Unwined Bar & Kitchen pops the cork on new Racecourse Road hotspot
A stellar list of vino and a menu of Nepalese-inspired eats are on the cards for Ascot’s newest eatery, which is set to open its doors to the public on Friday May 17. Unwined Bar & Kitchen is setting up shop in the cosy former home of The Stables Craft Bar & Kitchen, shifting gears from the froth-focused offering to concentrate on new-wave wines from young, emerging makers. In good news for Ascot locals, Unwined is also looking to set itself up as a low-key late-night haunt for night owls starved for suitable options.
The details
Ascot’s Racecourse Road is the area’s most prominent hospitality strip, but beyond the Hamilton Hotel there are few spots available to folks who enjoy a late-night sip. Long-running boozer The Stables Craft Bar & Kitchen underwent an ownership change in 2018, with the new honchos electing to undergo a rebrand to deliver a night-time haunt the area sorely needed. The group recruited Mitchell Dunning – fresh off a stint opening Ballistic Beer Co’s West End Alehouse and Kitchen – to oversee newly minted Unwined Bar & Kitchen’s set up, placing the keys in his hands and letting him implement his ideas for what Racecourse Road really needed. A wine-centric offering was chosen for the bar’s chief area of focus, the menu was rejigged to offer share-style morsels, and the space was given a darker aesthetic to convey a cosy small-bar feel.
The drink
Under Mitch’s supervision, Unwined’s wine selection is honing in on interesting makers from Australia’s burgeoning viticulture industry. Organic, biodynamic, minimal-intervention and sustainable drops are king, with labels including Barossa Valley’s Shobbrook Wines, Coonawarra’s Ottelia, Unico Zelo from Adelaide Hills, Riverland’s Delinquente, and Queensland’s own GraniteRidge represented. The wine list will change often, with more adventurous drops expected to pop in as wine specials over the coming months. In addition to the vino, Unwined’s back bar is amply stocked with an array of spirits, including Australian-made small-batch labels, which funnel into a cocktail menu of classics and inventive signatures. Beer drinkers take note – the bar hasn’t stepped away from ales completely. Eight taps are given over to craft beer from local operators such as Fonzie Abbott and Ballistic Beer Co.
The food
Unwined’s head chef Bisnu Poudel has been given full creative freedom to overhaul the menu, taking inspirations from his own Nepalese heritage and years working in five-star hotel kitchens to create a guilt-free array of snacks. The shareable offering includes house-made Nepalese dumplings, lentil dahl with flatbread, san choi bao, pillowy soft bao buns, share boards, roasted-veggie salads and a warming and filling slow-cooked goat curry. Frequent diners can expect seasonal changes to the menu, as well as specials rotating on a regular basis.
Unwined Bar & Kitchen officially opens to the public at 4:00 pm on Friday May 17. Get all the extra details you need in the Stumble Guide.
The Stumble Guide is our comprehensive Brisbane dining guide with more than 2400 places to eat, drink, shop and play.
