Vegan foodies rejoice – chef to the (rock) stars Scott Findlay has opened a restaurant in Bondi this week, and it won’t cost you a bomb to eat like Beyoncé.
Findlay, who was trained by Gordon Ramsey, created the menu of Flave – and it’s jam-packed with the faves of his former clients, including Beyoncé, Sir Elton John, Sir Paul McCartney, Rihanna and Pink.
According to the Daily Telegraph, Findlay began working on a vegan restaurant concept with Samantha and Stuart Cook (former Zambrero’s CEO) but after COVID hit they decided to move to an at-home meal subscription service.
One of Sir Paul’s favourite dishes is one of the most popular items on the Hall Street venue’s menu.
“I actually designed this for Paul back in 2004 but the dish has evolved over the years,” Findlay said of the Ballsy Bowl.
“When I finished up with him, his wife Nancy asked for the recipe but they have gotten even better since then.”
There’s also a faux tuna dish (the So Su Me bowl) originally created for Sir Paul on the menu.
“The thing about Paul was he still liked the taste of meat and fish and cheese so we had to recreate it so it was like the real thing and also because his crew weren’t vegan,” Findlay told the Telegraph.
“On the last tour I did with him, he asked for a sushi buffet for 300 people that was totally plant based so that’s when I first designed plant based tuna which is made out of tomato and tofu – I use seaweed stock to give it that fishy taste.”
With Rod Stewart and Pink having dropped in to his other Aussie eateries, there’s a good chance you may dine with a famous face or two.
If not, Flave promises to satiate any craving with their tricky plant-based options – including Rihanna’s favourite faux chicken dish.
“This was a dish I used to make for Rihanna back in the day. It was one of her favourite dishes from her hometown,” Findlay said of the Whadda Jerk bowl.
“I even went over to Barbados and learnt how to make a proper authentic marinade.”
Flave is the first of six planned restaurants, open seven days with a menu priced from $13.50 to $24.
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