Celebrity chef Curtis Stone to open high-end events space in Melbourne
Celebrity chef Curtis Stone is opening a 120-person events space called Grace, that will give wedding goers a Michelin star experience.
The LA-based chef is bringing his experience back home to Melbourne, with the venue to be housed in the former Richmond Hill Cafe & Larder site.
Stone runs two restaurants in Los Angeles as well as a catering business, which he launched in 2018. While he added an Australian arm to the catering business in 2020, Grace will be the first permanent events venue in the country.
Grace will host weddings, parties and functions associated with Melbourne's many sporting grounds nearby.
"In the States, we have always come at [catering] with a really premium attitude," Stone says. "In Australia, it's a different market … which I love. You're not just working on Rodeo Drive."
Stone is currently working with executive chef Travis McAuley (ex-Hellenic Republic and Press Club) on menus, which will include top-quality ingredients and follow Australian and US dining trends such as the plant based menu implemented for the SAG (Screen Actors Guild) Awards.
Silver service is also a high priority.
Events can be booked from November; however, racegoers will be able to sample the wares during the Melbourne Cup carnival, with Stone catering the carpark and nursery.
The venue is named after Stone’s best friend and business partner Chris Sheldon.
There are no plans to open a restaurant in Melbourne until his children have finished school in LA.
"I'd want to do a proper job and be here," he said.
Irit Jackson, 25th July 2022
