Now Open: Flame-Powered Dining Heats Up Coogee Bay Road at Yana
Words by Aimee Chanthadavong · Published on 16 Jan 2024
Growing up in country Victoria, Sam Lane recalls there was always a campfire burning somewhere nearby. A warm smokiness in the air. Lane has tried to recreate this childhood atmosphere at Yana, the restaurant that opened in the old Temple Bay site late last year. Dark pints of Guinness have been swapped for chargrilled dishes, with the Coogee kitchen centred around a hearth primed for open-flame cooking. Lane (ex- Corner House , Farmhouse), Yana’s head chef, will be its captain.
“The concept of Yana comes from the experience of everyone gathering around the fire to tell stories,” Lane tells Broadsheet. Yana is an acronym for “you are not alone”.
These rural memories inspired the Bondi-based chef to develop a menu heroing seasonal produce from local suppliers – like barramundi from Humpty Doo in the Northern Territory, chicken from Altitude Farms near Orange, and beef from the Hunter Valley’s Binnie Beef and the Southern Highlands’ Dandaraga Springs. “There’s a lot of people making money off other people’s hard work, and I’d rather showcase who put in the work,” Lane says.
Dining at Yana could mean snacking on a beef tartare topped with a glistening golden yolk and preserved lemon gremolata, ferried by house-made chips. There’s a whole barramundi cooked over flames with scorched citrus, and a half chook zestily dressed in chilli, butter, lemon and thyme. A whopping one-kilo bistecca – grass-fed T-bone – is served with oregano verde.
But it’s not just the mains getting the woodfire treatment. It’s the sides, too. Cabbage is charred and doused in a walnut and Campari dressing, while grilled broccolini sings alongside whipped ricotta, chilli butter and lemon. For dessert, go camping. Yana’s take on a s’more spotlights a Davidson’s plum marshmallow, which is toasted and then served with a chocolate biscuit and strawberry gum jam. The flamed meringue is also excellent: a fruity serve of berries, passionfruit curd, berry jam and orange, topped with oregano.
Yana’s just a moment from the beach. For thirst-quenching, the agave and passionfruit-laced Yana Spritz is a no-brainer. So too is the Caribbean Linen, where St-Germain meets rum, lime and cucumber. The wine list is a crowd-pleaser – wide-reaching and priced for any budget.
There are two storeys to play in here. The main dining room occupies the ground floor; this is where the open kitchen’s woodfire hearth burns and a chef’s table overlooks all the action. Head upstairs for something more relaxed – maybe lean into the snacks menu, where cold-cuts (mortadella and air-dried bresaola, for starters) meet arancini and plates of pickled veg, and a snappier drinks list. If you’re lucky, you’ll nab the tiny sun-soaked balcony spot overlooking Coogee’s main drag.
Eventually, Lane wants to take Yana beyond the restaurant’s four walls. “I want to do things externally, host community events at farms,” he says. “I think restaurants these days have all the lights and cameras, but they don’t have any real connection. I don’t think we’re there as a restaurant yet, but it’s where we will be. I want to establish a community with Yana.”
Yana
244 Coogee Bay Road, Coogee
0424 571 250
Hours:
Tue to Thu 4pm–10pm
Fri 4pm–11pm
Sat midday–11pm
Sun midday–10pm
