First Look: Tom Sarafian’s Zareh Is Here

Tom Sarafian is home. After a steady stream of pop-ups, a luxe hummus, harissa and toum line and a false start or two, one of the city’s most exciting chefs finally has a place of his own.

His debut restaurant Zareh – named for his grandfather, an Armenian from Egypt who “hustled his way into Melbourne’s French restaurant scene” and instilled in his family a deep love of food – is a mashup of the people, places and pop-ups on his journey to get here. It’s a deeply personal tribute to his and partner Jinane Bou-Assi’s respective Armenian and Lebanese heritages, and diners are welcomed like family.

“What I’ve always wanted was a place that’s small and intimate and feels like home,” Sarafian tells Broadsheet. “Something super accessible but still fun and exciting enough to be celebratory and unique.”

Zareh meets the brief and then some. When Broadsheet visits, before opening night, we’re struck by the scent of spices (“That’s blood, sweat and tears and za’atar,” jokes Sarafian) and the music playing through the custom Pitt & Giblin speakers – a compilation of the Libyan cassette scene, spinning on turntables Sarafian’s owned since he was 15. There’s also a huge collection of Armenian and Lebanese vinyl.

“I’m only half-kidding when I say I just want to barbeque and play records with a really good sound system – that’s kinda half the reason I’m opening this place,” he grins.

The barbeque in question – a wood oven and charcoal pit custom-built by Samuel Fraraccio, (aka The Brick Chef ) – is the setting for a smoky line-up of crisp-skinned rainbow trout, blushing harissa-spiced lamb cutlets, and an outstanding chicken kebab served with toum and pickled green chilli.

To start though, you’ll snack on bastourma toast – billowing slices of Armenian cured beef served over thin slices of charcoal-grilled sourdough from Akimbo , goat’s cheese, herbs and barbequed marinated peppers. “It’s everything you’d serve separately on an Armenian table … but it’s all wrapped up in one bite,” says Sarafian.

That sits alongside kafta nayyeh, a raw lamb dish made the southern Lebanese way, with frakeh spices (dried rose petals, marjoram, chilli, cumin and allspice) and topped with sliced radishes and fried pita. The paired dishes are a statement of intent for Zareh, a showcase of the intertwined culinary heritage of both countries.

“Armenians brought the spice and the heat to Lebanon,” says Sarafian. “And there’s a huge Lebanese influence in Armenia – people eat hummus at home every day and that’s from the Arabs. It’s a beautiful thing.”

Naturally, Sarafian is serving his signature hummus with Fraser Isle spanner crab and Mooloolaba prawns – the same way he served it at many pop-ups as well as at Bar Saracen , a Covid casualty and the last restaurant he worked at permanently before Zareh. It’s scooped up with saj, an unleavened Middle Eastern flatbread, which Bou-Assi’s mother taught the chefs to make.

The family ties run deep: Sarafian’s brother and cousin are both working in the restaurant; and the kitchen’s maroon tiles and retro glass sliding door are inspired by his grandparents’ home. In the dining room, soft green banquettes, pink-hued limestone walls and tahini-coloured curtains draw from the colours of Beirut houses.

“I really hope what we’re doing here inspires people to travel to Armenia, to Lebanon, to Egypt, to anywhere in the Arab world. Because these places are so beautiful,” says Sarafian.

A retail section stocks Sarafian’s products alongside Lebanese mouneh – pantry staples like vinegar, honey, jams, spices and preserves – thanks to a partnership with the mother-daughter team behind Droubna in Lebanon. “Some of these products people will never have heard of before, but these are ingredients we grew up with so we’re really excited to share them,” says Bou-Assi.

The food is backed by a top-tier drinks list featuring Lebanese arak (anise liquor) three ways. Choose between original, za’atar and coffee arak (the latter’s “nice for the end of a meal”, says Sarafian) served with still or sparkling water. The anise liquor also laces the soon-to-be-signature Martini, with an optional Gilda that’s destined to become mandatory.

There’s also a strong brandy offering (“Apparently Stalin made all the Armenians turn their wine into brandy,” says Sarafian, “so they got really good at making it”) and Lebanese and Armenian wines, including a natty orange from Lebanon’s Mersel Wines and a deliciously fruity, herbaceous red made with Armenian grape varieties tigrani and karmrahyut.

“We want people to enjoy themselves like we would when we go to Lebanon or Armenia,” says Bou-Assi, “where you go and have the best time because you’re enjoying music and laughing and eating delicious food. It’s the whole experience.”

“We want to make it fun,” adds Sarafian. “We want people to take the food seriously, because we’re cooking at a high level with incredible quality ingredients – but we want it to be exciting.”

Zareh opens for dinner on Wednesday August 20, before adding lunches and weekend breakfasts later in spring.

Zareh
368 Smith Street, Collingwood
03 9070 0733

Hours:
Wed to Sat 5.30pm–11pm

zareh.com.au
@zareh.melbourne