Just In: Sydney’s Grill Americano Names Its Kitchen Lead

In February, Chris Lucas – the restaurateur behind a clutch of Melbourne dining rooms, like Maison Batard, Kisume and Society – announced he was adding to his Sydney stable: Grill Americano, his polished Venetian grill restaurant on Flinders Lane, is hitting the CBD soon.

In just shy of two months, we’ll be dining in a space that mimics the breezy glamour of the blue-clad diner – but with the added grandeur of the historic Qantas House building, with its glassy wave of a facade and double-height ceilings. Much remains the same though: friendly, white-jacketed floor staff; silver service; steak and pasta aplenty – and chefs transplanted from Melbourne.

Executive chef Vincenzo Ursini is switching states for the opening, bringing over a year spent at the original Grill Americano and Michelin cred from Ristorante Reale, Le Calandre and Mugaritz.

“I love surfing,” Ursini tells Broadsheet, when asked how he’s feeling about the move. “I plan to surf the beaches every day, the weather is better.” But he’s looking forward to working, too. The Sydney kitchen is more than twice the size of Melbourne’s, and readying to deliver the largest menu in the Lucas stable.

“The menu is a very good combination of what’s been working well in Melbourne and what we think will be our bread and butter, let’s say,” he says. “There is more scope to play with seafood and offer something a bit different in terms of size.”

The largest extruder that would fit in the space is in, ready for its daily duty: silky pasta sheets to become tortellini, ravioli and agnolotti. Grill’s day-one “pasta master” Simone Giorgianni is heading north for the opening too, and Ursini shares they’ve been testing linguine, tagliatelle and pappardelle.

Harbour City exclusives include a perfect snack (crostini topped with tuna ’nduja and an anchovy), a saffron-laced seafood risotto and ravioli stuffed with buffalo ricotta. “The food is simple, clean, sharp,” says Ursini. “Sydney has an amazing seafood offering compared to Melbourne, so it gives us a good chance to explore that more – work more closely with the fish market.”

In the open kitchen, a Josper grill joins a wood oven direct from Naples, ready for a 15-part premium steak menu. “[Nearby there’s] The International, there is Rockpool, there is Hubert, there is Shell House around the corner … but we are just going to go there and bring the Melbourne experience.”

They are armed with an exceptional buffalo mozzarella, airfreighted in from Italy twice weekly, and the “best tiramisu in Australia” – with coffee-soaked layers reinforced by tempered chocolate – scooped tableside. “It’s controversial,” laughs Ursini. “It’s a very good mix of the traditional and what we’ve been able to add – I can’t give you the recipe.”

Front-of-house pro Ruaridh Macdonald (ex-Rockpool, Mimi’s, Woodcut) will be running the floor, and master sommelier Paolo Saccone has curated a lengthy wine list.

“It’s a very approachable venue or a destination place – you can come in the afternoon, super comfortable to have a drink and a couple of snacks, or come here for big nights, or at the end of the night for a dessert or amaro.”

Grill Americano will open at 1 Chifley Square, Sydney, on November 19, 2025.

grillamericano.com/sydney