Brown Street Grill, an Atypical Brewery Restaurant, Opens at East Perth’s Bright Tank Brewing

The good people of East Perth have a major auto-mechanic chain to thank for their latest dining option.

“I was getting my tyres changed at Kmart Tyre & Auto and thought I’d pop up and see [owners] Gemma and Matt at Bright Tank Brewing and pitch my idea to them,” says Stuart Laws, a long-serving chef perhaps best known for opening Don Tapa, as well as his heavy involvement in Fremantle food incubator The Mantle (now The Sunshine Harvester Works). He had been (unsuccessfully) looking for somewhere to open a grill-style restaurant since autumn. “They jumped at the chance.”

It helped, of course, that Laws has worked as a consultant to the 120-seat East Perth brewpub, and that owners Gemma Sampson and Matt Moore appreciated his producer-led approach to cooking. After quietly taking over the kitchen in August and getting a feel for the customers and their eating habits, Laws and wife Phoebe Laws set about rebuilding their new workplace. The result is Brown Street Grill, a restaurant that says yes to woodfired cooking and WA ingredients while eschewing the usual brewery food tropes.

“When you’re dining at a winery, you’re going for the food – why should breweries be any different?” says Laws. “Why shouldn’t you come for the food and enjoy the beer, as opposed to coming for the beer and then just maybe having some chips?”

In terms of hardware, a Melbourne-built Mesiano woodfired pizza oven – the first in Western Australia – has been installed in the kitchen, as has a custom-built grill from Bakers Hill grill manufacturers, JAGRD. The open kitchen and pass (guests receive a beeper and collect their food) have been designed so diners can watch the chefs in action and talk to Laws during service.

Food-wise, Laws is adopting a less-is-more approach. Chicken is chargrilled and served with a miso-corn puree and cucumber salad; cauliflower is roasted with ras el hanout spice and paired with harissa chickpeas and dill-spiked yoghurt; and pizzas feature high-end combinations such as Shark Bay crab and guanciale, and zucchini, goat’s curd and jamon. Takeaway (Sunday roasts!) and ticketed dinners will also form part of the Brown Street Grill offering.

“I want it to be simple and let the ingredients speak for themselves, but I also want it to be extremely tasty,” says Laws. “Everything is three components, no more.”

Although beer will form a major part of Brown Street Grill’s drinks list, Bright Tank Brewing’s license also allows guests to order wine and cocktails with their food.

Brown Street Grill
100 Brown Street, East Perth

Hours:
Wed & Thu 4pm–9pm
Fri & Sat 12pm–10pm
Sun 12pm–8pm

brownstreetgrill.com.au