French Chef Dominque Crenn will open Petit Crenn this October, marking her first restaurant in Australia.
Crenn is the chef and co-owner of Atelier Crenn in San Francisco. In 2018, she became the first female chef in the United States to be awarded three Michelin stars.
She is also a James Beard Award nominee, World’s 50 Best Icon Award recipient, and one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People of 2024.
Her portfolio also includes Crenn, Café Dior by Dominique Crenn in Dallas, and Monsieur Dior by Dominique Crenn in Beverly Hills.
“Petit Crenn comes from my own life, from the cafes in France where you can sit for five minutes or five hours and always feel welcome,” says Crenn.
“I’ve wanted to bring that feeling to Australia for a long time, and Melbourne, with its curiosity and its love of good food, felt like exactly the right place to do it. I can’t wait to open the doors and share this with the city,”
The intimate 40-seat Melbourne venue will reflect Crenn’s approach to everyday French bistro cooking, drawing from her childhood memories, and guided by seasonality and simplicity.
The concept is inspired by the comptoirs of Paris, and is built for coffee and pastries in the morning, as well as lunches and cocktails from afternoon into the evening.
Guests can expect signatures including steak tartare with egg yolk jam and sauce au poivre, alongside a croque madame with jambon and gruyère. The menu will also feature seasonal tartines, salads, caviar, and daily French classics which celebrate timeless French cooking through Crenn’s contemporary perspective.
The venue will also offer a changing plat du jour, with dishes including French raviole with onion consommé, and moules with preserved lemon and beurre de baratte.
Salter Brothers Director of Culinary Matthew Butcher says Petit Crenn is a landmark moment for Australian dining.
“Dominique Crenn is one of the world’s most celebrated culinary voices and to bring her vision to Australia for the first time is incredibly special,” says Butcher.
“Petit Crenn reflects exactly the type of partnership we are focused on building: globally recognised talent, a distinctive hospitality concept, and a city with the energy and appetite to embrace it. Melbourne is the right place, and this is the right moment.”
The venue is designed by Crenn herself, supported by Salter Brothers’ design team. It will draw on the landscapes and coastline of Brittany which is Crenn’s home region in France.
Petit Crenn at 495 Collins St is set to open in October. Further details, including the exact opening date will be announced closer to the launch.
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