One part natural wine bar, one part radio station and all-parts zeitgeist, Hope St Radio is a singular proposition. It’s also well-liked for its food, and when founding chef Ellie Bouhadana moved on earlier this year she left her focaccia recipe (pillowy!) but also big shoes to fill.
But a changing of the guards means new ideas and a fresh direction, and, after a thorough search, that opportunity will be left in the more-than-capable hands of chef Blake Ellis. Last seen on the pans at hit Perth bar Wines of While, Ellis’s appointment is a big win for Hope St and a win for the diners of the inner north. Get to know him below ahead of your next night out in the Yards.
If we’re heading down to Collingwood Yards soon to see you, what are we ordering?
Start with some oysters and our new hot sauce. We’ve got so many beautiful spring vegetables coming in to work with, so some of those and some focaccia before a bowl of silverbeet rigatoni sounds like a pretty nice time. Sticky date pudding and a Muz vermouth to share and that’s a wrap – see you soon!
Where did you work before you joined Hope St?
Before I moved to Melbourne I was working at Wines of While in Perth. I was there for a few years when they first opened, but recently they’ve moved to a resident head chef system, which I was very proud to be the first of.
What interested you about this new gig?
For me, the prospect of using food as an exciting way to contribute to a very dynamic hospitality space was probably the most appealing thing. Being able to consistently put out a really exciting and playful menu is fantastic, but then also having conversations throughout the week about private events, set menus and popups is great. Hospitality can be a bit linear sometimes in terms of progression and collaboration, but Hope St seems like a really exciting place for me to grow as a chef and as a thinker.
What’s the brief for the job as it has been relayed to you by owners Pete Baxter and Jack Shaw?
Pete and Jack have been really supportive of me as a chef and a person as well, so the brief has been very open ended. We all seemed to really click upon the first meeting and that’s been reflected in the direction they trust me to take with the food, I think. There’s a very loose structure to the menu which I’ll continue to adhere to and expand slightly, but I really appreciate them handing me the reins pretty wholeheartedly in terms of both faith in my vision and execution.
What are your plans for the menu?
I’ll keep the bones of the menu in terms of delicious food that’s designed to be shared amongst friends and loved ones. In saying that, I’m really excited about fleshing out the menu enough to allow a few more options and pathways for how people can dine at Hope St. A few more sizable plates like a beautifully dressed whole fish with some hot chips on the side or a nice piece of duck would be so great, I think. I’ll definitely be introducing some more hand-cut pasta, and our own ice-cream as part of a rotating sundae program. The HSR banana split is very high on the to-do list.
Can you tell us about a few of the traditions, ingredients, talents or techniques that interest you right now?
I’m really enjoying going back to basics a bit, to be fair. Doing really great versions of foundational things with heaps of flavour, like sauces and broths, then reworking them into more contemporary dishes has been a really rewarding challenge. Always looking back to move forward, I suppose.
Hope St is a serious beverage proposition; what are you ordering at the bar?
I really enjoy the Les Valseuses or Limus wines so it’s great to see some of those on the list, otherwise I’m always happy with a Muz vermouth on ice. Special mention also to T.I.N.A as my absolute favourite non-alc option.
It’s also a radio station; if we were to crack open your Spotify right now, what would be top of the pops for you?
Always lots of dad rock, lots of ’60s soul/blues stuff, and at the other end of the spectrum heaps of Griselda and grime – it’s absolute chaos. My algorithm really has its work cut out finding a balance between Central Cee and Norah Jones.
Hope St Radio, Collingwood Yards, 35 Johnston St, Collingwood, hopestradio.community, @hopestradio