Gallery: Broadsheet Access Readers’ Lunch at Entrecote in Le Conservatoire

Hot Listed restaurant Entrecote has evolved a lot in its first 10 years. What was initially a pop-up on Domain Road enjoyed a solid run in South Yarra before moving to Prahran in 2021.

Owner Jason Jones calls the venue Entrecote’s “forever home”. And it’s where he recently hosted a Broadsheet Access readers’ lunch to celebrate the restaurant’s first decade in business and his new book documenting all the adventures along the way. Plus, not incidentally, his recent 50th birthday.

At the sold-out event in Entrecote’s “Le Conservatoire” courtyard space, suitably chic Access members sat at three rows of long tables and enjoyed free-flowing wine and chatter. They were treated to King Louis XIV boulette (spiced beef croquette), topinambours et Gruyere (sunchoke tartlet with Gruyere cream) and Saint-Pierre poêlé (pan-fried dory with leek fondue and beurre blanc). Then, for dessert, a classic vanilla bean crème brûlée to really round out the decadent meal.

Signed copies of Entrecote: Depuis 2015 were snapped up on the day, and the publication – part memoir, part recipe book, part decadent scrapbook – was discussed at length during a Q&A with Jones and Broadsheet editorial director Katya Wachtel.

Both sat on mustard velvet stools for the interview – grand thrones for a grand story, though there was nothing too stuffy about the affair. Jones is known as a raconteur and a welcoming host – it’s his MO to treat guests as if they’re friends at his place for lunch, which was very much in evidence on the day.

Jones told the crowd about celebrating three milestones at once, and how the restaurant endured over the years before finding its “forever home” in Prahran. He detailed the grand interiors – including items he and husband Brahman Perera have collected over the years – and the history behind the space’s wood panelling and chandeliers. Jones also reflected on writing the book and how he was able to remember key moments from decades ago with extraordinary intensity.

If you missed out, don’t worry. Access hosts exclusive restaurant previews like this whenever there’s a hot new venue opening in Melbourne or Sydney (or a fabulous food-related publication to launch). To stay in the know, and nab your seat at the next one, subscribe to Broadsheet and join our membership program today.

Entrecote: Depuis 2015 by Jason Jones is available now.