For most of his career, Michael Tassis has been a seafood guy. Since first learning the hospitality ropes from his father George Tassis at George’s Paragon Seafood Restaurant in his early teens, fish, crustaceans and mollusks have taken pride of place in Michael’s heart and on the menu at his own venues, of which he’s now got a few. Sleek new steakhouse Rich & Rare, the latest addition to the Tassis Group portfolio, sees Michael switching focus from ocean to paddock and placing protein smack-bang in the spotlight. It’s a big move for the exceptionally active restaurateur, whose seafood-centric concept Fosh only opened at Portside in Hamilton scant more than a month prior, but Rich & Rare isn’t Michael’s first flirtation with the realm of steak. Carnivores might remember Tassis Group’s inner-city spot Fatcow Steak & Lobster, a well-received dalliance with dry-aged morsels that operated in the old Cha Cha Char space until Eagle Street Pier closed for redevelopment in 2022. Though initially wary of shaking up the formula, the Fatcow experiment proved successful enough to give Michael confidence to revisit the concept down the road. “I was hesitant opening a steakhouse,” Michael recalls, “I had to be careful because I didn’t want to disappoint people who were comparing it to Cha Cha Char. But with Rich & Rare, I’ve got a fresh start where I can create what I want.”

Rich & Rare officially opened last Friday September 29 at the base of The Garden Pavilion at West Village, underneath fellow 2023 newcomer Ippin Japanese Dining. Michael has once again brought on frequent collaborators Clui Design, Kyson Commercial and Allo Creative to help shape Rich & Rare’s look, fit-out and branding, honing in on a mix of casual cool and contemporary opulence that blends the metropolitan grandeur of Manhattan steakhouses with West Village’s subtropical oasis feel. Though it’s underpinned by lavish inspirations, Michael has ensured that, like all of his venues, Rich & Rare boasts a sense of accessibility. “I wanted to do a fresh look – classy but approachable,” reveals Michael. “I want to make it an iconic spot for West End –  the dining scene is changing on this side of the city, to the point where people don’t need to go into The City or to James Street or to have this kind of premium offering. We’ve got it here as well.” Move past Rich & Rare’s greenery shielded outdoor dining area to the venue’s entrance and you’ll notice that the restaurant’s footprint pivots around a central cylindrical fixture. This glass-encased nexus houses Rich & Rare’s dry-ageing room and an impressive temperature-controlled wine cellar, making it the beating heart of the venue. From here you can go one of two ways. To the left sits a breezy casual bar area – replete with loads of white marble, velvet seats and pendant lights – looks out to Boundary Street, while the lengthy interior dining room to the right boasts a moodier atmosphere courtesy of black parquet timber walls.

It only takes one look at Rich & Rare’s menu to see that Michael and his kitchen team – helmed by head chef Felipe De Souza (formerly of Urbane and Greca) and Kadu Imbroisi (known as ‘The Grill Master’, whose resume includes stints at Cha Cha Char and Fatcow) – are taking their steaks seriously. Guests can pick from a 15-strong selection of cuts sourced from Australia and abroad, including 600g dry-aged sirloins, grain-fed Angus T-bones, 100-percent full-blood A5 Japanese Black Wagyu and wagyu tomahawks. Provenance is key, with farms from the New England Tablelands, Purrawunda west of Toowoomba and the Darling Downs credited alongside storied Japanese cattle paddocks. If desired, these hunks of protein can be upgraded with extras like bone-marrow mash, Alaskan king crab legs and truffle mac ‘n’ cheese. Don’t forget the menu, though – you’ll also find bistro staples like steak tartare and a beefy riff on oysters Kilpatrick (topped with diced wagyu and R&R hot sauce) to steak sandwiches – a previosuly out-of-vogue pub classic making a much-welcome comeback. In good news for pescatarians, Michael isn’t forsaking seafood entirely – you’ll spy a live lobster tank (an ubiquitous sight at any Tassis Group venue), as well as swordfish steaks, king prawns with chilli and mandarin, and seared scallops with caramelised cauliflower puree. On the drinks front, a host of top-shelf whiskies, wines and spirits will be more than enough to float you through a feast – be it a tie-loosening long lunch or an evening celebration.