Lucy Liu Kitchen & Bar
As a 22 year old Zac Cribbes ambitiously walked into Taxi Dining Room and asked acclaimed head chef Michael Lambie for a job. He even offered to work for free in return for the tutelage.
Fast forward to 2016, he is not only head chef of Melbourne’s favourite neon-lit restaurant, Lucy Liu, he also co-owns it with Michael Lambie.
Over the years dining has evolved greatly, from the fine dining experience of Taxi to the fast natured and fun atmosphere of Lucy Liu.
“Taxi was an experience accompanied with matched wines that would often last hours…now the scene is very casual and very fast paced…you can be here 20 minutes or you can have a few cocktails and be here hours.”
Inspired by the authentic bold flavours he experienced travelling through South East Asia, Zac was determined to bring the same bold flavours to the dishes at Lucy Liu.
“Asian food should be an attack on your taste buds…the flavours should be punchy and so if it’s really spicy, hot, sour and sweet then it hits the mark. I honestly believe our food does that.”
These flavours can be experienced in dishes like the barramundi and scampi dumplings that utilise chili and ginger to attack your tastebuds or more notedly the yellow fin tuna tataki that contrasts apple ponzu with wasabi.
When Zac first started he could not have envisaged food delivery becoming so prominent, but at Lucy Liu it makes sense. As a restaurant it is blessed with a sizeable kitchen and most nights it is difficult to find a seat.
“With such a large kitchen we hardly notice the extra dockets that UberEATS brings, because we’ve always had the capacity to do more, we just can’t seat more.”
At a recent private dinner that Zac auctioned off for Scarf, a charity that trains refugees in the hospitality industry, the guest who generously bid for the opportunity joked that instead of having Zac cook for him, he could have simply ordered UberEATS.
You can try Zac’s cooking by ordering Lucy Liu on UberEATS.