and a reflection of my experiences. I needed to admit my mistake and change it back.”
As part of the 20th anniversary, Rockpool is serving a five-course tasting menu of “classics”. The date tart is as Sydney as the Opera House, however, Perry’s approach to nostalgia is practical. “We create memories for people, then clean garbage away and start again the next day,” he says.
