With a childhood love of cooking, Rhys Connell always knew it was what he wanted to do. He spent six years as the sous chef at esteemed Japanese restaurant Sepia, in the CBD. Most recently he was at the helm of The Gantry, on the harbour. Now, he’s gearing up to open four new venues in North Sydney’s new Walker Street.

Connell joined restaurant group Etymon (Loulou, Poetica, The Charles, Tiva) as the executive chef across the four freshies: Soluna, an LA-inspired dining, bar and lounge; Genzo, a contemporary Japanese dining room with a twist; artisanal providore Una; and bakery and wine bar Sol. They're set to open on Tuesday July 9.

“The thing I love the most actually is seeing the process right now, seeing that it’s actually going into production,” Connell tells Broadsheet. “We came up with the menus six, eight weeks ago, and we’ve been refining them ever since. [It’s been a] real collaborative effort with the three head chefs, and especially with our group’s head pastry chef [Rhiann Mead].”

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Two from the Loulou team are making the move: Christan Potter’s taking on the head chef role at Sol and Thomas Craig will be the somm across all four venues; while Brendon Woodward will be head baker at Sol and Loulou. Soluna’s kitchen will be captained by Keno Perlas, (ex-Margaret, Monopole) and Tuan Colombo – who’s spent time in the Sokyo, Kyubi and Nobu London kitchens – will be heading up Genzo.

Connell’s formative experience at Sepia assists him in his menu-creation process, especially for Genzo. “I’ve been trained working for years in that Euro-Japanese restaurant, so I was really comfortable coming up with those dishes for Genzo [with Colombo],” he says.

As for the other venues, it’s been a “creative challenge. But I love that, that's what I love to do anyway. It’s comfortable in an uncomfortable way.”

Since joining Etymon a few months ago, Connell has been in a whirlwind of tastings, ideas and menu creations. Now, it’s nearly time to open the doors.

Sol, Soluna, Genzo and Una will open at 168 Walker Street, North Sydney, on Tuesday July 9.