Joe Kitsana is among the hardest-working chefs in the hospitality industry, and he has no plans to change course. Here's why.
The restaurant
Sydney's best restaurant? Joe's Table. For anyone who has ever met Joe Kitsana, this statement needs no explanation. Kitsana has been a fixture in the city's culinary scene for over 20 years, especially at Longrain (where he worked from its opening in 1999 until 2006) and later at Sailors Thai and Phamish. In June 2016, he transformed the neighborhood bar Kings Lane Sandwiches into a Thai restaurant that he ran entirely on his own. Receptionist, waiter, dishwasher, head chef – it's simply Joe. On paper, it might seem crazy, but Kitsana handles it all with surprising calm, as he tells broadsheet.com.
"I usually set up the station at 10, then lunch starts at 12:30, and I cook," says Kitsana. "I close at three and immediately start preparing dinner. Then I continue, and when the customers leave around 11, I clean up. I finish my day around 2:30 in the morning." It's a schedule that most of us would refuse to follow, but Kitsana considers it an exact science.
When the time came to move and reopen his restaurant in a larger space, he wrapped everything up in a couple of weeks, announcing the move on Instagram in mid-July and welcoming his first guests on Tuesday, August 29. If Joe were a character in the second season of The Bear, it would only take one episode to tell the opening story.
The new space – just 500 meters from the original location, at the corner of Bourke and William Street – has double the capacity and can accommodate up to 40 people. "I usually don't do a full service for 40 people, maybe I only serve 25 or 30 guests at most," says Kitsana. "I just want this place to make me feel at home, like I'm in my living room."
Just like in his original restaurant, the new location offers two tastings every evening and an à la carte menu that reflects Kitsana's experience and attention to detail. The crispy Hanoi-style chicken spring rolls served with nuoc cham sauce and fresh herbs are an absolute must, as are the soft and doughy gnocchi with an unusual (but delicious) filling of garlic and chives swimming in a mix of chili, ginger, and soy sauce. Kitsana also brings back old favorites: braised and pan-fried pork and crispy lemon chicken. And with news that will reassure regular customers, he concludes his conversation like this: "I won't change anything. Just a new space and the same old Joe."
Cover photos: @Edwina Pickles
