Central, the forthcoming restaurant from the hospo hit-makers behind Burleigh’s Rick Shores and Fish Lane favourite Southside, is an amalgam of eras.

The subterranean space the restaurant will soon occupy was once home to Peter Hackworth’s famed coffee lounge Primitif Cafe, which opened in the basement of Piccadilly Arcade on Queen Street way back in 1957. In addition to being the first spot in Brisbane to boast a real espresso machine, The Prim was also a seminal hub for the city’s nascent jazz scene, becoming a happening haven for young musicians, poets and bohemians. The one-of-a-kind space, which has sat unoccupied since Primitif Cafe closed in the mid-1970s, will soon be reborn as a dumpling bar inspired by the heaving melting pot that was central Hong Kong’s restaurant and nightclub scene, circa the 80s and 90s – a stretch of time that Southside’s executive chef Benny Lam firmly believes was one of the most exciting periods in the city’s culinary history.

“Hong Kong in the 80s and 90s is regarded as sort of a golden era,” says Benny. “It’s was very colourful and there was heaps happening under the British, especially in food. It had a bit of a Western influence, but it was still based on the traditional Cantonese style.”

Benny and fellow Central co-owners David Flynn and Maui Manu have long tossed around the idea of opening an inner-city dumpling bar in Brisbane, but it wasn’t until the gang immersed themselves in Hong Kong’s contemporary dining scene that the notion to infuse their still-gestating concept with a dash of the city’s uptempo energy really coalesced.

“We love our dumpling offering at Southside – it’s something that I think that we do really well,” says David. “We felt like it could translate really well to a venue that was much more focused just on the dumpling and the dim sum offering.

“We were looking for a basement space in the CBD because there’s a strong association with Hong Kong – central Hong Kong is full of these cool little nooks and crannies that are all subterranean. We just kept our ear to the ground for a couple of years, waiting for the right thing to pop up. And then about a year or so ago it did.”

So, what shape will Central take? Works converting the subterranean space are well underway, with Jared Webb of J.AR OFFICE overseeing the design aspect and Lowry Group handling the fit-out. Aesthetically, the crew is leaning into the venue’s underground digs, with mood-setting lights illuminating the venue’s original exposed-brick walls and Central’s granite and timber fixtures. Central’s kitchen and bar area will serve as the venue’s buzzing focal point, with countertop seats ringing one axis of this nexus, while banquettes will line the wall on the opposite flank. The rest of the restaurant’s dining space will occupy a raised tier, with booths and banquettes boasting sight lines into the kitchen.

“There’s obviously a bit of an industrial feel to the fit-out, but it will still be quite luxe and quite comfortable,” David informs us. “The idea is that the kitchen is centre stage and then all of the other activity is ringed around that. It will feel quite connected – whilst it is still one space, it won’t feel like one big room or one flat plane.”

But what about the vibe? What kind of atmosphere can we expect?

“Immersive, I think in a word,” says David. “We’re trying to make the most of the beautiful character that existed in the space. Whilst we’re not directly referencing Primitif, we want to maintain a feeling of the subterranean aspect. And we definitely wanted it to feel like it is in a basement – some of the great experiences that we’ve had [in Hong Kong] have been in little nondescript basement restaurants and bars.”

Benny will be tapping into Hong Kong’s mix of Cantonese and Western flavours for Central’s menu, which will champion dumplings but also showcase a broad array of dishes that will be markedly different to the approach the chef has taken with Southside’s East Asian-inspired offering.

“The menu, the recipes and the style is totally a step away from Southside,” Benny tells us. “The menu is based on a really authentic or traditional way of cooking, with modern techniques. It will be heavy on dumplings, covering what you have in Hong Kong from steamed and baked to deep fried and pan fried.”

Once Central opens, expect to find steaming serves of dim sum delicacies, including classic prawn har gao, Peking duck potstickers and ‘Old Hong Kong’ chicken steam buns. There will also be cold starters like drunken chicken with aged Shaoxing rice wine, red date and golden sesame, and smoked foie gras with Chinese fried dough and Davidson’s plum.

“Central will also have a really unique section of grilled and barbecued dishes,” Benny adds. “Really traditional stuff – like what you can see in Hong Kong every day – hanging in the windows so you can see what you’re ordering. We’ll use local produce to try to get as close as possible to what you can have in Hong Kong, so if people like me from Hong Kong come to Central they will really feel at home.”

These morsels will include char siu pork, classic roasted half duck, and South Australian abalone with XO butter and smoked bottarga, available alongside wok-tossed fare like ginger and shallot lobster with e-fu noodles, and Goolwa pipis with a prosciutto XO sauce and crispy egg noodles.

On the beverage front, group wine director Peter Marchant is curating a wine list that will mix classic expressions from big-name regions with exciting new-school gear from Australia and abroad. The range will be versatile, with approximately 30 wines expected to be available by the glass, half glass and half bottle (via Coravin). Central’s cocktails will be engaging and zesty, with the team nodding to Brisbane’s own subtropical environment and Hong Kong’s classic hotel bars of the 80s and 90s. David describes the list’s concoctions as “fun, fruity and boozy” – a Harvey Wallbanger riff will be one of Central’s signature sips, alongside a couple of sidecar and martini variations. 

Central is slated to open in October – keep your eyes peeled for more info in the coming weeks.